The modern world requires focus in virtually every aspect, but it can be complicated and challenging for those who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The consequences of poor attention and focus make it problematic to function in daily life as it impacts relationships, work, and overall well-being.
While there is no cure for an ADHD diagnosis, there are some things that you can do to cope and improve symptoms.
This article covers the most effective tips to improve the lack of focus associated with ADHD without the use of prescription medications.
Contents
1. Avoid Multitasking
ADHD can cause you to be easily distracted, contributing to procrastination and rising stress levels.
This can make it tempting to attempt multiple tasks at once, but we highly recommend you avoid doing so and only work on one task at a time.
There is a reason this is the first strategy on the list. Multitasking will make distraction problems worse, making it impossible to entirely focus on any task at once because you will be worried about the others.
Therefore, it will make adult ADHD harder to control, and you may miss all your deadlines due to an inability to concentrate.
In addition, multitasking may cause you to stay at the workplace longer, resulting in lower quality work that you complete, and it will be hard to maintain focus in your social or home life.
2. Plan and Prioritize Your Tasks
People with ADHD often have trouble with organization and may even have difficulty planning a schedule or to-do list.
However, it can be highly beneficial since the outcomes will help you stay more focused and alert throughout the day.
The first step is to determine the important tasks for you to accomplish today. It helps you filter the most meaningful project and then set a timer for a short amount of time that you need to concentrate. Then, you can take a short break before returning.
You can also challenge yourself to make it a little longer than the time constraint! Breaking your day’s work into manageable chunks can help you complete more tasks and help you feel a sense of accomplishment.
Instead of feeling like you are embarking on a project that makes you feel overwhelmed, break it up into smaller pieces to make progress.
In addition, the completion of tasks can release pleasure-inducing chemicals that are helpful in developing better habits.
3. Set The Environment
Having an atmosphere that can help you sustain focus is critical for those who have ADHD. You want an environment that will encourage you to relax whether you are at home or in an office.
Try to prevent conversations by shutting your door, keeping the lights bright to avoid becoming tired, and adding small decor that makes you happy.
In addition, you want to avoid distractions as much as possible, which means your work area and desk should be free of clutter. Research shows that clutter can make you less productive and reduce the ability to focus properly (1).
After some time, you probably discover all the negative and positive ways your environment alters your focus.
However, you can also try a few days changing something like adding music without lyrics, turning off your phone, or moving away from a window to see if it aids or hinders your ADHD symptoms.
4. Connect With Someone You Trust
Having friends or family around is great for mental health, but it can also assist with staying focused (2).
The fact is that having someone around can make us feel better, which helps with adult ADHD symptoms, but there is more to it than that.
Sometimes it is hard to stay accountable for yourself when it comes to essential tasks. Daily to-do lists can only do so much, but you need to receive feedback from your friend.
If you have someone to support you, it can be helpful and give you the motivation needed to power through with optimal concentration. Conversations also force us to pay attention to the person talking and promote a state of mind optimal for focus.
Even just a phone call conversation during the day with a family member, friend, or any person you trust can improve feelings of focus.
They can also talk you into getting back to your job and remind you of the important details when your thoughts are too distracted to do so yourself. They may even be able to remind you of an important task you forgot.
5. Follow a Healthy Diet
Eating healthy foods is an excellent way to improve mental health, which can also help with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and studying (3).
Many foods are easy to include in the daily routine to help you develop improved focusing skills, as they can reduce stress and anxiety, help with sleep, and support overall health and wellness.
Choices like nuts, berries, and dark chocolate can be tasty and helpful with ADHD concerns. Omega-3 fatty acids, like those found in fatty fish, can also help us manage mood and cope with ADHD.
Coffee can also be a good choice, but remember that too much caffeine can cause difficulty sleeping, comedown crash, and other side effects. Still, there is no substitute for maintaining proper nutritional needs without eating healthy and balanced meals.
6. Take Supplements
Many types of supplements, including natural herbs, nootropics, vitamins, smart drugs, and anxiolytics, can support mental energy and focus.
As a result, this is one of the most popular strategies to increase focus and manage ADHD, and it works best when combined with other tips.
It is proven that ADHD changes brain chemistry, decreasing dopamine and noradrenaline (4).
Therefore, many nootropic supplements for ADHD, like Citicoline, make substantial updates to these neurotransmitters and act as a treatment for the primary problem in the brain.
Other options, like l-theanine, can help with nervousness and clarity of the mind using different mechanisms.
These types can act as prevention that makes it harder to lose focus or care so much about all the inevitable interruptions around you.
7. Make Use of Healthy Distractions
Adult ADHD can cause hyperactivity and impulsivity that contribute to excessive energy. Sometimes, making good use of positive distractions can benefit the controlling over attention span.
However, you have to choose the suitable types to maintain a positive impact without becoming frustrating.
According to scientific evidence, chewing gum can be one of the options for allowing the brain to remain focused and healthy (5).
This is not fully understood yet, but chewing can increase the flow of oxygen to the brain and stimulate portions that are necessary for attention.
Other choices include stress balls, fidget spinners, and different harmless outlets that reduce the challenges to your attentiveness.
While they may not be appropriate for all adults, try some to see if it makes a difference in your productivity and ability to complete tasks fully.
8. Exercise Regularly
Physical activity is vital for anyone, but research suggests that it is even more critical for those with ADHD as fitness can help with symptoms and allow you to stay on track with treatment (6).
Understandably, not everyone likes to do strenuous and regular exercise activities to be healthier.
For example, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends 150 minutes of moderate exercise weekly (or 75 minutes of vigorous activity). That means just 30 minutes a day with a couple of days off a week can do enough good for your health and reduce ADHD symptoms.
To incorporate exercise into your daily routine, try to start by taking a walk during the day. At work, you can even walk around the office on your breaks.
You may find it helpful to get an under-desk elliptical because it can increase your fitness while providing a healthy distraction.
9. Take Deep Breaths
Deep breathing has a lot of benefits, like reducing anxiety and helping to calm the mind.
Evidence shows that breathing deeply is good for overall health, provides more oxygen to the brain, grounds our thoughts, and is an excellent method for staying focused and understanding our tasks (7).
One strategy for meditative breathing requires a short 5 to 10-minute break from work, which can help you be more productive when you return.
Try to pay attention to each breath while reflecting on inhaling and exhaling. Allow ideas, beliefs, and thoughts to pass through your head without judgment.
While it may be tedious at first, it will get easier if you stick with it daily. Not only can it help you at the moment, but it will help you stay focused for longer the more you do it.
It will become second nature, and you will begin to have better focus even when you aren’t currently meditating.
10. Write It Down
Writing can be a great way to encourage a state of tranquility that can help focus on a task.
You can write down why you are doing a particular task and include things like what the completion of the project will do for yourself and others. This can fill your ambition enough to boost focus.
You can also write a note to remind you of what you need to get done and organize everything by priority.
Many people find it helpful to use visual reminders of tasks, and motivational tips, which are common ways to improve focus since it can be hard to remember everything in your mind.
Just an occasional glance at it is an easy indication that speaks to you and can help you stay on track.
If you are stuck and can’t seem to get back to an involved object of focus, you may find that it helps to put your ideas on paper freely.
For example, you can include ideas related to the task itself or show the purposes of your life to realize the importance of both breaks and concentrated work.
Write down things you can do once you get the work done and how much better you will feel after all the hard day’s work compared to if you would procrastinate instead.
Conclusion
Adults and children who receive a diagnosis of ADHD have to accept that possibly the most frustrating symptom is a constant lack of focus.
Unfortunately, it can impact the quality of life by making it harder to be productive, hold a conversation, and even enjoy fun activities.
However, there are plenty of things that you can do to improve your current situation resulting in a boost in your focus, even with ADHD.
Start with the easiest things like setting reminders on a timer, taking notes, taking care of your health, creating a positive atmosphere, and using supplements to support your journey to better focus and well-being.