[blind archer]

I am beginning to think that my difficulty to pay attention and extremely bad memory might be ADD or something similar.

I zone out all the time. I don't think I have ever lived in the present. No matter in what kind of situation I am or what job i have to do I cant pay over 60% attention to something. I am very bad at travelling because even though i want to remember the path from a to b i zone out in few seconds then zone in again angrily and then zone out again and the process keeps repeating. I suffer at my studies heavily to due to this. I am always in automation. I cant even remember how that dish tasted like which i was so eager to eat.
I really want to pay attention but even to things I am interested in I cant. We went to a foreign vacation for the first time and even though there were awesome things all round me i still was battling to atleast not be blind.
The things that have always puzzled me were the subjects I zoned out into frequently. More than half of the time they are highly weird, insane, reasonless and stupid.
Like i used to sometimes think what if the person in front me did something strange and how other people would react to it.
Or wondering how this particular word my have been invented.
Or what if suddenly some stupid "rules" came into existance like you cant do this during this and stuff. im sorry im finding it hard to give examples because i mostly forget these things quickly like people forget dreams.

Memories of scenes from movies, some music i heard 10 years ago or something that happened in real life starts being reenacted line by line, action by action in my head as if it is a stage or something. i completely stopped watching TV, movies etc with the hope it will change something. No success. these makes me hate myself especially when it happens during something important and it does everytime. is the rest of my brain that isn't me completely crazy?

My memory and listening skills are another problem. I used to think i was somewhat deaf. Even when i am being yelled at i would zone out for a second and couldnt make out what the word was that someone said. And i even forget to do things that I decide to do after ten seconds. the list is VERY long.

is this ADD and if yes can it be minimised?

[kaliope]

you could take the ADD test on this site to get an idea if you may have ADD symptoms but the only way to know for sure is to go to the dr and get evaluated. take care.....

[Miswimmy1]

No one here can diagnose you. But I thought it was interesting what you said about never being able to live in the present. I have ADHD and I'm the opposite. I completely live in the present. I think the ADHD makes it nearly impossible for me to focus on anything except for what is front of me. As for the other symptoms you talked about, my experience with ADHD has not been anything like that.

If you want a real diagnosis, I would see a professional who specializes in ADHD and other learning disabilities. You're zoning out could be something else, like auditory processing disorder. There are many reasons why you may be experiencing the symptoms you listed. I wouldn't immediately jump to ADHD. It's good to rule out any other disorders before.

[blind archer]

Thank you for helping

but does really noone with ADHD-PI zone out as much as me?
i thought that was a main symptom of it

[doyoutrustme]

You need a real evaluation. Zoning out is part of adhd, but it's a symptom of dissociative disorders too.

[Miswimmy1]

zoning out is part of ADHD (particularly inattentive type) but not as much as someone yelling at you and you not hearing them.

[growlithing]

There are 3 different types of ADHD and some people have only one type, others have multiple types. Personally, I have a little bit of all of them.

My thoughts vary in style when I'm off my meds. When I'm hyper focused, I do sometimes focus extremely intently on the thing in front of me and can't think of anything else like what some of the people above me described. But that typically only happens when I'm very interested in the topic at hand and wide awake. Much more often than that, I struggle with the opposite issue and can't keep my mind in one place. I move through topics rapidly but it isn't like I'm having random thoughts. All of the thoughts are inspired by the environment and the only time they are not is when the are intrusive thoughts caused by my PTSD, not ADHD. It's almost never remembering a scene from a movie or something like that completely in a vacuum. If I did think about a movie scene, it would be because something around me reminded me of the scene or something around me made me think about something else that reminded me of the scene. If I were to start talking about my thoughts aloud to someone else in the middle of the thought, it would sound random to someone else, but in reality they are very linear. I just move through the line quickly. It's never like the stereotypical "ooo squirrel" randomness like we're so frequently portrayed in the media.

That particular type of thinking is similar to what you described and falls under the category of impulsive type. However, thought patterns like this also happens in bipolar disorder as well as sometimes anxiety disorders so it is important to get an evaluation done.

[doyoutrustme]

This would be the most apt description of adhd.

[blind archer]

Originally Posted by doyoutrustme

This would be the most apt description of adhd.

for me its like most of the baloons are invisible and i only see them pop after hitting the spiked ceiling and then panic

[sideblinded]

I don't know if you have ADD or not. Zoning out in particular by itself does not equal ADD. It could just be boredom. For me FOCUS is my biggest problem. It is hard to find something my brain can stay attention on. I will not be able to engage my brain before I move on to something else .

I rarely remember lines from movies as my mind wanders during movies or reading. So like the others said, it is best to get tested for it.

Best wishes

MDD
ADHD
GAD