I used to buy books with good intentions and return to them six months later with a bookmark still on page 12. If that sounds familiar, this guide is for you. Not theory, just the things that actually helped me read more, retain more, and actually enjoy it.

First: Stop Blaming Yourself

Reading difficulty with ADHD is not a character flaw or a lack of intelligence. Your brain processes information differently. It needs more stimulation, more structure, and often more permission to engage on its own terms. The goal is not to read the way neurotypical people read. It is to find the reading approach that works for your brain.

Build the Right Environment First

Before you open a single page, set yourself up for success:

  • Choose your seat deliberately. Not the sofa (too comfortable, too many distractions), not a rigid desk chair (too uncomfortable to sustain). A comfortable upright chair or a reading nook with good lighting is ideal.
  • Control the noise. Some people with ADHD read better in silence; others need background noise to drown out internal chatter. Experiment with lo-fi music, brown noise, or coffee shop ambience.
  • Remove your phone from the room. Not just flipped over. Out of the room. The mere presence of a smartphone reduces available cognitive capacity even when it's silent.
  • Adjust your screen. If you're reading digitally, use a warm background (not harsh white), increase the font size beyond what feels necessary, and use a reading tool like FlowStateADHD to format text for easier scanning.

Choose What You Read Strategically

The ADHD brain is not equally bad at reading everything. It struggles most with things it does not find interesting or relevant. Lean into this rather than fighting it.

  • Start with books you're genuinely excited about, not books you think you should read. Build the reading habit first. Aspirational reading lists can come later.
  • Non-linear reading is fine. Read the chapters that interest you most first. Skip around. ADHD brains often work well with non-linear information intake, and there's no rule that says you must read cover to cover.
  • Shorter formats build momentum. If books feel overwhelming, start with long-form articles, essays, or short non-fiction chapters. The goal is regular reading practice, not completing a 400-page tome.
"Reading is not a performance. You don't get points for suffering through something that isn't working."

Modify the Text Itself

One of the biggest game-changers for me was realising that I could change how text looks, not just where I read it. Plain text on a white background is genuinely one of the most hostile reading environments for an ADHD brain. Small adjustments make a significant difference:

  • FlowRead: Bolding the first half of each word gives your eyes a visual anchor on every single word, reducing the chance of mind-wandering. Try it at FlowStateADHD.
  • Font choice: OpenDyslexic is designed specifically for people with reading difficulties and works well for many people with ADHD too. DM Sans is clean and modern with great letter spacing.
  • Background colour: Cream, soft yellow or light blue backgrounds reduce contrast fatigue and feel less aggressive than pure white.
  • Larger font size: If you're squinting even slightly, increase it. Text that's easy to look at is easier to stay engaged with.
  • Line spacing: Cramped text increases visual crowding. Relaxed or loose line spacing makes a real difference to tracking.
  • Coloured overlay: An amber or mint tint over text can reduce glare and visual stress, particularly for people with Irlen-type sensitivity.

Use Active Reading Techniques

Passive reading is where ADHD reading breaks down most often. That is when your eyes move across words without active processing. Active reading keeps the brain engaged:

  • Talk to the text. Underline, highlight, or write margin notes as you read. The physical act of responding to text keeps your brain in the loop.
  • Summarise as you go. After each section or chapter, take 30 seconds to mentally (or physically) summarise what you just read. This prevents the "I read the whole page but have no idea what it said" phenomenon.
  • Ask questions before you read. Glance at the heading or chapter title and ask yourself what you think it is going to cover. Then read to confirm or correct your prediction. This creates a task with a clear completion point, something ADHD brains respond well to.

Work With Your Attention Span, Not Against It

If your natural focused reading window is 15 minutes, build your sessions around 15 minutes. Not 45. Not an hour. Fifteen minutes, then a break, then fifteen more if you're still engaged.

As your reading habit strengthens, your attention span for it will naturally extend. But trying to force a 90-minute session on a brain that's been trained to read in 10-minute bursts is a recipe for avoidance.

Make It a Ritual, Not a Chore

The ADHD brain responds to ritual and association. If you always make a particular tea before reading, the act of making that tea starts to cue reading mode. If you always read in the same chair, that chair becomes associated with focused engagement.

Small, consistent rituals reduce the activation energy of starting, which for ADHD is often the biggest obstacle of all.

Track Your Progress (Lightly)

A simple reading log, even just a list of what you've read and roughly when, gives the ADHD brain a sense of progress and completion. Streak-based tracking can work well, but be careful not to let missed days become demotivating. One miss is fine. Fifty missed days of guilt is not.

The Bottom Line

Reading with ADHD is harder, but it is not impossible and it gets easier as you find the tools and conditions that work for your brain. The goal is to reduce friction at every step, so that the interesting, valuable, enjoyable experience of reading is what you remember, not the struggle to get there.

That's exactly what FlowStateADHD is built for. Give it a try →