How much of our time do we spend in the past thinking how things could have been different?

How we could have done things better and feeling the hurt from the past dragging it into our now?

We worry about the future. About things that haven’t even happened yet causing ourselves to feel anxious. Will I make it?  Life’s worries from money, children, career add in the change of a woman’s world with hormones and life can feel chaos and confusion.  Make it to where is the question?

Our minds are so busy thinking!  There seems to be no room to do anything else we simply exhausted from thinking and then overthinking some more! It would be unfair to say that we choose to do this sometimes it is a result of unresolved trauma where you have created coping mechanism that don’t serve you well and you have lost trust in people, love and even yourself and left feeling more confused about yourself and life and so overthink everything.

Work on your self esteem, low self-esteem will always lead us to overthink and doubt ourselves.

How much of the joy our lives are taken from not staying in the Now. We expect ourselves to function when our minds are so busy it interferes with our ability to focus.

The effectiveness of your day management depends on your ability to focus. You will accomplish little to nothing when trying to complete a job if you are unable to concentrate.

Have you ever found yourself gazing out the window on a gloomy winter day while daydreaming about lazing on a beach in the summer as a pressing deadline approaches?

Or have you attempted to commence that challenging task but put it off and chosen to work on something simpler or ignore it entirely?

We’ve all experienced this lack of concentration at some point, but because you’re putting more pressure on yourself because you have less time, it has a greater impact on your anxiety and stress levels.

Why Can’t Focus?

Multitasking

Most people think it’s a great thing but if your mind is already busy multitasking can’t just add to your stress as you keep starting different task and complete very little if any at all.

Not enjoying what you are doing.

How often have you heard do things you enjoy, do things that make you happy there is a reason its because it feels effortless to do the work. So maybe its time to look at what you’re putting your time into.

 Stress and Anxiety

One may become detached from reality because of some symptoms of anxiety and stress, such as persistent worry, being preoccupied with thoughts, and persistent dread. Your anxiety’s causes distract you from the moment and make it challenging to concentrate.

The stress that follows traumatic experiences or being in an extremely divisive environment can make it difficult for you to concentrate. Working life can occasionally cause you to feel anxious, which affects your ability to concentrate.

Electronic Distractions

How many times have you gone to start at task and your now distracted by something you have seen on social media. Depending on what you have seen it could add to your stress and anxiety.   Living in the age of technology, we are surrounded by distractions that add to our inability to focus. Technology has introduced social media, mobile devices, and just a lot of screens to our lives that keep us away from things that really matter.

Nutrients Deficiency

In some instances, a vitamin and nutrient deficiency can also be linked to a lack of focus. Lack of Vitamin B is primarily responsible for mental confusion and lack of concentration.

While vitamins C and D are essential for supporting focus, vitamin B is linked to improved cognitive performance. These vitamins can help your brain function more slowly and help you concentrate. But how can you tell if a specific factor is to blame for your inability to concentrate?

These signs are obvious, so you will be able to recognise them if you pay close enough attention. Because they are ignored when handled like isolated incidents, it can be challenging to notice them at times. One consequently fails to recognise their lack of ability to concentrate.

To notice these changes, one must be in tune with their body and psyche. Do not ignore any of these signs if you believe you have seen them. Consider it a signal to consider how you’ve been feeling lately. Always seek Medical Advice from your GP before taking any new medication.

Lack of Sleep

Significant amounts of rest and sleep are necessary for our brain to operate cognitively. Lack of sleep negatively affects memory recall, concentration, attention to detail, and retention, according to numerous studies. Your blood pressure may rise because of sleep deprivation, adding to the stress already placed on your body.

On some days, even routine chores can seem impossible to complete because you are simply too exhausted. This might be the result of excessive workload, worry, or even hormonal imbalances. Humans must get six to ten hours of slumber each day, regardless of the reason.

Mental Health Challenges

Some underlying mental health conditions such as ADHD and PTSD can frequently cause a loss of focus. [2] It is important that individuals exhibiting a severe lack of focus check out the possibility of mental health issues as well. Seek support from Professional Mental Health Therapist.

Hormonal Imbalance

Your ability to focus can occasionally alter significantly because of hormonal imbalance. This is because the brain depends on molecular activity to perform many of its functions as an organ.

General emotions of dissatisfaction, irritability, depression, aggression, and tension can be brought on by hormonal imbalances in a variety of ways. All of these have an adverse effect on your ability to concentrate because they place an undue burden on the brain and may impair cognitive abilities.

Staying in the Now allows us to manage our emotional and mental wellbeing. Reducing our Stress levels.

Here are 2 ways to stay in the NOW

Gratitude Journal

The power of gratitude is underestimated for our mental and emotional wellbeing. When we regularly experience and express gratitude, stress does not have to run our lives. Whether it be a physical, emotional, or social aspect, gratitude affects every aspect of wellbeing.

Developing a grateful outlook on living involves practising gratitude. We experience the purest form of all positive feelings when we appreciate who we are, the people we care about, nature. It aids in the realisation that nothing in life should be taken for granted or as apparent, as our true joy comes from the little things.

Anxiety is our bodies’ natural alarm system for warning us of impending peril.

Our bodies release hormones that trigger the fight-or-flight reaction when fear sets in, and we respond accordingly. When the adrenaline surge starts, the brain doesn’t have much time to consider what is right or wrong.

The worst effect of anxiety is that it undermines our self-confidence and causes us to doubt our interior resources. Coping strategies eventually start to fail.

Gratitude makes sense of your past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow”

Melody B.

Buy yourself a nice Journal and Daily Begin to Write 5 things that you are grateful for and why.

Meditation

Between 2500 and 3300 thoughts per hour, or 60,000 to 80,000 per day, pass through our brains. Consequently, you can sometimes understand why it’s challenging to concentrate, particularly if you’re overtaken by unfavourable thoughts.

Our thoughts wander throughout the day, which makes it even harder to concentrate. Meditation increases your concentration span; helps you stop thinking about “what might have been” or “what will happen” all the while enhancing your mental health.

Regular practise will increase your ability to focus for extended periods of time while also lowering stress and anxiety levels.

Two simple types of Meditation

  • Mindfulness Meditation
  • Breathing Meditation

Mindfulness Mediation – This is simply learning to use all your senses to stay in the Now. When taking a walk what sounds can you hear? What can you see?  When eating something focus on what it tastes like. Using our 5 senses to focus on what something feels like, taste like, smell like, sound like, and look like helps you to stay in the present moment.

Breathing Mediation – Simply breathing and focusing on your breathing. You don’t need to sit for hours and hours in fact if you’re doing something or anything for too long it becomes an escape from reality. Start with 2 min timer and build it up to 15 minutes.

Find a comfort position, wearing comfortable clothes. Making sure you won’t be too hot or cold and simply just focus on your breathing.  Notice has you been holding your tummy in and holding you breathe. Breathe and let it out. Breathe in peace and calm and release chaos and confusion.

Each time you can feel yourself drifting off practice bringing yourself back into the now.  Wherever you are focus on what you can see, hear, smell and touch around you.  It takes practise but like when we go to the gym to train our muscles training our brain on how we will choose to see things and respond is absolutely possible, don’t let the past or future worries steal the joy of your Now.