the questions people actually ask
short answers to the things that come up a lot. if you're in crisis right now, scroll down or call 988.
what this is
what is the ADHD Diary Project?
A place to unload when life gets heavy. Write what you can't say out loud. Read what other brains wrote. The "oh thank god, someone else" is built in.
who is this for?
Adults with ADHD, and the people who love us. Late-diagnosed, early-diagnosed, formally diagnosed, self-identified, the ones who've suspected for years but never got tested. If your brain does the thing, or you love someone whose does, you're welcome.
is this therapy?
No. ADP is not therapy, not medical advice, not crisis support. It's a place to feel less alone. If you need professional help, please get it. If you're in crisis, please call 988.
who made this?
Tiff. A dentist who left dentistry, an artist who isn't sure she's qualified to claim the title of artist. Mom, friend, maker of messes, teller of truths, master reinventor, and advocate for brains like ours. More at /about.
anonymity and privacy
is it really anonymous?
Yes. You don't need a real name to read or write. We store your email for your account and a hashed IP for rate limiting. That's it. No real names are ever attached to entries.
can someone trace my entry back to me?
Not by us, not by other users. The one exception is a court order compelling us to hand over account data in specific circumstances. We hold as little as possible so there's little to hand over.
what if I want to delete my entries or my account?
Any entry you wrote, you can delete from your account page. Your whole account, same place.
will you ever sell my data?
No. Hard no.
accounts and access
is the ADHD Diary Project free?
Reading and writing are free, forever. Making an account is free too. Chat rooms, body doubling, and the workbook are $9 a month, and that money is what keeps the free parts free. If your account existed before we added membership, you already have it, free, forever.
do I need an account?
Not to read, not to write. Those are always free, no sign-up, no login. An account gets you saving entries, replying, and posting to the win wall. Chat rooms, body doubling, and the workbook need an account plus membership ($9/month, free if you were here before we added it).
why do accounts even exist then?
Two reasons. One, to keep the anonymous space actually anonymous. Accounts mean we can rate-limit and moderate without needing to know who you are. Two, to hold the stuff that belongs to you (saved entries, your replies, your profile name) in one place.
safety and crisis
what if I'm in crisis?
Call or text 988 (Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, US). ADP is not crisis support and can't be. If you're outside the US, international lifelines are at findahelpline.com. Please don't try to manage it alone on a diary site.
can I write anything I want?
Almost. The filter holds crisis-type content, less for legal reasons and more because we don't want a stranger's worst moment to land on someone else's screen unannounced. AI does the filtering, not a person reading along. If you think something got held that shouldn't have (writing about past experience is the common one), email support@adhddiaryproject.com and we'll take another look.
what if I see someone else's entry that worries me?
Open the entry and scroll to the bottom. There's a small "report this entry" link under the comments. You can add a sentence about what's wrong, or just send it blank. It comes straight to me, I read every one, and I take the entry down if it needs to come down. You don't have to be signed in to report. No one gets told who reported them.
rooms and body doubling
how is body doubling different from a Zoom call?
Cameras on, mics off. No small talk, no agenda, no one hosting. You show up with whatever you need to get done, other people are doing the same, and the room does the rest.
do I have to be on camera?
Cameras can be toggled off, but they're kind of the point. Showing your face, part of your face, or even the back of your head is what makes body doubling work. If cameras are completely off the table right now, the text-based chat rooms might be a better fit.
contact
how do I reach a human?
Email support@adhddiaryproject.com. One human behind it (plus Lorence, who helps me not drown in the inbox). Reply time is usually a few days.
this is not therapy. this is not medical advice. this is not crisis support.