Has Lego helped you with your ADHD or OCD

mh3490

I have seen in many posts people referencing their OCD and ADHD and i myself have ADHD and have found lego to be a relaxing and nondrug therapy for me and was wondering if anyone else has felt the same way and would be willing to share. If there has been a thread on this in the past I apologize and by no means am I trying to encourage people to share the experiences unless they would like to.

Yodalicious

Short answer, mostly because I'm getting ready for work after a week and a half off for vacation and then hurricane, yes. 

I have OCD and LEGO (and video games for that matter) have helped a lot. Mostly because there's an end result to accomplish...build the thing (beat the game). Coming out of my dark ages has done wonders for my OCD. I truly believe that and am not just saying that so my wife will be open to me buying more LEGO (wink!).

AllBrick

It's helped me calm down somewhat,  never have as much time and space as I want with the stuff though. 

I have also discovered that Lego is a go to comforter for me, I can get quite down sometimes and when it happens, treating myself to a set or two cheers me up no end. 

Bulk buys to sort are for the ADHD / OCD side of me.

This thread has most people's comments regarding the subject. ...

http://bricksetforum.com/discussion/23377/hands-up-if-youre-on-the-spectrum

Jackad7

Im not sure if it helps but I definitely notice an OCD part of me when dealing with Legos. If I have a set that is missing or has a small amount of substituted parts (but not enough to warrant a BL order) it will be constantly stuck in the back of my mind. I also hate how I always feel behind with getting sets/figures.  However finishing sets is incredibly satisfying. 

Oldfan

^This. I feel that if you have OCD tendencies, LEGO will only serve to exasperate and reinforce those tendencies.  That said, if part of the joy in your life is sorting things into their proper places, then LEGO can be a great hobby for you!

Jern92

I know it has helped me with my anxiety, by allowing me to focus my mind on purely building instead of letting it run wild with the worst conclusions imaginable for various situations in my life. Some days I just gt overwhelmed by things that I just want to sit down, open up a new box of Lego, and build till the bad thoughts go away.

Of course, Lego is so expensive that spending money on it also becomes a source of anxiety. Such a dilemma.

Gremer

I have OCD and it makes it worse. For example, basically all day I've been worrying about which X-Wing to get (75102 or 75149). I ended up choosing 75102, but I'm still uncertain.

However, when I'm actually building, I'm fine. It's just choosing what I want that gets me.

Yodalicious

Oldfan said:

^This. I feel that if you have OCD tendencies, LEGO will only serve to exasperate and reinforce those tendencies.  That said, if part of the joy in your life is sorting things into their proper places, then LEGO can be a great hobby for you!

I would imagine it completely depends on what your OCD focuses on and how it impacts you. For me, it took me many, MANY years to embrace that OCD is a part of me and to be okay with it. I have learned to accept my OCD and the non-destructive parts of it. My mind likes order to "obsessive, compulsive" levels and building with LEGO gets that out of my mind and into a physical structure...whatever set or MOC I'm building. 

Of course, no two people with OCD see it manifest the same way or can deal with it the same way. It can be a destructive thing to have or something you learn to live with, but that can be completely different for each individual. There's no right answer for everyone. But for me and my form of it, LEGO is a great release that helps me and has for over half my life. There are other pieces of my OCD that LEGO can't help, but I have to deal with in other ways, but part of it, at least, has been greatly aided since I came out of my dark ages. 

dannyrww

Well, I feel it has helped my ADHD as it can help me stay focused, but it makes my OCD worse. When my kids move something on display or if we misplace a minifigure piece I freak out a little.

Cyberdragon

m-m-must...straighten...my...pieces!