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I can't even pay attention for five minutes. What is wrong with me?

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deadendgame

Bluelighter
Joined
Jul 23, 2014
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356
I seriously cannot pay attention for more than 5 minutes. But somehow i can drive and do things that require immediate focus. But I cannot focus for an extended period of time. It started out with caffeine, then ADHD meds and then meth. I could focus when I was on those. I could focus for hours. But now I'm off of them and I can't focus for more than 5 minutes. What is wrong with me? Can someone tell me if this is temporary or am I stuck with this my whole life? I can do a million things in a day but none of them productive.
 
We're not medial experts and it's impossible to diagnose mental disorders over the internet anyway. Seek professional help irl.
 
Ehh yeah u need to seek professional help..I have similar problems..I can focus when I really have to...im sure meth hasn't helped your cause long term
 
okay. i will. thanks guys. i thought since this was neuropharmacology, you guys might have an explanation of dopamine deficit
 
You'll have to train yourself. I second the above, you oughtta see a doctor because it could be an underlying condition, but if you're used to artificially enhanced focus, the willpower that most people use to stay focused just won't be there.

Sit down at a table with book and a timer, force yourself to sit with it and read for 10 minutes a day. Your mind may wander a bit (or a lot) but keep at it, and increase the time. Books are great for improving attention span.
 
If there is a dopamine deficit from using drugs it should correct itself in a year or less depending on severity of abuse. Sleep debts will greatly reduce attention as well and can take a very long time to heal.

But it sounds like you were self medicating issues you had before drugs. I'd really recommend mindfulness meditation - the whole idea is to shut off the wandering voice in the head and wandering thoughts and just stay in the present. It'll take practice but keep at it.

Neurofeedback is basically technology assisted meditation that you should look into, it has proved effective for ADHD.
 
therealbeats said:
You'll have to train yourself. I second the above, you oughtta see a doctor because it could be an underlying condition, but if you're used to artificially enhanced focus, the willpower that most people use to stay focused just won't be there.

Sit down at a table with book and a timer, force yourself to sit with it and read for 10 minutes a day. Your mind may wander a bit (or a lot) but keep at it, and increase the time. Books are great for improving attention span.
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Exactly. It takes effort to learn when the training wheels are gone.

Cotcha Yankinov said:
If there is a dopamine deficit from using drugs it should correct itself in a year or less depending on severity of abuse. Sleep debts will greatly reduce attention as well and can take a very long time to heal.

But it sounds like you were self medicating issues you had before drugs. I'd really recommend mindfulness meditation - the whole idea is to shut off the wandering voice in the head and wandering thoughts and just stay in the present. It'll take practice but keep at it.

Neurofeedback is basically technology assisted meditation that you should look into, it has proved effective for ADHD.
Click to expand...

Once again, I concur. About 12 months after your last meth abuse and you'll be largely healed, six months for amphetamine. This is a temporary thing.
 
Exercise and good sleep - meditation will help on its own but will help you sleep as well.
 
Sorry if this sounds rude, but when you can drive then you either don't have a truly serious focus issue (but rather psychological ones) or you are more of a danger to others than you realize at the moment and then you Really want to let the car rest for the moment. So many people think that when they didn't made an accident for (enter number) years they are good drivers despite their issues. Until it is too late.

Stuff like that led to a very very strict practice in my country, I had my license banned infinitely and due to a minor issue what made me very angry for long time but now while I'm still angry, more at me for not seeing the reality and all, I should probably be happy that they investigated before something more serious could happen and I'd be imprisoned now for hurting someone.

Sorry for off topic.
 
^ I don't think it always has to work that way. I have temporary problems with focusing on stuff that I'm doing at a certain moment due to stress and anxiety, however, when I drive a car, I'm rarely anxious as driving generally relaxes me. I sometimes go for a night drive to chill out when I can't sleep thinking about random stuff that makes me anxious. I suppose it's completely different from having ADD though.
 
Typically people with ADD/ADHD can focus when doing stimulating activities, many kids with said disorders can play video games for hours because they're stimulating.
 
adder said:
^ I don't think it always has to work that way. I have temporary problems with focusing on stuff that I'm doing at a certain moment due to stress and anxiety, however, when I drive a car, I'm rarely anxious as driving generally relaxes me. I sometimes go for a night drive to chill out when I can't sleep thinking about random stuff that makes me anxious. I suppose it's completely different from having ADD though.
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There recently was a documentary on tv in my country about a few cases of euthanasia mediated by some institution, and there was one woman (who by the way actually was filmed dying) who had severe semantic dementia but she could drive a car (!) as long as it was a familiar route.
Yes I can list the differences with an attention disorder but just saying that driving a car - as long as you are an experienced driver to begin with - relies on a great deal of unconscious skill. So - palmanita - one mustn't exaggerate about the attention needed to drive, although certainly there is a point where it becomes dangerous.
 
well focus problems is a common side effect of stimulant abuse,it will just take some time to regain your normal focus levels
 
It is definitely relevant how long you've been off the meth and meds, TS! As neithman keenly suggests attention problems can come back threefold if you try to hardcore medicate it and then stop... it's basically chronic withdrawal or a rebound reversal of the therapeutic effect.
It's the same reason why sleep medication is not a long-term solution for insomnia: it will just return even harsher. Such is the tragedy of many drugs.
 
Drink water. Dehydration can impair concentration.

Solipsis said:
There recently was a documentary on tv in my country about a few cases of euthanasia mediated by some institution, and there was one woman (who by the way actually was filmed dying) who had severe semantic dementia but she could drive a car (!) as long as it was a familiar route.
Yes I can list the differences with an attention disorder but just saying that driving a car - as long as you are an experienced driver to begin with - relies on a great deal of unconscious skill. So - palmanita - one mustn't exaggerate about the attention needed to drive, although certainly there is a point where it becomes dangerous.
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Different parts of the brain work between learnt tasks n tasks one needs to concentrate on.

Evey
 
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Solipsis said:
So - palmanita - one mustn't exaggerate about the attention needed to drive, although certainly there is a point where it becomes dangerous.
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Now add an unobserved child running on that familiar route ... no, I know what you mean, I shouldn't have posted that but maybe it is really a topic many of us don't know how good or bad they are in ... many people drive in conditions when they shouldn't, be it due to tiredness, emotional stress, etc. and nothing happens, all that. Theoretical discussion, where the borders should be drawn.. I for myself think I am sentisized enough now not to make or repeat common mistakes but regardless, they'll never let me drive again. Others will have to make faults too before they get taken out of traffic, which is ridiculous but just how it is.
 
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I never wanted to refute that some people are unfit to drive (although in the case of that documentary there was a medical doctor involved whose opinion it was that she could operate it just fine - reflexes etc not impaired to avoid any unobserved child), you said that if the TS could drive it's not possible to have a disorder at the same time. Plenty of people with disorders drive, is the point - so that seemed like terrible logic. But everything within reason, so let's not try to consider every single case in a HR perspective, it just depends. Sorry something happened in your case.
 
Sorry too.. I didn't want to offend, it is just something that had a serious impact on my life and thus I thought much about it. People are quick in saying mentally ill persons shouldn't drive etc (at least here). I did not cause harm or a serious accident, I lost control over the car in a rainy night and police decided that I was a threat. I still don't know the reality, it was bad luck, could have saved me from doing harm, or not.. I have ADD and dysthymia like disorders.. while I always felt subjectively able and safe to drive and even other people said I drived caringly (indeed I can second to that driving is relaxing sometimes), in retrospective I feel that as a teen and with my differing focus it wasn't safe. Just that this probably applies to many and some just have bad luck.. of course it depends. I choosed the wrong words.

To come back to the topic, I for myself found NMDA antagonists to be very good in helping with focus and keeping the distractions off, as this goes down to circuits where learning happens, maybe glutamate adjustment aids could help to solve things beyond their own duration? Memantine has the benefit of being available on prescription, but what also might help are the AMPAkine nootropics.

Something with possibly promising value is sarcosine, an amino acid supplement that showed good improvements in some studies, think also in relation to cognition and focus.
 
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