It’s a challenge to be sure. I can’t say how I get something started necessarily, that’s often just the luck of the draw and how well my meds are working that day.

But I have ADHD and I try to be aware and quickly recognize when I get into a “state of flow” and preserve that state whenever I’m there, for as long as possible.

What this looks like, is my husband bringing me food if I am on a bender cleaning out a closet or heads down working on a presentation at work.

It also looks like me staying at work late unexpectedly because I can’t interrupt a good flow, or coming home and delving right back in as soon as possible.

Or me not remembering or caring to eat until I run down so much I can’t keep going.

So as you can see, I use both healthy and non-healthy “coping mechanisms”.

I exploit the state of flow whenever it comes, as much as possible, and muddle/hobble through when I’m not there. Of course, coming up to a deadline increases the chances that I’ll get into a state of flow, if not just out of adrenaline and fear of really screwing up and missing a deliverable.

Edit: You mentioned that you’re on meds for depression. If your primary diagnosis is something like ADHD and the depression is a secondary, comorbid condition, treating the ADHD will be very useful. My psychiatrist diagnosed my principal problem as being ADHD and didn’t want to start treating me for depression until we work through getting me on ADHD meds and getting on the right meds, titrated at the right dose helped a huge amount.