Anyway to improve concentration?

[PSI Rockin]

Hallo! Any ideas on ways to improve my ability to focus and concentrate better? I've heard of removing distractions, and doing meditation. but I can't do meditation (don't ask unless you REALLY wanna know.) anything else? thanks for the help!

[+DieChecker]

I've heard that if you exercise, afterward some people are able to concentrate much better. Yoga perhaps...

Caffeine does it for some people.

Sometimes a trip to the rest room will help.

[Dark_Grey]

Adequate water intake, multivitamins, regular exercise and most importantly sleep.

Basically, just give your body what it requires.

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

I've been doing an exercise with my students on "stillness";

imagine a flat open field.

it's flat, and green and full of nothing taller then grass.

There is no wind, nothing moves here.

there is only you and the field.

nothing moves, it's still and it's quiet.

In the centre of the field you see a flower.

Imagine it, the colours and the curves.

You might even be able to smell it.

That flower is the centre of your still place.

If you can imagine the flower, you can reach your still place.

No matter what's going on it the world, that still place always exists because it's within you.

If you need stillness, imagine that flower.

[+DieChecker]

That sounds a lot like the technique used in the Wheel of Time book series, which the Men call "The Flame and the Void". Where you imagine a vast void with a flame at the center. You feed all your distractions into the flame, leaving only the void, which is a point of perfect concentration. It is part of the way the Channels get to a point where they can use their powers. The woman in the series have a similar technique called "The Rose Bud", where they imagine a rose, and as it opens they let go of everything else they are thinking/feeling/worried about, till they are one with the rose.

The techniques of the Wheel of Time both are supposedly derived from Zen Buddhism.

[master_of_turbulance]

make sure you stay away from artificial stimulants like Ritalin or Aderral. Natural methods are always going to be the best in the long term

[Trihalo42]

IF your ADD is a symptom of elevated neurotransmitters, and it isn't necessarily so, I found the following references in a Livestrong post.

Lowering Serotonin

Your body cannot produce serotonin without an amino acid called tryptophan. According to John Worobey and Robin Kanarek in "Nutrition & Behavior: A Multidisciplinary Approach," tryptophan is "relatively scarce in protein," consisting of approximately 1 to 1.5 percent of most dietary proteins. Researchers in the 1970s and 1980s discovered that animals provided with high-protein meals demonstrated lowered tryptophan and serotonin levels, while animals fed high-carb diets demonstrated higher serotonin levels. A low-carb, high-protein diet, as a result, may help your body reduce its amount of serotonin naturally.

Lowering Dopamine

According to Dr. Eric Braverman in "The Edge Effect," people whose brains produce too much dopamine are often impulsive, reckless and driven to create situations that stimulate them mentally and physically. This can lead to violent, destructive or illegal behavior if left unchecked. In most cases, doctors use antipsychotic medications to reduce a patient's dopamine levels. In addition, two amino acids, tyrosine and phenylalanine, are necessary building blocks for dopamine, found in high-protein foods. Avoiding these foods --- including chicken, turkey, chocolate, cottage cheese and eggs --- may help diminish your body's natural dopamine levels.

Basically, high carb diets can increase Serotonin levels, and foods like chicken, turkey, and chocolate can increase Dopamine levels. Sadly, some people would rather keep their psychological issues than give up chocolate.

There is also a good deal of research on using the B vitamin Niacin in larger doses as a way to mitigate the effects of oxidized adrenalin "Adrenochrome", which itself the medical community doesn't want to accept because treating this cause of mental disturbances with a B vitamin conflicts with Big Pharma's efforts to keep profits high.

[Bovilor]

IF your ADD is a symptom of elevated neurotransmitters, and it isn't necessarily so, I found the following references in a Livestrong post.

Basically, high carb diets can increase Serotonin levels, and foods like chicken, turkey, and chocolate can increase Dopamine levels. Sadly, some people would rather keep their psychological issues than give up chocolate.

There is also a good deal of research on using the B vitamin Niacin in larger doses as a way to mitigate the effects of oxidized adrenalin "Adrenochrome", which itself the medical community doesn't want to accept because treating this cause of mental disturbances with a B vitamin conflicts with Big Pharma's efforts to keep profits high.

Dietary manipulation with macronutrient intakes as you quoted appear to be unlikely to have a significant effect on serotonin and tryptophan levels because very little tryptophan is getting converted to serotonin and is ending up in the brain (see Serotonin and L-Tryptophan Side Effects) and the body tightly regulates these values.

Edited September 3, 2015 by Bovilor

[Lumpino]

Hallo! Any ideas on ways to improve my ability to focus and concentrate better? I've heard of removing distractions, and doing meditation. but I can't do meditation (don't ask unless you REALLY wanna know.) anything else? thanks for the help!

There are several options.

1/Use last thoughts before falling asleep. What are you thinking before bedtime, it keeps your subconsciousness whole night.

2/Use a subject to the concentration. Mandala, yantra, candle flame..... etc, see Trataka (try google)

3/Use a "mantra" meditation or meditation music ....

Edited September 4, 2015 by Lumpino

[BloomyDave]

Addium

[aquatus1]

If the reason you are losing focus is medical, then yeah, take your meds. Personally, I take two Concerta a day. That helps, but not entirely. On bad days, when I have to get work done, I have my sound-reduction earphones, plugged into video game music playlists at low volume, and a little plush toy on top of my screen, staring at me. I can scale up or down, depending on need.

The key to focus is training yourself to your environment. Not everyone has the fastest legs, the strongest arms, or the highest mental stamina, and training those specific weaknesses only gets you so far (particularly when one of those weaknesses is technically a disability. You need to have workarounds. For me, I have trained myself to respond to a particular environment in a particular fashion, i.e. "Focus on your work when you have quiet music and a Rainbow Dash plush staring at you".

[blurry]

Please do contact your doctor before taking amphetamines. (Unless you already have a prescription, of course.)

This may sound textbook, but taking them (ritalin, concerta, dexamfetamine etc.) raises your dopamine levels. People who have a shortage of dopamine production (for instance, someone with ADHD) can take these to reach normal levels, thus 'filling' the shortage.

If someone takes such meds with already regular levels they will get a higher-than-normal amount of dopamine, usually with adverse effects and possibly even lowering concentration.

Also, it's not hard to get addicted to a dopamine high.

lack of dopamine ==> lack of concentration

lack of concentration =/=> lack of dopamine

These are good meds, but they aren't for everyone: Don't take these meds on a whim.

Contact your doctor before taking amphetamines.

*End disclaimer*

Edited September 8, 2015 by blurry

[simplybill]

Hallo! Any ideas on ways to improve my ability to focus and concentrate better? I've heard of removing distractions, and doing meditation. but I can't do meditation (don't ask unless you REALLY wanna know.) anything else? thanks for the help!

PSI-

I do want to know! Lol. Seriously, if you want to send me a private message, I'd be very interested to know about your meditation experience. I don't meditate, but as a fellow ADD'er I'm interested in hearing about your experience.

As far as improving your ability to concentrate, I would suggest that you begin by viewing ADD as an asset rather than a disability. This book may help:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1887424148/?tag=mh0b-20&hvadid=3483844715&hvqmt=p&hvbmt=bp&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_5jw2vs3x2m_p

I read that book (Attention Deficit Disorder: A Different Perception, by Thom Hartmann) about 30 years ago, and it was a life-changing epiphany for me. I began to realize that ADD can be used as a tool to nurture creativity, rather than a disorder that needs to be eradicated. (When I say, "I began to realize", what I mean is that I had to slowly realign some of my basic beliefs.)

[Aymeric]

Some ideas by me how to do that: 
Note it down -check your planner in specific intervals or after each task that you complete. Having a fixed plan will really save your time. 

Tuning out environmental distractions: Use a white noise machine or instrumental music to will help you focus. Using headphones or being ‘wired in’ goes a long way in being productive.

Make time for exercise and meditation It is scientifically proven that working out and staying active can increase your productivity and concentration by 23%. Regular exercise keeps mental stresses at bay and is a clear prevention against depression, anxiety and lethargy. It increases overall blood flow to the brain and will make your more active and alert.

Prioritise your tasks: Finish the important and dynamic tasks first. You will give your best to what’s important and by the time you’re done with them, you can just go ahead and finish the smaller tasks with a free mind. 
Think is oughta help. 

Here is my post I also have ADHD/ADD 

I would really say first - hack your brain. Keep it happy.

[newcats]

Void meditation, when done consistently, can work wonders (Don't be freaked out by the website, it's a good place for information if one approaches it with an open mind):

http://www.angelfire.com/empire/serpentis666/Satanic_Void_Meditation.html

[AdealJustice]

working out? learn workouts that demand focus. Using a punching bag and understanding how to target. Mixed with meditation etc your focus should improve.

[XenoFish]

Anything that require you to maintain extended amount of attention will develop concentration. I find video games to be good.