"Where Did the Time Go?" — ADHD, Time Blindness & How to Take Back Control
If you’ve ever looked up from your phone, planner, or laptop and thought, “Wait… how is it already 4PM?!” — you’ve likely experienced time blindness, one of the lesser-known but incredibly disruptive symptoms of ADHD.
Whether it’s underestimating how long things take, struggling to transition between tasks, or simply losing track of time entirely, time blindness can make everyday life feel chaotic and unpredictable.
And I get it — not just from a mentor's perspective, but from lived experience.
In this article, we’ll explore what ADHD time blindness actually is (and isn’t), why it happens, and what you can do about it — with support and science to back you up.
🧠 What Is Time Blindness?
Time blindness isn’t just being “bad at time management.” It’s a neurological difference in how people with ADHD perceive, estimate, and emotionally relate to time.
According to ADHD researcher Dr. Russell Barkley, time blindness stems from differences in the brain’s executive function systems, particularly in the prefrontal cortex, which makes it harder to:
🔄 Understand how long things take
⏰ Accurately predict future events or deadlines
🚪 Start or stop tasks on time
📅 Connect “future you” with “present you”
It’s not about laziness — it’s about how the ADHD brain literally experiences time differently (Barkley, 2001).
😵💫 What Time Blindness Feels Like
If any of these feel familiar, you're not alone:
You forget appointments, even though you care about them
You start a simple task and emerge from a 3-hour rabbit hole
You procrastinate not because you're unmotivated, but because you can't feel the urgency until it’s too late
You're either rushing like mad or zoning out — there’s no in-between
Living with time blindness can impact everything: your confidence, your relationships, your job, and your mental health.
📚 The Research Behind It
A number of studies show that individuals with ADHD struggle with temporal processing, prospective memory, and time estimation. One study found that people with ADHD are significantly less accurate in tasks that require estimating durations or intervals (Toplak et al., 2006).
This isn’t just frustrating — it contributes to what researchers call “functional impairments” in daily life. Things like:
Missed deadlines
Late fees
Constant apologising
Shame cycles that erode self-trust
But here’s the hopeful part: there are ways to work with your brain, not against it.
🧭 How Mentoring Can Help with Time Blindness
In ADHD mentoring, we focus on practical tools, self-compassion, and accountability — all of which are crucial when time doesn’t play fair.
Here’s how we tackle time blindness together:
⏳ Externalise Time
We use visual timers, alarms, planners, and gentle structure to make time visible and trackable. You don’t have to rely on your brain alone anymore.
📅 Break It Down
Big, vague goals like “do uni work” become clear, time-bound steps like “read 2 pages before 11am.” Specificity helps you act instead of freeze.
🪞 Reflect on Patterns
Together, we track when time gets slippery — and build systems that actually work for your rhythms, not the ones you think you “should” follow.
❤️ Practice Self-Compassion
You’re not lazy. You’re navigating a brain that doesn’t perceive time like others. That’s not a flaw — it’s a fact we can work with.
🔁 From Overwhelm to Ownership
Mentoring isn’t about “fixing” your time blindness — it’s about giving you tools, support, and space to understand it. And once you understand it, you can start building strategies that reduce the chaos and give you back a sense of control.
You deserve to live a life that doesn’t feel like it’s constantly slipping through your fingers.
If you're tired of apologising, rushing, or feeling behind, mentoring might be the support you’ve been looking for.
🧾 References
Barkley, R. A., Koplowitz, S., Anderson, T., & McMurray, M. B. (2001). Sense of time in children with ADHD: Effects of duration, distraction, and stimulant medication. Developmental Neuropsychology, 20(2), 193–218. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15326942DN2503_3
Toplak, M. E., Rucklidge, J. J., Hetherington, R., John, S. C. F., & Tannock, R. (2006). Time perception deficits in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and comorbid reading difficulties in child and adolescent samples. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 47(8), 860–870. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2006.01611.x