Welcome to this issue of the Beany Brain! I hope today’s newsletter will bounce us up as we contemplate the upsides and challenges of being neurodivergent, a little beauty, some creativity, and just general yeehawesomeness.

Table of Contents

• Welcome to this issue of the Beany Brain! I hope t …

• Build-A-Brain

  • Amen!

    • Yeehawesome!

Build-A-Brain

God made me a good brain—I can’t deny that. I will keep it, thanks. Definitely not ready for a trade-in.

And also, sometimes I need a little bit (or a lot) of help with focus and getting stuff done.

Anyone else have piles of paper? (Be careful how you say this in the UK—my British friends thought it was absolutely hilarious when I told them about my “piles.”)

Over the last year, I’ve been perfecting my brain-paper-life-schedule system. I think it’s getting there.

(How did I live without this all those years?)

OK, technically it’s not 100% paper based because I heavily utilize Google Calendar. I just have to throw that in there as a caveat.

So here’s what I do:

I sit myself down every Sunday night. Then I take a big martyr’s sigh because I’d rather be reading a nice novel .

My weekly schedule copies are ready because every 6 weeks or so I make a batch of photocopies at 7-11 in our neighborhood, using my templates that I keep handy.

Using actual real paper from trees for my template and copies, I use one A4 (similar in size to 8X11.5) sheet for three days. Each day is in a vertical column, and I have written Mon, Tues, and Wed for the first sheet, and Thurs, Fri, Sat for the second sheet. I leave space to write in the current date for each day.

I have a set list of things I do every day, using abbreviations for some things. (For example, “OJ” is not orange juice as one might guess. It’s Operation Japan, a daily prayer book that takes you through Japan in a year.) Beside each item I have drawn a little square box and that, my friends, is where my brain juices get excited. When I can put a little check mark in each box, the dopamine levels go up up up. Yes, Abigail, you did it, girlfriend!!!

For the blank spaces at the bottom half of each daily column, I use my handy-dandy Google Calendar to write in more items that are coming up, plus chores I want to get done, topics I want to blog, etc. Anything and everything goes in. It’s my Build-A-Brain Dump Paper.

Now, for the even more exciting part: I bought myself some clear plastic folders and a folder box! Organizing my papers a couple weeks ago and labeling the folders and putting them in that beautiful box was like one giant check mark. CHECKMATE. Check, mate. As in check me out. I’m awesome.

There are two folders in the box for my weekly schedules too: one for my templates and one for the extra copies.

While I’m writing down my weekly schedule and plans, I also make a menu for the week based on timings and seasonality. Do I need to get something in the slow cooker in the morning because I have an appointment in the late afternoon and won’t be able to cook later? Is it too hot for soup? Is corn on the cob in season? And because I’m building my brain, I also build a grocery list at the same time.

Let me tell you, I have tried apps and online systems and I get frustrated with them and just don’t stick with it. For some reason my autistic and anxious and ADHD brain needs actual real tangible paper and pen.

This is my system and I’m stickin’ to it. For now. And because I’m ADHD I could change it up anytime. Just sayin’.

My brain is a-firin’, folks. Have I created more neural pathways or just made my current ones happy? I have no idea.

Either way, it feels good.

(One tricky caveat: Trying not to berate myself when I don’t check all the boxes. Another post about that soon, perhaps?)

Amen!

Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist in the US, has some great ideas that have helped me with my thinking. You can watch this video of him talking about having a healthy brain or just look through the main points I gleaned from it:

1. Get 8 hours of sleep.

2. Use blue-light blockers on your devices after dark. (I haven’t tried this yet.)

3. At bedtime ask yourself, “What went well today?” Look for micromoments of happiness from your day and this will set you up to have more positive dreams.

4. In the morning when you get up, say, “Today’s going to be a great day!” This resets your brain to look forward to the day instead of dreading it.

5. Eat protein and healthy fats, plus polyphenols such as blueberries and strawberries.

6. Move your body.

Number 3, asking myself what went well during the day, has especially helped me as my anxious brain tends to be a speedracer at bedtime. I’d like to focus more on getting 8 hours of sleep and reminding myself in the morning that it’s going to be a good day.

Have you tried any of these? If not, which would you go for and how do you think they could encourage and support you?

I need all the brain buoying that I can get.

Bring on a healthier mind! So be it and amen to that.

Yeehawesome!

Yeehawesome! will be a happy-brain roundup in each issue of Beany Brain. What’s happening that’s good in brain land? What’s bringing me joy?

1. See the green bottle above? I’ve had so so so much fun doing a photo series this week on colors—focusing on one color each day. It’s brought me a lot of joy. It comes back to harnessing my Noticing Superpower. I’m wearing a color cape this week. :)

2. Anyone else an “Edward Scissorhands” fan? I refused to watch it for years and then in the last few years decided it’s a must-see—it’s a classic. I’m so glad I did. It’s not an easy ending but there’s so much in it about love for an outsider and love from an outsider, and it totally makes sense that the director, Tim Burton, is autistic. Plus I love the scenes set in and near Lakeland, where my grandparents and extended family live(d). I totally recognized that retro Publix!

3. The other day I went to visit a friend in a nearby neighborhood—she used to live on our street and they recently built a house and moved, so I miss her and her kids. Anyhoo, I was standing outside in their driveway having a chat as I was just about to leave, and a neighbor kid came out of her house next door and shouted over to ask if I was my friend’s kids’ grandma. Hahahahaha! I’ve never been mistaken for a grandma before, let alone an ethnically Japanese grandma, so that was a hoot and totally made my day. I laughed so hard later when I told my husband! What has brought you a big guffaw lately?

Thank you for reading this installment of Beany Brain! You’re very welcome to hop on by any old time.

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