Following somebody else's comment about how "taxes" help build communities, I'm now calling it ADHD fees (or ADHD hidden fees if you prefer the long version)

That whole situation sucks. I like to buy rock climbing pants because lots of them have zipper pockets while still looking like typical chinos.

Oh man. I've done it a few times. The worst part is all the paper work and phone calls to replace the important stuff. Ugh. Best wishes to you.

As somebody who still struggles with this immensely, the phrase I've heard that I've been trying to internalize recently is, "don't put it down. Put it away".

That said, horizontal surfaces are still my arch nemesis. All they do is attract clutter.

Edit: for my wallet, putting it away means putting it on my bedside table or in the left pocket of the pair of pants I will be wearing the next day. By sticking to those two places, I've definitely done a lot better about not losing it

I've also had lots of facepalm moments like this. so much that it's contributed to my OCD and unwanted thoughts/recollections.

dunno if this would work for you, but one of my strategies is to attach important things to my body or clothes (but not jackets, hats, or other items that can be easily taken off).

useful tools for this:

• neck or cross-body lanyard (for phone, keys, heavy things)
• stretchy lanyard or chain
• retracting badge reel
• Fanny packs/bum bags/sling bags
• customizable molle gear and pouches

along with these, i adopted a policy of never setting things down on a public/outdoor surface. the object is always in one of two locations: my hand, or it's designated pouch/pocket.

lol, I think I threw my wallet in the dumpster before a backpacking trip one time, because I think I had it in hand when taking out the trash. 3 hours later on the car ride up I realized I didn’t have it on me, and never found it

I've been getting so pissed off recently with the amount of care and effort I have to put into husbanding all of these things. And the moment I loosen my grip even slightly I get punished terribly by losing or accidentally destroying something important and having to do a buggerload of extra work as a consequence.

The feeling it produces is like something like claustrophobia.

For example, I had an irreplaceable immobiliser fob for my old car. Of course I lost it, and had to laboriously input a numerical code by turning the key back and forth according to blinking light each and every single time I wanted to start the car.

After about 9 months of this ballache I incredibly found the fob hung on a field gate a couple of miles away from where I live, and was amazed that it still worked with just a fresh battery. From that point on I religiously and unfailingly kept the fob tied to my trousers at all times.

Then one day I took it off my trousers outdoors for the first time and boom - gone again instantly.

Except this time I had also lost the code I was putting in with the key turns. I literally had to sit in my car going through the 10,000 possible four-digit codes until I worked out what it was again. It took hours and I had to concentrate the entire time.

I think wallets are a bad system we are all taught to use. Trying to use the system harder doesn't fix the problem, it just increases the stress. Instead I recommend trying what I have done.

I have a belt with some bags attached. They are Molle bags because they are useful, but anything would do. My car/house keys have a clip and my wallet, first aid kit, power bank, and other everyday items have pouches they live in. In order to leave the house I must, by definition, have my belt with all my stuff.

I think of it like a safety interlock. If you literally cannot run the blender with the lid off you cannot put your hand in while it is running. It is a type of passive safety and allows you to spend no mental energy trying to remember things, the reminder is built in to the system not your mind.

Have you tried setting an alarm?

Sorry, I've just been hit too much recently with useless suggestions on how to solve all my problems to resist posting that. heh.

I'm sorry, that sucks. :(

I'm going through my own ADHD tax - we moved in Virginia and I can't log in to pay personal property tax and I need to call thm to find out what to do so it's slowly getting later and later on it. heh. The fees aren't much but I think if I don't resolve it in another month or so, it might escalate to unpleasant things........ so I just need to call. heh

I went to the DMV for a title transfer and forgot...the title.