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I have a terrible attention span

misdreavusNew Contributor17 June 2019, 4:05 am AEST

I have a terrible attention span

Just a little backstory on me to make things easier to understand going forward: I was diagnosed with ADHD as a child, which was then later changed to a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome (Autism Spectrum Disorder as it's known now.) I'm a 28 year old woman living with my family (mum, stepdad, brother, half-sister) and I don't have job/social life/etc. The only time I leave the house is to go for a walk around the block.

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Lately I've been having a lot of issues with my attention span. I can't focus on any one thing for more than an hour at a time before I lose interest and start browsing the internet mindlessly instead. I have so many things I could be doing, from playing the video games I've spent my own money on, to watching anime that I can later discuss with my online friends. I could also be writing stories or learning how to program my own games, but I'm not.

I'm not doing anything but wasting all my waking hours on spending my time online reading articles and watching YouTube videos. I'm no longer doing anything productive and it's making me worried there's something wrong with me.

5 replies

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In response to: I have a terrible attention span

BunniekinsSenior Contributor17 June 2019, 6:28 am AEST

Re: I have a terrible attention span

@misdreavus Hi misdreavus and welcome to the forums:). I can totally get where you are coming from I have schizoaffective disorder and the attention span of a nat! I cannot even read long and complex postings .... btw I have a degree in philosophy and politics which I got during my manic days of my illness before I was diagnosed.

My mi has destroyed any hope of future studies and work for me. I just cannot do it. I live with my aspergers daughter who is on the dsp and spends her life on the computer talking with her internet buddies because she cannot cope with rl (she also has chronic depression) and my autistic son who also has epilepsy and schizophrenia. So I get what you mean. It is tough. I am here for you whenever you want to talk. You are doing really well reaching on on the forum btw. Don't stop reaching out. We are here for you. greenpeaxx

In response to: I have a terrible attention span

CheerBearSenior Contributor17 June 2019, 7:08 am AEST

Re: I have a terrible attention span

Hi @misdreavus (great name 🙂) and welcome to the forum.

Like @Bunniekins, my attention span has been really hit by my mental health issues. I too find myself wandering around in lala land in my head struggling to concentrate and focus for long. It's been really hard in the past and seems to be worse with stress etc. for me. Right now I find myself with better focus than before, but it takes a lot of intentional thinking which I find becomes really tiring and time consuming. It can take me so long to do things that I need focus and concentration for and it's so frustrating. While I'm making progress with it, I still haven't read a book (something I enjoy a lot) for ages and sitting down to watch a movie without doing something else after a little while, feels (and is) close to impossible.

Is there a particular activity you find it happens more with? Perhaps when you're doing things online where it is easy to access something else?

Something I find can be helpful is to have breaks from whatever I am doing, often. Breaking tasks up with doable time limits and setting time limits on the breaks in between, can help sometimes.

Have you spoken with a doctor or health professional about it? My psych is good at reassuring me it is common and can get better, but it might be worth checking out if you haven't already done so.

In response to: I have a terrible attention span

TheVorticonSenior Contributor17 June 2019, 5:10 pm AEST

Re: I have a terrible attention span

Hi @misdreavus.

I like your name/avatar - do you play Pokemon Go by any chance? Or any other pokemon games?

I never kept up with the pokemon games but got back into it with PoGo (which I still play a bit) and Let's Go.

What sort of articles and youtube videos do you read/watch? Is there a theme to it or is it all kind of random?

I'm kind of similar in that I do a lot of mindless browsing, article/forum reading, youtube watching etc. at the expense of my old hobbies. I was so excited to get my Nintendo Switch and have barely played it because I spend my free time doing that stuff. The main topics I end up looking into are related to mental illnesses / mental health.

I don't have a solution yet, but I'm working with my psych on having a schedule to spend my time more consciously. It's not really working much yet but I've spent a couple of hours doing more productive stuff over the last few weeks since I started trying to sort it out. So that's a bit of a win.

Are you seeing a counsellor or psychologist?

In response to: I have a terrible attention span

misdreavusNew Contributor18 June 2019, 7:40 am AEST

Re: I have a terrible attention span

I haven't seen a therapist/psychologist about any of this because I can't get to one. We only have one car and my stepdad has to use it for work. My mum has major depression and never leaves the house.

I also have no life skills and don't know how to do anything for myself. 😕

In response to: Re: I have a terrible attention span

TheVorticonSenior Contributor18 June 2019, 6:15 pm AEST

Re: I have a terrible attention span

That makes things tricky @misdreavus . Is there public transport in the area and how far is the nearest GP/therapist? Have you looked into online counselling options?

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