Laying in bed watching the listener pacing back and forth, their partner decides to help break them out of their cycle. (~800 words)

Important Notes: Feel free to change or make additions to small aspects of this work such as the tags, pronouns, title, etc.! VA goes by BEST FRIEND and the listener is LISTENER. LISTENER responses are “...”.

As someone who was only diagnosed with ADHD a year ago, the journey to figuring myself out and coping has been long and complicated, but I hope I can provide some validation and comfort with my writing from everything I learned:33

Monetization is okay, just be sure to see my Terms of Use

Script List

It's Okay To Take A Break

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FADE IN

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INT. BEDROOM.

(SFX. Footsteps.)

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PARTNER

Uhm. Hey babe, are you alright? You've been pacing for a good while now. I know it helps you think but you've been picking things up and leaving them in random places again- which is fine, it's just, that's how I know you're really stressed. Do you want to talk about it?

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[...]

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PARTNER

I know, it's hard to just stop what you’re doing, but maybe it'd be a good idea to take a break? Just for a bit?

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[...]

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PARTNER

Come on, it's okay. Come here. I'm right here, just take some deep breaths, yeah?

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They take some deep breaths together.

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PARTNER

Can I touch you?

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[...]

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PARTNER

Alright. I'll just hold the sides of your arms and massage them like this. Up to your shoulders and down again.

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[...]

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PARTNER

It's okay, you'll finish everything on time. We just have to break it down into steps. Do you have a list?

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[...]

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PARTNER

Whatever is best. Writing it down or having it in your head is okay. It can get kind of annoying to always jot it down. Just remember you don't have to do everything on that list.

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[...]

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PARTNER

Hey, you were still productive today. Start listing what you did.

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As the listener names the things they've done, the partner gives "mm-hmms" in agreement.

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PARTNER

Exactly. You did a lot more than you thought. All on top of getting up today, taking care of yourself, and spending a little time on your hobbies.

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[...]

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PARTNER

No, no. You taking the time to relax earlier was not a waste of time. Gathering the energy to be productive is a lot. And you did it anyway, it doesn't matter how long it took because you still did it. That's admirable on its own.

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[...]

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PARTNER

Yes, it is. You can be proud of doing even the smallest of tasks. It's okay to feel lost or overwhelmed. It's easy to get swept up when everything is piled on top of each other like that. We just need to break it down and you can realize you can do all of those things, no matter how daunting they seem. I know you can. You know you can.

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[...]

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PARTNER

Go ahead and hug me as tight as you'd like. Release all of your stress- okay that's tight! It's okay, I was overexaggerating. Just a little. But I hope this means I can squeeze you back.

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[...]

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Some hugs.

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PARTNER

So, how are you feeling? It's getting late, so it's a better idea to sleep early and tackle everything after being well-rested instead of forcing yourself to do it all now.

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[...]

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PARTNER

Exactly. It's okay to rest. You don't have to be running around trying to be productive all of the time. I know you have all of these goals, but it's good to take the time to enjoy what you have now. It'd be tiring to live the rest of your life in this constant stress of always trying to accomplish things. Your accomplishments do not determine your worth, don't ever forget that. It's complicated to balance everything out, I know, but I want to be here for you every step of the way.

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[...]

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PARTNER

You can never be a burden. Look at me. You can never be a burden to me. Never. We are in this together. You are just as important to me in my life. Everything is going to be okay. Just one step at a time. Could I give some advice?

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[...]

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PARTNER

Well, I was looking into helpful tips from other people online and they said that transitions from different projects are easier when there's a "buffer." So if they say they're working on an essay and need to switch to cleaning they can do something small like getting up to get water or a snack so it's easier to transition between the tasks.

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[...]

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PARTNER

Of course I've done some research, it's the least I can do. I want to support you as much as possible. So can we cuddle now? I'm not gonna lie, I always look forward to it at the end of the day, cheesy I know.

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[...]

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They give a kiss and the two lie in bed.

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PARTNER

Remember, when we are here we are taking a break from everything else. All of those stresses are put away for now. It's hard to try and keep a clear head but just repeat "head empty, no thoughts" if you need to. That sounds a lot sillier than I thought it would, but whatever works.

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Another kiss.

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PARTNER

I love you. Let's get some rest now.

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FADE OUT

Thank you for reading/ considering using my work (づoωo)づᕦ(ᵔoᵔᕦ)

Made that "buffer" advice myself heheh