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Post by blossoming on Aug 21, 2010 14:17:45 GMT -5
focus has always been a big issue for me. i'm easily distracted or else over focussed on things. one or the other.
i notice that the less i use the tv changer it makes a big dif. the ability to constantly switch means i will. i put a comfortable place near the tv, but i still need to move, how old school is this, when i want to switch channels.
i notice that i more watch shows i ACTUALLY want to watch and don't sit for a long time just flipping. i watch something through to the end, then do something else.
and, that makes a difference in my thought process. i'm less discombobulated. for real.
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Post by eagle on Aug 21, 2010 15:06:54 GMT -5
Do you mean focus on TV, or do you mean focus on desqualoring or cleaning or de-cluttering?
If you mean focusing on TV, we can move this thread to Byways.
If you mean focusing on household tasks I do have some answers along those lines.
I keep a To Do List book, in which I write daily lists & check it periodically throughout the day, to remind myself of what I have decided I want to do that day. I also use a timer to help me stick to a timeframe for doing tasks at hand. I don't necessarily use the timer all the time, but when I first started doing this, it was my constant companion, because I tended to work for hours at a time and wear myself out, then couldn't do anything more for a long time afterward.
To focus on reading or listening (in classes or seminars or meetings or the such), I used to have difficulty. So I would purposely watch for my mind to wander and bring myself back by telling myself to 'listen' or to 'concentrate' or the appropriate reminder for the situation. I also make myself do nothing else at the same time. Doing 2 or 3 things (or more) at once makes it that much harder to focus on any one of them.
Also nutrition and hydration is very important in the process of focus. So if I find myself having difficulty staying on task, thinking clearly, etc. I take a look at my nutritional status. Sufficient rest & sleep are another important factor. I am not able to focus well when not well rested.
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Post by toomuchstuph on Aug 21, 2010 15:08:41 GMT -5
I wish I had an answer for you blossoming. I go thru the same thing! For me, the loss of focus got worse when I hit peri-meno.
I've started to find a couple things about myself though - when I'm really unfocused and flitting from one thing to another, it's generally because I'm avoiding doing something else or because I'm tired and just don't realize it.
The only things that work for me - and this is only some of the time - is to either:
- force myself to sit down and do just the one thing for a short window of time and get it to a certain level of completeness that I know I can accomplish.
- find a way to make doing a thing enjoyable. As you said with the TV shows, I can really focus on the things I enjoy so I just need to restructure what I'm doing or the way I'm doing it to keep from avoiding it.
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Post by blossoming on Aug 21, 2010 15:09:32 GMT -5
i meant that i can be unfocused in general which cuases squalor. a way of increasing my focus is to change the way i watch tv. by not getting my brain used to the constant flip/flip/flip of the tv changer, it seems to flip/flip/flip less in other ways.
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Post by toomuchstuph on Aug 21, 2010 15:13:56 GMT -5
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MiSC
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Post by MiSC on Aug 21, 2010 15:14:40 GMT -5
Peppy music helps my energy, but does nothing for my focus.
Once every blue moon I get inspired by something (like Mr. Fredericksen), and that helps ground me and keep me focused. Unfortunately, those incidents are few and far between, and I eventually lose my focus again.
At the moment though, I have "Up" playing, and am hoping to get some inspiration again. I've seen it enough times that I don't really need to see it, so I'm gonna crawl under this desk and start tossing papers while it's on. I would like to see that one scene again though, the particularly inspiring one, so I'll probably sit down again for that.
This is an experiment in "Can I MAKE that feeling come back?"
Do you have anything in your past or present that's particularly inspiring to you? (Wanna borrow Mr. Fredericksen?)
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Post by puppybox on Aug 21, 2010 17:42:05 GMT -5
it sounds like hiding the remote from yourself is a way you have PHYSICALLY restricted your environment to remove temptation to flip your attention around and around.
a way I did the same thing, is I used to to get a timer and set it and stand up, in order to deal with squalor. And, the tv had to be off (couldn't manage this at first) or I was not allowed to turn my head to look at it. I simply wasn't allowed to sit down for the length of time I had set. or leave the room, unless I was taking something to the right place. I was not allowed to wander from room to room. I was not allowed to go to the bathroom. I had to stand there and LOOK at the problem. I was supposed to also take action, but that wasn't always possible, I had to figure out what to do first, and to do that I had to think about it, and to think about it I had to see it, and to see it I had to look at it, and the only way I could make myself do that is stand up.
anyway, that's just an idea. it may not be good for you.
I'd say that your tv thing means you need to physically restrict your abilty to distract yourself, to improve your focus.
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Post by messymimi on Aug 21, 2010 18:20:28 GMT -5
Having a time limit helps me focus.
Bringing everything I need to work on into one place and staying there helps.
messymimi
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Blackswan
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Post by Blackswan on Aug 21, 2010 18:57:54 GMT -5
I have a dificult time concentrating with my nld, which is often misdiagnosed as add.
I've had a lot of success with my new lifestyle, the symptoms are still there, but very minimized.
one- sleep is huge. I make sure I always get my full nights sleep.
two - no sugar, huge, huge, huge
three - no caffeine, helps me get more sleep which means better attention and focus
four - regular meditation, the whole point of meditating is to FOCUS so I get regular practice with that now. Also the relaxation helps a ton too and took my blood pressure from normal to 110 over 70, and I weigh 265, so those are great numbers
five- on days when I am ON and able to really work, I make those work days. I only have one or two of those a month, but I get a ton done and its enough.
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Post by blossoming on Aug 21, 2010 19:00:20 GMT -5
i used to be a big timer fan.
my house is not horrible right now.
i'm trying to pay attention to the daily life things that influence me negatively and abate them. i've worked on triggers a lot. now i'm paying attention to things that actually seem to change the way my brain works. like yoga good, tv commercials bad. as in, slow and centering vs busy and frenetic.
i also notice a difference between watching tv shows without commercials, like the bw movie channel and modern tv. i am calmer and HAPPIER at the end of the no commercial moives. my memory is far beter, i'm not flustered and up in the air.
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hopehope
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Post by hopehope on Aug 21, 2010 19:20:11 GMT -5
meditate first thing every day. or as close to first thing as I can get.
it's been so long, I sort of forget what it's like without it.
takes effort to build a meditation practice. highly recommended.
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hopehope
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Post by hopehope on Aug 21, 2010 19:22:13 GMT -5
oh -- and -- establishing a routine of setting in order at the start of each day. certain things than need to get done.
like hitting my marks.
also -- make the bed. that's big.
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Blackswan
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Post by Blackswan on Aug 22, 2010 11:17:50 GMT -5
Oh yes! The timer! Always works for me.
The reason why it works, for those of us with attention and focus problems is that when we put some pressure on, the frontal lobe of our brain is activated. For people with ADD, ADHD, NLD, Learning Disorders, etc. the frontal lobe has less activity than normal. I am guessing a really good portion of us here have less frontal lobe activity. Anyway, to stimulate the frontal lobe, some type of external pressure works amazingly.
That is why people with ADD make the best ambulance drivers and 911 dispatchers ever. When other people panic, our frontal lobe just turns on and we immediately get very calm, and very focused. Even in a huge emergency. I experience that all the time. When I am on the scene of a car accident, I always somehow become the natural leader and people see me as "the one in charge". But ask me to mail a bill on time? Heck no! I physically cannot make myself do it.
So I think thats one of the GOOD parts of ADD and assorted frontal lobe issues.
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Blackswan
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Post by Blackswan on Aug 22, 2010 11:20:38 GMT -5
And thats why we function so well "at the last minute" and why we "procrastinate". We literally can't do things until the last minute unless we use up a ton of mental energy trying to force ourselves to do it, and we don't do it as well as we would have if we weren't 'On" like we get at the last minute.
I've stopped trying to do things early, cause I just work so much darn better "at the last minute". I try to use that to my advantage though and plan my work schedule accordingly. And like I said, once or twice a month, I have an "on day" without it being last minute and I really try to get a lot done on those days.
I probably have as much "on" time as other people, its just learning how to harness it and use it effectively and not miss those very small windows of opportunities that can be jam packed with hyperfocused add activity.
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Post by blossoming on Aug 22, 2010 11:36:22 GMT -5
wow. who knew that about the frontal lobe thing. i always credited that to having mega alcholics parents and growing up in chaos so that i only feel normal when things are terrible. i am th same way, if something truly horrible is happening i am calm but tiny things just blow me out of the water. i think a lot of that is true but interesting that there is other stuff, too. i will read up more on this.
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