Frequent Attention Lapses may be Normal
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Evidently we lose focus fairly often during the day, and there is increasing evidence
that a focusing 'abnormality' does not exist in over 90% of today's diagnosed cases. For instance: "A recent study sampled over 2,000 adults during their day-to-day activities and found that 47 percent of the time their minds were not focused on what they were currently doing." "...New research reveals what happens in a wandering mind-- Ironically, mind-wandering itself can help strengthen our ability to focus, if leveraged properly." "How to Focus a Wandering Mind", July 17, 2013 http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_focus_a_wandering_mind (Wendy Hasenkamp, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and Senior Scientific Officer at the Mind & Life Institute.) ".....It may seem like you're wasting time, but daydreaming can make you smarter….. letting your mind wander a little could help improve brain function." "Zoning out doesn't mean your mind is on vacation. Just the opposite". New research involving brain scans showed that when people daydream, the brain actually works harder, and in different ways....". "Let your Mind Wander for a Healthier Brain -- STOP paying attention!" https://www.sharecare.com/health/brain/article/daydreaming-improves-brain-function "Let's face it, we all have problems with paying attention at times..." "Attention focus becomes a problem only when it is out of our control... when it controls us and interferes with our learning and daily lives...." Stowell Learning Center https://web.archive.org/web/20180222112457/http://learningdisability.com/at-wits-end-articles/attention-focus-challenges/ Daily focusing ability can depend on many factors: Some common sources of less than optimal focus may not seem a very big deal, but even minor degrees of dehydration, hunger, physical discomfort, emotional stress, nutrition deficiencies, noise pollution, or just plain boredom can impact powers of concentration. We usually understand why focus fades for some event or object: "I'm bored... tired...wired...busy...distracted...stressed....just not interested right now....." However, we might be surprised to learn the time of day can seriously affect personal focus -- depending on whether we are inherently 'LARKS' or 'OWLS': The 'lark versus owl' phenomena can be significant, but unfortunately tends to be overlooked... especially during performance evaluations or when scheduling deep-focusing events such as aptitude testing, late business meetings, or homework after school. "....the way in which our brains work to focus our attention throughout the day changes according to whether we are 'evening people' or 'morning people', and this difference is particularly marked at the end of our day..." "...The researchers recorded (or scanned) these chronotypes’ brain activity using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) when performing a visual attention task. " Tri-City Psychology Services: Health News: Are you a Lark or an Owl? Source: Homeostatic Sleep Pressure and Responses to Sustained Attention in the Suprachiasmatic Area, Science; Issue 24 April 2009 http://www.tricitypsychology.com/are-you-a-lark-or-an-owl/ Sleep deprivation / insomnia impacts focusing and learning ability: New research answers the old question, "Why does normal brain function deteriorate with prolonged waking and require sleep to be restored....?" "Sleep.....might be required for potentially toxic metabolites—the very results of a working brain to be cleared from the tissue." (Ironically, insomnia is a common side effect of today's 'focusing drugs' -- which may help explain why such stimulants can aggravate focusing issues long-term.) Neuroscience -- "Sleep it Out" Science 18 October 2013: Vol. 342 no. 6156 pp. 316-317 DOI: 10.1126/science.1245798 http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/316.summary Here's a tip for refreshing tired minds during the day: "....Research published in journal Social Psychological and Personality Science shows that watching a favorite TV rerun could prime a person to tackle a difficult task by helping to restore self-control and willpower..." "Just watching whatever is on television does not provide the same benefit," Derrick said. "And perhaps surprisingly, watching a new episode of a favorite television show for the first time does not provide the same benefit." TV ReRuns May Replenish Tired Minds by LiveScience Staff on September 14, 2012 http://www.livescience.com/23148-tv-reruns-may-replenish-tired-minds.html Another focusing factor to consider, is how certain personality types may use different approaches to learning or testing events which can mislead their focusing evaluators. e.g. Some introverts simply do not respond well to direct questioning in any circumstance. See chapter on "Enlightenment for Introverts and Extroverts; how schools can accommodate". -- A hard-wired physiology requires introverts and extroverts to recharge brain energy very differently; chemical imbalances can interfere with focusing. i.e. extroverts tend to thrive on dopamine, but introvert brains favor acetylcholine primary pathways. Introverts need a quiet place for discharging any dopamine brain 'static'.... Popular focusing drugs trigger dopamine production benefiting extrovert brains..... while any excess dopamine can overload and drain introvert brains. See chapter on "Enlightenment for Introverts & Extroverts; Where did we Go Wrong?" Contrary to another popular myth, being left-handed is not related to experiencing ADHD or attention focusing issues -- (But it is true, that while lefties make up about 10 percent of the population, seven of the 14 last presidents of United States have been left-handed, including four of the last five.) Recent clinical study found no association of handedness with inattention issues: Lack of Association of Handedness With Inattention and Hyperactivity Symptoms in ADHD; published in Journal of Attention Disorders, May, 2013 vol 17 no. 4 302-307 http://jad.sagepub.com/content/17/4/302.short The below study concurred -- no association of handedness with health problems: "A detailed and comprehensive meta-analysis by Chris MacManus and Clare Porac among others has indicated that left-handers as a whole are in fact no more likely to suffer from auto-immune disorders, or indeed health problems in general, than right-handers." "RightLeftRightWrong? An investigation of Handedness -- Some Facts, Myths, Truths, Opinions and Research" http://www.rightleftrightwrong.com/issues_health.html Truth or Scare: "Are Left-handed people more creative?" Recent research indicates that no one is 'left-brained' or 'right-brained': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE6VTvxkhFs&spfreload=10 (3 minutes) Age is relative, and can make a signifant difference in attention span: "Each brain is unique, developing at its own rate for the first 2-3 decades. Myelination of the frontal lobes is not complete until very late in adolescence". "Some researchers estimate that frontal-lobe development continues until age 25 to 30. The regions in the frontal lobe which are responsible for judgment, planning, assessing risks, and decision-making are the last areas to finish developing." http://www.fcs.uga.edu/ext/bbb/brainTimeAdolescence.php |
