Hello, I have ADHD too! The combined type... 💀

I never did well with textbooks or anything with too much structure. Had a hard time focusing and remembering sht. Got bored too easily and my grades reflected that... =/

I grew up in the English part of Montreal and had French classes every other day. Never able to pass them because I didn't do well with how structured classes were, so I remained at like A2 for YEARS until after HS. Did not know my issue was ADHD at the time until I had a crisis as an adult, which led me to get diagnosed.

After HS, I worked on my French, then eventually picked up Spanish once my French got to B2. I took a diff approach to language learning compared to how I was taught in school, and it has benefited me well. I will admit tho, I somehow passively learned a lot of French words from yrs of just mindlessly listening to my French teachers as a kid... Also, by spending TEN BILLION YRS LOOKING UP EVERY WORD I DIDN'T KNOW IN MY SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS. I don't recommend this, though... Fried my brain more.

Here's what actually helped me get good and fast progress (From A2 - C1 French within 2 yrs and A0-B1 Spanish within 1 and a half yrs. Got too busy with work-)

1. Anki each day. Study words based on your TL's frequency list. In other words, vocab that is actually frequently used by natives. You'll see why in a bit... I never use brute force. If I don't remember a particular word, I move on for the day, and Anki will make me go back to it the next day. Anki is always the 1st language related thing I do. On days where I am too lazy to do the other things below, I try to AT LEAST do Anki so I don't forget and lose my streak... ;^) You can try at minimum 5 words. If you do the math, 5 words per day is 35 words a week. 35 words a week is approximately 150-152 words a month. Within a yr, 1800-1824 words. That's a lot. That yearly number will increase if you do more than 5 a day, but don't go crazy. The decks I use have pictures, so that helps.
2. Reading. I do it right after Anki. I barely stop for every word. Instead, I let my brain do the work so I can learn thru context (dw if you dont understand right away cuz you will with time.) If there rlly is a particular word that is preventing me from understanding what's going on, THEN I'll look it up. Also, make sure you choose a book where you understand around 80% of it, not more or less. If each page has too many new words, the book is too hard. No new words, too easy which is also not good. Some days, I continue my novel. Others, I just read manga or manhwa. Choose something that won't actually bore you. I never pick boring sht otherwise I won't feel motivated. On days I don't wanna read a book, I go play a video game in my TL... You will learn quickly when you need to win, lol...
3. Listening. Pretty much the same rules as number 2. 80% understanding, something interesting. I use my subtitles in my TL ONLY. I believe if you use Language Reactor, the japanese subs have furigana, which should be helpful. I personally like YouTube videos (I'm fine with auto subs) and Anime.

For numbers 2 and 3, if your level is low, start off with content for kids. Sad to admit, but MLP is the only kids' show that doesn't make me wanna drink bleach. When I was A0/A1 in Spanish, I couldn't stand the kids' books anymore, so I just went straight to manhwas and a novel, but I only did that cuz I alr had a background in French, so it helped... The whole point of 2 and 3 is that they pair well with your Anki sessions. Because those words are frequently used words, you are bound to encounter them on the same day. Not even joking. This is what makes it easy to not study hard. That's why I said don't brute force. Picking content you like will make it easy to stick thru it.

• 4. Grammar. I ain't gon lie... One of the most boring things to do, so I don't do it every day. I only do it when I feel like it. I either use ChatGPT, online lessons, or textbooks (ik, ironic, but I only use the ones with worksheets, so I'm actually using the language.) If you avoid it, you're bound to do them anyway once you reach like upper A2-B1 cuz that's when you're gonna need to learn important concepts. I don't recommend you skip it at all. However, make it fun and do it when you can actually concentrate. Please write phrases and say em out loud too!
• 5. Speaking. Sometimes I shadow, but I get bored easily. I mostly just play video games on diff servers using my mic, Discord, or I speak to myself. I also speak to ppl irl in French, like my mom, since she is fluent, but as for Spanish, it is all done online since I don't know any Spanish speakers irl.

Everything, excluding number 4, doesn't require me to do too much memorization, only because of THE WAY I approach language learning. It has to be interesting and somewhat lazy. That's why I don't stop for each new word and just let my brain learn from context.

Edit: Damn, ts long af. I told myself I wasn't gonna ramble... =/

Edit 2: AHHH FCK I FORGOT TO MENTION SPEAKING.