Concentrating

[Rasto]

Has anyone got to the point where concentrating is becoming a nightmare. I find it hard to hear a full conversation. I wondered if there are others that have a constant noise that they live with and how they manage this and have any enjoyment in work or personal life. I am not sleeping and have lived like this for 4 years. The work is easy to manage but reading and concentrating and checking my work is tiring and very long. I have done all the therapies, spent thousands of pounds on products and even managed all the negative and disimissive behaviours of colleagues. It is difficult not to be negative about, do things you enjoy, socialise etc as none of these help.

[Happyrosie]

I find listening to the radio and concentrating on the voices very hard indeed - but I can read or work easily as long as there are no competing noises. Even the sound of the washing machine distracts me, but if it’s all quiet or very very low classical music I can concentrate well.

[Rasto in reply to Happyrosie]

Thank you, I need noise, loud noise. thanks for replying.

[KC1961]

I often struggle to concentrate when reading. If I ask myself, "What have I just read?" I can't tell myself and have to slowly and deliberately re-read whatever it was.

Kenny

[rabbits65]

Hi Rasto ...Yes I agree with what you say about concentrating. If only there was a way of getting rid of these head discomforts . I’m reluctant to pay for these expensive so called treatments as I think it’s just a money making racket, and no guarantee they even work a little bit. I suppose it’s just a case of best foot forward so to speak and live in hope. Love the radio , walking poodles etc . Just keep going.

[daverussell]

I wish someone could give me an answer to this one. However, I now try to accept and adapt accordingly, depending on the environment and mood. Having said, if it is triggering anxiety, CBT may help. As you say you've found work easy to manage - it's the opposite for me. Lack of sleep is massive problem that is possibly heightening sensitivity,anxiety and reducing cognition.

It may not be just tinnitus, but other associated conditions.

They are all really debilitating. I think Hyperacusis especially makes it worse when there is too much background noise. For me it's all linked to hearing loss. In fact, I stepped down from teaching due to a combination of struggling to hear and picking up the forever annoying noises. I went back to an office job and soon left as it was too busy and noisy, and the boss was not sympathetic.

Too quiet or too loud I cannot win. I don't think I've got an ideal job, but as a support worker and understanding employees I can leave the classroom if it gets too loud and irritating. At the moment I find online lessons difficult, but it's temporary.

However, I find reading and loosing myself in a good book an escape, even if often I have to reread what I've read.

The problems are exhaustion from having to concentrate on processing the information. It then makes it difficult to retain information.

The NHS state that an early sign of hearing loss is "feeling tired or stressed from having to concentrate while listening". - nhs.uk/conditions/hearing-l...

Hyperacusis inevitably impacts on how much we enjoy our work environment. According to the report on 'Associations between hyperacusis and psychosocial work factors in the general population', from 2018, "sounds do not have to be loud to be adverse. Performance on cognitively challenging tasks is negatively affected by auditory distractors at irregular intervals" - link.springer.com/article/1...