My first step in this was awareness, so I developed a habit of acknowledging when I had interrupted and turning the conversation back to them.

“... but I interrupted you. My apologies. You were saying?” https://twitter.com/blkgirllostkeys/status/1316740021005824000

You start doing that often enough... well you also start stopping yourself from doing that because there’s only so many times you can say it before you feel like an ass.

Step 2 was “what”. What am I interrupting with? Interesting tangential factoid? Clarifying question? Story?

Clarifying questions are usually okay to move forward with, I just make sure I do a body language before I start asking so that I’m not talking over someone or interrupting their thought, that usually works.

Interesting factoid, ehh, very niche usage. I find just acknowledging it to myself is enough to then let it slide. Taking a half second to let my brain say “a single strand of spaghetti is a spaghetto” is enough to calm the impulse to say it out loud.

Taking the time to think it and acknowledge it to myself is like a way of a) remembering it in case the opportunity to share comes up, and b) in case the opportunity to share doesn’t come up, I’m my own audience for my interesting fact. I’ve heard and reacted to it in my head.

The third step is context. Which I guess is a “why”. Why is this person telling me this? If my friend is telling me she got dumped at an Italian restaurant yesterday, does she want to know my spaghetto fact? Is that why she’s telling me this? Probably not.

But once she’s done telling me her story, it might comfort her to hear about the time I was dumped, or maybe, once I’ve done some awesome friend-work, she’ll be feeling a bit better and my spaghetto fact will make her laugh!

I only tend to interrupt on one on one conversations, usually with people I’m comfortable around, it happens more often when I’m drinking. And while there’s a certain amount of interrupting in natural back and forth, I really hate feeling railroaded by interruption.

I’m not great at interjecting in lively group conversation and tend to sit back and pick my moments.

I’m just adding this here because I’ve seen a few people in the replies on René’s thread say that it’s a relief to be around other ADHD folks so we can all interrupt each other, and that’s not me.

That said, I do have more patience for ADHD blurting than I do for just flagrant pontificating. I can see the difference, but I don’t play Hungry Hungry Hippos Group Convo edition.