Chronic procrasination and AS

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I have always been a chronic procrasinator to the point that in college it really impacted my life. If I did not want to do it or if it requried a change of routine then I would keep putting it off.

Any ideas as what to do???

I often have the same issue. It really disrupts my school work sometimes. I notice that if I make lists of what needs to be done, and then maybe even plan what day I'm going to do which assignment, I'm more likely to get on with it.

In school I would usually fuss and fret over deadlines, approaching near panic as they neared, then somehow whip something out (most of the time anyway) at the last minute. This really stressed me out a lot.

I have learned some techniques from zen buddhism about living in the now moment, about doing what needs to be done as soon as you see it or think of it instead of postponing it for later. While I don't always do this, I do this more than I used to and it has helped me some.

Is chronic procrastination an actual disorder? I'd say Homer Simpson has it if so

Anyways, just tell yourself go to and bloody do whatever it is that needs doing. When I procrastinate, actually getting myself to do whatever it is turns out to be the hard part, and once I start doing it I generally get absorbed in it.

Will yourself to do what you don't want to. Or just go with it, that's what I usually do. I am making efforts though.

Procrastination is a matter of setting priorities.

It is probably easier for Aspies to procrastinate then NT’s, because we get distracted so easily. At the same time, there is no clinical reason why Aspies should be lazy or lack conscientiousness. Instead I’ve seen a lot of Aspies use the “I’m not right in the head” excuse for bad behavior. After all, it’s a lot easier to just play WoW all night and then tell your parents – “I couldn’t help myself because of my disorder”, than it is to study. I know this from my own life because I flunked out of high school by procrastinating.

A lot of Aspies also become extremely productive individuals. During my undergraduate college, I complete 3 B.S. degrees and a minor (211.5 semester hours) in 5 and a half years. At the same time, I paid for school by working 35 hours per week and still had plenty of time for video games and drinking. In a way I kept myself from procrastinating by simply having too much to do. There was always something else interesting to work on, but all of it had to do with advancing my goals.

So I’ve been on both sides of the coin, lazy and high-achieving. The key is to have a goal or have a need. If other people are willing to take care of you, why not be lazy, right?! If you have a goal then you can make a plan to achieve it and it becomes a simple matter of accomplishing the tasks in that plan. Since I get distracted, I usually work towards several goals at the same time. Helps keep me centered.

I'm a chronic procrastinator, no way around it. Will myself to get the job done? That's very funny. But I have found a way to make my procrastination useful. Let's say I'm procrastinating about Task A. That builds up a certain nervous energy--at some level even I want to complete Task A, just not enough to actually do it. Then a new Task B comes along, and the nervous energy is higher: nothing is getting done. So I allow myself to let Task B slide and apply the nervous energy from both tasks to completing Task A. I'm still a procrastinator, still behind, but, hey, I don't go completely under water.

i hate doping things because i see all the imperfections

everything i do is imperfect so i have a voice in my head saying why do it, it wont be the best anyway.

So i have to leave things like work projects to the last minute so i actually do them because i need toi be paid but it doesnt give me enough time to reflect on the imperfections.

Same with domestic tasks

I have the same experiences and I'm very upset with myself for it. Usually because I'll never measure up to the others and never accomplish what I want.

Thank you for all your ideas and sharing your struggles.
Most of my problems with procrassination come from the fact that I have a hard time changing activities...it is the transition to a new activity that causes the problem. I get alot of anxiety and nervousness about the change in activity that I wear myself out worrying about it, before I even get it. I have found that lists do help, and a plan helps too, but even then sometimes the anxiety about changing activities gets the better of me. Once I am in the new activity, I get emersed in it and the process starts over again about the next task.

My phone has a calendar function where you can set reminders with alarms.
I set TWO alarms- one to remind me that I need to do something, and another one 5 minutes later to jolt me into action.