Dear reader,
Have you ever felt too overwhelmed by studying alone? The noise in your brain is too loud, your thoughts feel like chasing down a ping pong ball you’ll never catch, and the levels of chaos inside of you are slowly increasing.
I am in the same boat. For me, that noise has been described by a clinical diagnosis of ADHD. When it is loudest and I am overwhelmed, everything feels fifty times more difficult. It can feel like a lot to try to manage alone.
It is in this moment that I would like to introduce you to my dear friend ‘body doubling’. Although titled rather oddly, ‘body doubling’ is the idea of having the presence of another person with you to help increase motivation for a difficult task, or even just keep you on task. You might already do this but just didn’t have the language for it yet, even if you don’t have ADHD.
Maybe in your life this looks like having someone on FaceTime with you while you clean the house, or joining a study group on campus. Maybe you like to study in coffee shops because the presence of others makes you feel more motivated to stay on task. Perhaps you found it easier to get into your gym routine because you found a gym buddy to shoulder the inertia of starting something new. These are all examples of body doubling – perhaps there are others in your own life that you are starting to notice more now!
Researchers and thought leaders in supporting ADHD and neurodivergent traits have researched the phenomenon of body doubling – which if you’re interested you can find some more resources at the bottom of this blog post!
In my own experience, this is why I enjoy studying in spaces where there are a lot of other people around doing work too. It helps me feel motivated – almost like other people are holding me accountable to this unspoken promise I have made to finish a task during that study period.
I know this is not the same experience for everyone, though. Some find it more useful to practice (even unconsciously) ‘body doubling’ by studying in the living room next to a friend. These vary person-to-person and can also be different depending on what is most important to you in the moment to complete first.
I remember that at one point in the summer, laundry felt particularly mountainous to me. I remember asking a friend to literally just sit on my bed while I folded everything and she watched me – because sometimes, for me, having another person in the same space I'm in is enough motivation to start.
When studying, I like to study in nooks and crannies all over campus with my friends as ‘body doubles’ – bearing the weight of whatever I am finding most stressful with me. Sometimes I find this practice most helpful if I have some instrumental music going in my ears to block out any sounds that might be overstimulating or overly distracting.
I think it’s beautiful, this practice of “being with” as a tool to facilitate focus. There’s something about the notion that sometimes, when the mountain feels too tall, what is most helpful is the presence of another.
There is a lot more research that psychologists, specialists in neurodiversity and motivation are doing to learn more about the concept of ‘body doubling’. If this is something that would interest you, I would encourage you to investigate it!
If you are looking for somewhere to start, there are two SASS programs that directly offer body doubling right now: the accountability cafes on Thursdays between 4-6, and the opportunity to book an individual accountability appointment with a PWA.
Whatever you find works best for you, have grace and kindness to yourself for figuring out what works best for you today. Sometimes it takes a little bit to figure out what is most helpful for you, and that’s okay!
Until next time,
Hannah
Resources and Research on Body Doubling: