Why "I'll remember" doesn't work, and what does

You booked the appointment. You meant to go. You even thought about it last week. And then the day arrived, and you realized at 2 PM that it had been at 11.

If that sounds familiar, you're not lazy or careless. Many people with ADHD describe time in two settings: "now" and "not now." An appointment three weeks away sits in "not now" until suddenly it's too late. Trying harder to remember doesn't change that. Getting the reminder out of your head and onto your phone does.

One reminder isn't enough

A single alert an hour before is easy to swipe away, especially if you're in the middle of something. Research on clinic reminders points the same way: a study published in The Permanente Journal found that sending several reminders worked better than sending one, especially for appointments that were likely to be missed.

The trick is to space them out so each one has a job.

1. 2 weeks before

   

   CareDay FamilyNov 5

   Dermatology in 2 weeks

   Thursday, Nov 19 at 10:00 AM
2. The day before

   

   CareDay FamilyWed

   Dermatology tomorrow

   Thursday at 10:00 AM
3. 2 hours before

   

   CareDay Family8:00 AM

   Dermatology in 2 hours

   Today at 10:00 AM
4. Appointment

   

   You made it10:00 AM

   Dermatology follow-up

   Thursday, Nov 19

Give each reminder a job

• Two weeks out: the "heads up." Enough time to ask for the morning off, book a sitter or move a meeting.
• The day before: the "plan it" reminder. Figure out when you need to leave and what to bring.
• A couple of hours before: the "get moving" reminder. Long enough to finish what you're doing, short enough that you won't forget again.

Other things that help

• Add it before you leave the office. "I'll put it in my phone later" is where most appointments disappear.
• Pick morning slots when you can. There's less time for the day to pull you off track.
• Keep everything in one app. If appointments live in a text, an email, a card and a calendar, you'll miss the one that's in the place you didn't check.
• Tell someone. A partner or friend who knows about the appointment is a backup reminder.

Where CareDay Family fits in

I built CareDay Family so appointments don't depend on memory. Add the appointment once, and the app reminds you before it's time — a week, a day, and an hour before, or whatever timing works for you — so the date doesn't sneak up on you.

Download CareDay Family