Recognizing lack of concentration

If your attention wanes after about an hour of concentrated work, this isn't necessarily an unusual concentration disorder, and certainly not a lack of concentration. The latter is only referred to when the condition persists over a longer period. Everyone goes through physical and mental highs and lows during the approximately 16 waking hours a day. Therefore, breaks are urgently needed. It's always better to take a short break than to continue working without concentration. However, if the periods of lack of concentration persist for days or weeks, the causes should be investigated. These can be diverse and, of course, also occur in combination.

The causes can be varied. Are you getting enough sleep? If you're under stress every day, both personally and professionally, but consistently fail to allow yourself enough rest at night, your body won't be able to cope in the long run. Fatigue is one of the biggest obstacles to concentration. Avoid the supposed counterbalances: coffee, black tea, nicotine, or alcohol. A cup of coffee or tea can, of course, improve alertness in the short term, but you should save this for emergencies. Spending hours watching television in the evening is completely counterproductive. You can find out more about the causes of poor concentration here .

What helps against lack of concentration?

Lifestyle changes can help combat concentration problems in adults. For example, incorporate more breaks for relaxation. Think you don't have time for that? Correcting mistakes caused by tiredness costs you valuable minutes or hours. Besides, you'll get your work done much faster when you're awake and rested. Depending on the circumstances, breaks can range from a nap to a yoga practice, from relaxing reading a book to a walk around the house during your lunch break.

Exercise and walks are excellent ways to combat a lack of concentration. Exercise stimulates the brain cells, makes you alert and fit, and makes it easier to focus on a specific task. Endurance and team sports are considered particularly beneficial. Exercise in the fresh air is important, but you can, of course, also do small exercises in the office. The main thing is that you're doing something.

Eating the right foods also affects your concentration. Researchers have identified excessive consumption of sweets as one of the many causes of attention deficit in children. Your body needs an incredible amount of vitamins and minerals to function. Your brain alone requires 20 percent of the daily energy you get from food.

Are you having an argument with your partner, problems with your children, stress with colleagues? Is communication with your friends still working? Even if you're physically fit, all these emotional problems can put such a strain on your soul and mind that you're constantly distracted by these inner voices.

Mental self-regulation for improved concentration

You can learn to improve your concentration, but it takes practice. With the exercises listed above, you might notice small improvements in concentration within a few days, but for a significant increase in concentration and an extension of your attention span, you need four to six weeks of concentration exercises.

Here are three techniques to improve your ability to concentrate:

1. Be here now!
2. The spider technique
3. Time for thoughts

1. "Be here now"

This extremely simple strategy is perhaps also the most effective. If you notice your mind starting to wander, say to yourself, "Be here now!" and gently bring your attention back to where you want it. Example: You're listening to a lecture, or as a student, to your teacher, and you notice your thoughts wandering, perhaps to the fact that you still need to go shopping or what you did last night. You notice this and say to yourself, "Be here now," gently bringing your attention back to the lecture. Then you try to concentrate for as long as possible. You'll notice that your mind often wanders, sometimes several times per minute. But repeating "Be here now" each time will refocus you.

Don't try to keep certain thoughts at bay, because if you try not to think about something, those very thoughts will appear. If you say "Be here now" instead, you'll simply return to the present. At first, you'll have to say this phrase very often, but be patient; over time, you'll need it less and less.

2. The spider technique

This method for improving concentration also seems quite simple. If you hold a vibrating tuning fork to a spider's web, the spider will react and come to see if there's anything to eat. If you repeat this a few times, the spider will have learned that it's not prey and will no longer react. You can learn this, too. Train your brain to stop reacting to distractions. Create a tunnel between yourself and the focus of your attention—in our example, the lecture—and consciously filter out distractions. Concentrate on what's in front of you and leave everything else outside. With a little practice, you'll definitely succeed.

3. Time for thoughts

If certain thoughts keep bothering you and impairing your concentration, it often helps to set aside a specific "thought time" each day to reflect on these things. For example, set the time between 5:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. as "thought time." When your brain is distracted by these thoughts, remind yourself that "thought time" exists for this. This will help you regain focus more easily. This technique sounds simple, but there's even research showing that people who used it had 35 percent fewer concentration problems within four weeks.

Self-help or doctor’s visit?

You can overcome a minor lack of concentration yourself with these and other exercises, without having to take medication. If all else fails, you can always go to the doctor. They will examine you to determine whether you are suffering from ADHD, for example, which also occurs in adults. In women, it may simply be a temporary lack of concentration, as is often the case during menopause. Tests usually reveal the cause quickly.