I hope you have developed good coping strategies for this. It’s really hard to navigate in the moment! But if you have a good structure for how you approach it, it can really help. For me personally:

- I have a very large set of (recurring, time specific, urgent, and lax) reminders

- I have very clear expectations of removing myself physically from situations that make me feel stuck, and taking dedicated and time bounded breaks

- I have a very internal/non-verbal separate monologue for forgiving myself, particularly when the harm I may have done or be doing is to myself (I’m a very verbal internal monologue person otherwise)

- I reset and recalibrate goals/ambitions/expectations frequently

- I find ways to allow myself helpful fictions and know I’m lying. (Side note: it’s worth noting that many neurodivergent disorders commonly overlap; I’m not diagnosed ASD but strongly suspect I’ll get a positive diagnosis when I’m able to seek one; lying to myself is generally only possible when I acknowledge the falsehood somehow)

- And as mentioned, I create artificial rewards that unblock when I feel blocked. Being (now based on comment feedback) hesitant to describe this as relating to literal dopamine... I give myself invented victories and milestones that are only meaningful and exciting to me, so I can carry on to the next step or stage of a thing I need or want to do

I have no idea if any of this will help. But even just getting external validation of your experience can help. It’s awful to feel like something other people find easy is difficult, when you know you’re generally a capable or even talented person.

I hope however you navigate this, you know you’re not navigating it alone and the things that seem impossible inexplicably aren’t because you’re doing it wrong.