Concentration Problems

J

Jcrew3082

Cathlete
Since I know I can get the best advice here...

I don't know what to do with myself!!! When my anxiety is bad, my concentration is gone. I have so much to do, but I just cannot sit down and focus on one thing. Sleeping, exercising, yoga, a hot shower...nothing seems to help. Does anyone know of any natural remedies or other things to try?

Thanks in advance!
 
I'm not sure if I understand what you mean exactly but I'll try to relate. Whenever I have a lot of things to do I always get so stressed out that my concentration is gone. I found that procrestinating is really just making things so much worse for me.

What has worked for me is that I "try" not to delay things and as much as I hate to do them, get them done asap. This way I wont have that extra task on my mind to add on to the others that will come along.

What do you think is causing your anxiety?

Kathy
 
I get like this too! I am a person who likes things planned ahead from errands to eating. When I have alot on my plate what helps for me is writing everything that needs to be done down and in what order I like it done and how I like it done( anal I know). When I can see it on paper it relieves some of that anxiety. It may not go the way i planned but at least I had a detailed plan. Hope this helped some :)
 
Sounds like ADD Gina, lol. Sure it's anxiety???:)

Wow, I thought I had anxiety but I take it back...must be depression, cuz I look at everything I have to do and am just so overwhelmed by it all that the only really appealing thing is crawling back into bed.

Sorry I can't help. You'll have to ask the healthy people. LOL. I can relate though!!!;)
 
Hi Gina, That is a toughie, by definition anxiety breaks through concentration with 'pain or uneasiness of mind respecting some event future or uncertain'. That uncertainty gives the mind infinite variables to ruminate through. It took me years to control my anxiety, I was given an herbal remedy called 'Rescue Remedy' and it did help me some. I wish I knew more details about the remedy but I'm sure it still out there on the market somewhere.

Little rituals can help to retrain the mind and condition the senses to focus on something more tangible than the incessant chatter of the anxious mind. Perhaps keeping a bottle of a calming essential oil handy might help, say chamomile or lavendar. When you feel anxious put a few drops on a tissue and wave it through the air, sit quietly taking slow full breaths and with intent, tell yourself, 'I am peace' or a simple phrase that fits right for you. It may feel silly or contrived at first but it's the seed of ritual and conditioning that you want to plant and cultivate so that your mind can connect calm with something more tangible.

I used to get so frustrated with people telling me to practise deep, or diaphragmatic breathing when anxiety shattered my days and nights. With practise and, again, intent it's a very powerful thing, beautiful in it's simplicity.

I wish you peace Gina, anxiety is a horrible thing, I used to feel so guilty about my anxiety because it distracted me from my Kids and the people who love and wanted to help me. This directionless storm from within can be quelled, slowly and surely. I was prescribed a few different 'Mother's little helpers' when I went through this and they made it worse, not only was I anxious but I was thick in the head and walking into walls. I hope that this statement doesn't sound trite or trivial but I know it helped me gain some control over anxiety, 'just because you think it doesn't mean that you have to feel it.' All the best to you Gina, you are in my thoughts.

Take Care
Laurie :)
 
My Mom has had problems all her life getting organized. She has always felt overwhelmed by so much to do (she feels) in her house. She started reading the Flylady website and now is a different, more relaxed person. I swear it is working for her. She used to poo poo anything new or scary to her but now she's embracing new concepts. In fact, she and dad are now planning a trip to the Azores in July. I really attribute this to the Flylady help she's getting.

http://www.flylady.net/index.asp


Jeanette
 
I'm sorry, what was the question? I can't seem to focus....boy do I understand.

I find that writing things down helps me. I prioritize a list with the most negligible last, work on one task at a time, and have learned to let go of what cannot be accomplished at any given time. Nope, it hasn't been easy. I'm a recovering perfectionist who is learning to delegate and let it go.

As things around home go, as a homeschooling mom of 4 DS (ok one's grown and gone) - although they don't do it as well as I would - I'm giving them a lot more responsibility in the household chores and forcing them to settle arguments/problems among themselves...I have to just walk away, literally.

Try to remember YOU don't have to do it all.:)

Editing to add, don't give up on the yoga. I had a REALLY hard time getting into it, but after persistence, I LOVE YOGA and it helps.
 
I'm sorry, what was the question? I can't seem to focus....boy do I understand.

I find that writing things down helps me. I prioritize a list with the most negligible last, work on one task at a time, and have learned to let go of what cannot be accomplished at any given time. Nope, it hasn't been easy. I'm a recovering perfectionist who is learning to delegate and let it go.

As things around home go, as a homeschooling mom of 4 DS (ok one's grown and gone) - although they don't do it as well as I would - I'm giving them a lot more responsibility in the household chores and forcing them to settle arguments/problems among themselves...I have to just walk away, literally.

Try to remember YOU don't have to do it all.:)

Editing to add, don't give up on the yoga. I had a REALLY hard time getting into it, but after persistence, I LOVE YOGA and it helps.
 
Great post, Melody! Reading your post made me realize that I'm a recovering perfectionist too. But you are sooooo way ahead of me. I can barely even take care of a plant, and you adopted 4 boys who all had issues, and are doing a magnificent job with them. I never would have guessed that you had any trouble handling anything. It's nice for me to see that someone like you started out like someone like me! :D
-Nancy
 
Great post, Melody! Reading your post made me realize that I'm a recovering perfectionist too. But you are sooooo way ahead of me. I can barely even take care of a plant, and you adopted 4 boys who all had issues, and are doing a magnificent job with them. I never would have guessed that you had any trouble handling anything. It's nice for me to see that someone like you started out like someone like me! :D
-Nancy
 
Hey Nancy, thanks.

I adopted 3, the grown-n-gone DS is biological and probably has way more issues than the other 3...ha ha ha...cause he got them from me!

BTW, Gina, I hope something we post helps you. I'll keep you close in my thoughts and prayers.:)
 
Hey Nancy, thanks.

I adopted 3, the grown-n-gone DS is biological and probably has way more issues than the other 3...ha ha ha...cause he got them from me!

BTW, Gina, I hope something we post helps you. I'll keep you close in my thoughts and prayers.:)
 
Sorry to hijack your post to gush about Melody, Gina. I obviously have nothing to offer you, as I'm sitting here all alone in my office on a Saturday night where I'm supposed to be doing all the work I didn't do yesterday because I wasn't focused enough, posting to this board. Talk about lack of concentration! :(
-Nancy
 
Sorry to hijack your post to gush about Melody, Gina. I obviously have nothing to offer you, as I'm sitting here all alone in my office on a Saturday night where I'm supposed to be doing all the work I didn't do yesterday because I wasn't focused enough, posting to this board. Talk about lack of concentration! :(
-Nancy
 
Hi Gina. I think to a certain degree we all suffer from the same malady...too much to do, not enough time to do it all in.

Now, procrastination is one thing...but like someone else mentioned, depression is another. If you truly feel overwhelmed then I would recommend you talk to your doctor about this first.

But what helps me is lists, lists, lists. I just plain forget to do stuff because I'm so busy doing 100 things at once. Next to my computer, where I live btw, I have two note pads; one for business related 'To Dos' and the other for personal/household ' To Dos'. If I didn't write things down I wouldn't get anything done...or to say the least stuff wouldn't get done on time...like paying all the freakin 1/4ly taxes I have to keep track of.

Another little thing I do as far as household chores goes is...I do a room a day in order to keep up with the housework around here. And two days a week I vacuum entire house. We have a large house, three stories, four bathrooms so it is a chore keeping it clean plus all the laundry, the cooking, the business etc. etc. etc.

Yes, it gets to be overwhelming sometimes...sit down and chill out when that happens and get out your pen and paper and start making a list of what needs to be done ASAP and what can be done the next day. But...get it done. Procrastination makes stress for all of us.
 
Hi Gina. I think to a certain degree we all suffer from the same malady...too much to do, not enough time to do it all in.

Now, procrastination is one thing...but like someone else mentioned, depression is another. If you truly feel overwhelmed then I would recommend you talk to your doctor about this first.

But what helps me is lists, lists, lists. I just plain forget to do stuff because I'm so busy doing 100 things at once. Next to my computer, where I live btw, I have two note pads; one for business related 'To Dos' and the other for personal/household ' To Dos'. If I didn't write things down I wouldn't get anything done...or to say the least stuff wouldn't get done on time...like paying all the freakin 1/4ly taxes I have to keep track of.

Another little thing I do as far as household chores goes is...I do a room a day in order to keep up with the housework around here. And two days a week I vacuum entire house. We have a large house, three stories, four bathrooms so it is a chore keeping it clean plus all the laundry, the cooking, the business etc. etc. etc.

Yes, it gets to be overwhelming sometimes...sit down and chill out when that happens and get out your pen and paper and start making a list of what needs to be done ASAP and what can be done the next day. But...get it done. Procrastination makes stress for all of us.
 
The thing that works for me is making changes to my expectations of myself. Reducing the number of tasks I have per week. This sometimes takes a while to work. But I keep at it until things are pared down.

Sometimes I have to give up things that I love, but it's for other things that I love more.

HTH
Connie
 
The thing that works for me is making changes to my expectations of myself. Reducing the number of tasks I have per week. This sometimes takes a while to work. But I keep at it until things are pared down.

Sometimes I have to give up things that I love, but it's for other things that I love more.

HTH
Connie
 
Hi all!

Thank you so much for your thoughtful responses. I am pretty organized, and I love my lists. I don't have any more to do than usual, just having a hard time doing any one thing. As Connie said, sometimes changing your expectations helps. I have been trying to tell myself that even though I may not have accomplished everything I wanted to, at least I got some things done! Luckily, these times seem to come and go for me, so I am just hoping it goes soon. In the meantime, I will refer to this thread when I am feeling especially frustrated!!!
 
Gina,

Hang in there. I am just as you described and sometimes DH has to look me in the eye and remind me that most of what I am stressing or obsessing over doesn't amount to a hill of beans in the scheme of life (sounds like my dearly departed grandmother & she was pretty darn smart).

Anytime you're having a trying day, post and I'll try to "talk you down":) cause I go there often.

Take care of yourself.
 
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