Easily distracted, bad testing endurance...advice?

[grimmiae]

I have come to the conclusion that my primary issue with the GRE is maintaining focus and attention. I can do fairly well for awhile, but then after two hours it is like- my brain will just not focus. It is extremely difficult for me to even read the screen. As far as the timed conditions, I think the best strategy is to slowly decrease the time I allow myself to solve twenty problems to the timing of the GRE exam. But as far as long term testing endurance? I am not sure what to do. Learn to meditate? I'm not sure.

In my personal life I have had many people ask me if I am ADHD. However, even if I was I don't really think there is anything I could do to see if I have it. If you go to your doctor at 24 years old and ask them how do I know if I am ADHD do they just laugh at you because they think you want Ritalin? Generally speaking, it is just controversial. I mean who doesn't have a hard time focusing in life? But in all honesty I have had people say they can not follow my train of thought because I can think about five different things at once...my brother was diagnosed with ADHD a long time ago.

Ahhhh insight? Anyone?

[Darth.Vegan]

Your doctor will not laugh at you. I would suggest making an appt. to talk to someone.

[Guest Gnome Chomsky]

Do they even still have Ritalin anymore? Anyway, I personally don't like to take medication like that, but I don't see anything wrong with you talking to a doctor and trying to get to the root of your attention issues. I doubt he would think you are just trying to get drugs if you sincerely explain your problem to him. Also, you could very well have never been diagnosed as a kid and lived your whole life with ADHD. I've heard of Adult ADHD. It's worth a shot.

[dcare]

Its definitely not too late to get a diagnosis for that. Think about other traits that are an interference in your life, and discuss them with your doctor. You'd be surprised at what you thought was just normal, is actually a symptom of ADHD. Sure everyone has periods of distraction, but if your attention span is that of a 6 year old, and it is interfering with other aspects of your life, then definitely seek medical help. I was diagnosed at 23 and the only reason I went was because it interfered with all aspects of my life i.e. couldn't complete simple tasks from start to finish such as dishes, laundry, cooking, with a distraction for 4 hours or longer. I self medicate with caffeine, otherwise my concentration is diverted to other things within 2 minutes.... literally. As for the GRE, you can ask for more frequent breaks to help regain focus. Thats what Im doing for my next time. I hope you have luck, but adult ADD/ADHD is becoming more common.

[Darth.Vegan]

I actually have trouble paying attention while driving. My attention will drift off to other things (buildings, people, billboard's etc) and I have to constantly remind myself to pay attention. My academics have yet to suffer because I don't procrastinate. I will literally write a 25 page paper 1-2 pages at a time. I should go see someone about this myself, I'm just not sure who to go see. I have health insurance with Kaiser, I wonder if I can just go to my regular doctor? Anyway, don't do what I have done, go see someone about it as soon as you can. I know my quant score suffered as a result of my attention span.

[pemdas]

But in all honesty I have had people say they can not follow my train of thought because I can think about five different things at once...my brother was diagnosed with ADHD a long time ago.

Ahhhh insight? Anyone?

perhaps your brother's diagnosis with ADHD affected your thinking of the same symptoms characteristic for this disorder. However, you cannot set diagnosis on yourself, even if you were a doc, still the diagnostic process is to complicated to be fulfilled by an affected individual oneself.

The thing that you keep five things at once in your mind, alone, should suffice for the indication of your brain functioning properly.

[midnight]

I have ADHD - Inattentive Type. I was diagnosed this year at age 31. I went to a psychologist for a thorough diagnostic assessment (I took the Wechsler and a few other shorter tests, and I answered questions for two straightforward rating scales). I was then referred to a psychiatrist for medication, and now I take IR Adderall when I really need to focus on something--there are several choices as far as drugs and management go for ADHD; Ritalin is just one with the most name recognition.

No one here can tell you if you do or do not have ADHD. It helps to see a professional who will ask for details about your childhood and adolescence (your performance in school, that sort of thing--unless you've suffered a brain injury or a similar trauma, ADHD does not spontaneously appear in adulthood) and possibly suggest an assessment.

And no doctor worth anything will give you ADHD meds (stimulant or not) without a firm belief that you likely do have ADHD.

[grimmiae]

RIght, thank you all for the responses.

The concensus seems to be that I will not know unless I go to the doctor. With substances like adderal, it makes sense that they would not just give it to me without some type of testing. Being a psych major I feel at least informed that it is not really a black and white issue, I believe it is more complex than just "The thing that you keep five things at once in your mind, alone, should suffice for the indication of your brain functioning properly". It can't be said by anyone on the boards here, I am just generally surprised by the response.

Hard to say in general! I feel focused in some arenas of life and not so much in others. I completely relate to xdarthveganx, I can maybe write 2 pages of a paper at a time. If I write more than that I am painstakingly slow. I just start thinking about the most random thoughts that are totally unrelated. It interferes with alot of things getting done. I notice it in reading material too- I read maybe five sentences out of a page. My attention is really hard to maintain unless I am TOTALLY enthralled with it. I will make an appointment and see what happens. That is all I can do for now.