ADHD support that sounds like a grandmother, not a productivity coach

Granny Suz is a plain-spoken corner of the internet for families and adults who are tired of being told to just try harder. You will find morning and evening routines, homework strategies that survive a real kitchen table, focus timers, body-doubling ideas, sensory tools and printable routine cards. Written from South Africa, for the days when the school bag is missing a shoe and nobody has eaten yet.

See what is inside Start with gentler mornings

Not sure where to begin? Read the morning routine piece, or write to us if you would rather ask a question first.

What you actually get out of this

No systems to buy, no fifteen-step method. Just the handful of things that tend to make a Tuesday afternoon easier, written the way you would explain them to a friend over tea.

Mornings that hold together

Clothes, bags and breakfast set out the night before, one visual checklist on the fridge instead of five shouted reminders. The school run stops being a negotiation.

Homework without the standoff

Body doubling at the kitchen table, short focus blocks with a timer everyone can see, and one subject out at a time. Fewer tears, more finished pages.

Printable routine cards

Morning, after-school and wind-down cards you can print, tape to a cupboard door and tick off. Short enough that a tired child will actually finish them.

Tools for time blindness

Alarms labelled with the next action rather than the time, a single audible cue for dinner, and a wind-down list short enough to survive a bad evening.

Words for teachers and partners

Conversation starters and a plain-language way to ask for a reduced homework load in writing, so the request lands as reasonable rather than dramatic.

Low-cost sensory ideas

Fidgets, weighted lap pads and quiet corners built from what is already in the house. Nothing here needs a special order or a big budget.

If you want the longer version of any of these, the routine packs and tools page lays out what is included, and Mornings That Don't Fall Apart is the place most families start.

What this site is, and what it is not

A few things are worth saying plainly before you dig through the routine cards and checklists. These notes exist so nobody arrives expecting something we never promised.

Not medical advice

Everything here is lived experience and practical routine-building. It is not a diagnosis, a treatment plan or a substitute for a clinician, psychiatrist or occupational therapist who knows your family. If medication, assessment or school accommodations are on the table, those conversations belong with a professional.

Written from South Africa

School terms, homework loads and the cost of sensory tools are described from a South African household. Some of it travels well, some of it will need adjusting if you are reading from elsewhere. Take what fits and leave the rest.

Routines are starting points

The morning and evening sequences, printable cards and wind-down checklists are templates, not rules. A routine that works for one child at seven may fall apart at eleven. Change the order, cut a step, or drop it entirely if it is adding stress rather than removing it.

No productivity promises

Nothing on this site will turn ADHD into an advantage, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. The aim is smaller: fewer meltdowns, gentler mornings, one habit that actually holds for a week. Progress here is measured in calmer afternoons, not output.

Audio clips and downloads

Short audio pieces and printable cards are meant for rough moments, not daily listening. Print them, stick them on the fridge, and expect the paper to get coffee on it. If a download does not open on your phone, try a laptop before assuming it is broken.

For adults and for families

Some pages are written for a parent managing a household, others for an adult managing their own day. Where the advice overlaps, it is deliberate. Where it does not, the page will say who it is for.

If something here contradicts what your therapist, teacher or doctor has told you, follow them. They know your situation; a website does not.