Daily Screen
Time Log

ADHD Executive Function Tools

A simple daily record for tracking when, how long, and why
you use screens — and what it costs you.

Where This Tool Helps

Screen time is harder to manage when you have ADHD not because you lack self-control, but because screens are engineered to exploit exactly the vulnerabilities ADHD creates: variable reward cycles, instant novelty, zero friction to continue. The dopamine hit of the next notification lands before the conscious decision to stop ever fires. By the time you register that an hour has passed, the window for choosing differently has already closed.

What logging does is move awareness from after-the-fact regret to real-time data. The mood columns in particular tend to reveal something most people do not expect: screens are frequently used not for entertainment, but for emotional regulation. Boredom, anxiety, avoidance — these show up in the "mood before" column before any admitted intention to scroll. Seeing that pattern on paper is different from vaguely knowing it exists.

How to Use This Log

Fill in the date first, then set it where you can see it. If the log is buried in a folder or closed in an app, you will not reach for it in the moment. Visible means usable.
Log each screen session as it ends, not from memory at night. Reconstructing your day at 10pm produces estimates. Logging in the moment produces data.
Use the mood columns honestly. Choose a single word: focused, bored, anxious, tired, restless. You are not diagnosing yourself — you are noticing a starting condition and what changed.
Leave the Purpose column specific. "Work" is not a purpose. "Responded to emails" or "watched a video to avoid starting the report" are purposes. The distinction matters more than the word count.
Do the three reflection questions before bed. The longest session and the unplanned sessions are where the real information lives. Give them two minutes.