Struggle concentrating

[user07677]

Hi there so for a good couple of years I've suffered with this problem that when I'm reading I can read really well but none of it is being taken in at all and it's really affecting me with exams I'll be trying to read through help books and I just can't take in what there saying it'll take a good five minutes and going over a sentence so many times for it to click in my head I always put it down to not eating well or I do suffer with quite bad anxiety so my brain is on overdrive constantly but even when I'm not anxious it still happens, and due to being such an anxious person this makes me worry that there is something wrong with me, I just want full focus so I can do my best in exams

Maybe reading is not your best learning style. Do you remember it better when watching a video or listening to it being read out loud?

i used to read the textbook out loud myself while walking around the room. I found that the movement really helped

@SeaToSki sometimes I do but even when I'm watching the tv I have to have subtitles on as well as I still can't fully grasp unless I'm using all ways to get my brain to take it in, just concentrating is the worst feel like I'm in a constant day dream

Has it always been like this, or is it something that has come on either recently or over a couple of months/years?

@SeaToSki last couple of years I would say

I would consider going to see your GP if I were you. Mental fogginess (also known as working memory decline) is a symptom of some deficiencies and thyroid imbalance, its worthwhile getting them checked.

Google hypothyroidism/hashimotos thyroiditis and then think about having your Vit D, B12, Iron and Ferritin levels checked as well as TSH and thyroid antibodies

If you use any marijuana or other drugs or drink more than 10 ish drinks a week, there could be a link there too. Lastly, how much sleep are you getting? If you can, aim for 8 hrs a night.

Have you had any concussions or hit your head hard at all. Sometimes there can be a long term impact like working memory issues

Hopefully something in this list might ring true for you and you can work to address it and you working memory will sharpen up

How old are you because it sounds like peri menopause. Otherwise could be a deficiency in zinc or something similar. Doctor won’t check for this but you could try a supplement, preferably a decent one eg solgar

It might be worth getting tested for dyslexia. I had this issue. I never really noticed it until I went to uni at 28. One of my lecturers suggested as o was a high achiever consistently at 80%+ in exams, but occasionally I'd get a 20% ish exam grade. Turns out I'm severely dyslexic. My main 'symptom' was exactly the one you describe. I just though it was normal as it's how I had been all my life.

.... something that really helped me in my exams was to bullet point what I had read and then to map my bullets out into diagrams. I found on most occasions this was possible.
Good luck.

How is your sleeping. I am like that and it is much worse when I am tired. Also I need to remove all distractions.