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 help.

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

  • Choose your seat deliberately. Not the sofa. A comfortable upright chair with good lighting.
  • Control the noise. 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.
  • Adjust your screen. Use a warm background, increase font size, and use a reading tool like FlowState ADHD to format text for easier scanning.

Choose What You Read Strategically

  • Start with books you are genuinely excited about, not books you think you should read. Build the habit first.
  • Non-linear reading is fine. Read the chapters that interest you most first. There is no rule that says you must read cover to cover.
  • Shorter formats build momentum. Long-form articles and short chapters are a great starting point.
"Reading is not a performance. You do not get points for suffering through something that is not working."

Modify the Text Itself

  • FlowRead: Bolding the first half of each word gives your eyes a visual anchor on every word. Try it with FlowState ADHD.
  • Font choice: OpenDyslexic is designed specifically for reading difficulties. DM Sans is clean with great letter spacing.
  • Background colour: Cream, soft yellow, or light blue backgrounds reduce contrast fatigue.
  • Larger font size: If you are squinting even slightly, increase it.
  • Line spacing: Cramped text increases visual crowding. Relaxed spacing makes a real difference.

Use Active Reading Techniques

  • Talk to the text. Underline, highlight, or write notes as you read. The physical act of responding to text keeps your brain in the loop.
  • Summarise as you go. After each section, take 30 seconds to 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 and ask yourself what you think it is going to cover. Then read to confirm or correct your prediction.

Work With Your Attention Span, Not Against It

If your natural focused reading window is 15 minutes, build your sessions around 15 minutes. As your reading habit strengthens, your attention span for it will naturally extend. Trying to force a 90-minute session on a brain trained for 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. Small, consistent rituals reduce the activation energy of starting, which for ADHD is often the biggest obstacle of all.

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. That is exactly what FlowState ADHD is built for.