THREE WEEKS TO BETTER
MENTAL HEALTH
Days 18 - 21
Training Your Attention
Controlling Your Attention
Many of us feel that we have lost control over our thinking. ‘My thoughts run away with me,’ we say. ‘I can no longer control my thoughts like I could before.’ The truth is that none of us can control our trains of thought, but we can all control whether we dwell on them or detach ourselves from them. When we choose to use this control in the right way – not trying to control the thoughts themselves but the way in which we deal with them – we will find that we have complete control.
Remember, it is not the thoughts in themselves that make us sad or depressed but ruminating too much about them. We may well feel that everything has gone to the dogs and think that life in general is a mess, without getting depressed about it. This is because we feel in control of our ruminations – even if we are not conscious of this feeling of control.
People with a good experience of controlling their ruminations, and who use this control to limit ruminations, will not become depressed or develop an anxiety disorder. Naturally they can have bad days and become despondent at times, but their conviction that they are in control and that they have a backstop means that they never ruminate for long enough to develop depression or an anxiety disorder. People who suffer from depression and anxiety or who have previously had depression or an anxiety disorder also have this backstop, which functions completely normally. Their ability to use self-control is as good as that of people who go through life without these mental afflictions. They just don’t believe it. This belief can be developed by becoming aware of trigger thoughts and ruminations, learning to defer the ruminations, and by shifting focus or detaching attention from the trigger thoughts.
Attention training is an important component of metacognitive therapy when used to combat depression and anxiety. It is an awareness exercise, the purpose of which is to make us aware that we can change our focus, regardless of the thoughts and feelings within us or of what is happening around us. We decide whether we want to pay attention to our inner lives or to the wider world, or whether we want to share our attention between several elements at the same time. We also decide for how long we want to direct our attention to these different elements. The exercise helps us to regain control over our minds.
Those who carry out attention training every day report that they feel psychologically better. They defer more, they get better at maintaining focus on what they want, and they experience fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety. They also report that they can decide whether they want to mull over their thoughts many times a day, or whether they would prefer to shift their attention away from negative thoughts, feelings or images of themselves, or away from the outside world.
Attention training can be done anywhere, but it’s easier to do when listening to special attention training sound recordings (links are provided under the Homework section). If doing it without recordings, attention training should be done in a place where you can hear a range of different sounds at the same time.
You can keep your eyes open, and it is not necessary to have an ‘empty mind’. When a negative thought, memory or feeling comes into your mind, you should observe it as though it were a sound: one sound among the many external noises you can hear. You should not try to push the thoughts away or distract yourself from them. Instead, you should let the inner thoughts play; the thoughts may remain for a little while, change or disappear again. If you get distracted by them, you should re-focus attention back on the other external sounds – one sound at a time.
If you experience anxious feelings or thoughts during attention training, you can be fully aware of the presence of these feelings or thoughts but should continue training without processing them. In contrast to mindfulness and meditation, which typically result in an increased internal focus, attention training increases your focus on the external environment. It does not take long for attention training to have lasting effects, even for people with symptoms of depression and anxiety.
In order to achieve the best and quickest effect, it’s often recommended to carry out the training twice a day. It does not have to be at the same time each day, but many people find it easier to keep to a fixed schedule. In addition, you should be patient with yourself and accept that it’s a difficult practice at first.
Attention Training With Sounds
This is the do-it-yourself version of attention training. The exercise will help you discover your ability to focus selectively, quickly change what you are paying attention to, and to share your focus between multiple things. The first step is to identify a range of different sounds at the same time (at least three, but the more the better). Some find the exercise very difficult, and it’s recommended that you begin with just two or three sounds and gradually incorporate more sounds.
You can make use of any sound. These can be traffic noises, birds, people talking, fridges or computers humming, televisions, radios, fans, etc. In addition, try to ensure that the sounds come from different locations: some from a short distance away, others from further away, some from the left and others from the right. When you have singled out what the sounds are, practice paying attention to them for around ten minutes, divided into three parts.
1) First, spend four minutes with a selective focus on different individual sounds. Focus fully on one of the sounds, for example the traffic on the road, and focus only on that noise for ten seconds. All the other sounds are now unimportant. Then change your focus to another sound for ten seconds, for example the dishwasher, and the other sounds are now unimportant. Continue in this way, with a ten-second focus on each of the individual sounds, for the period of four minutes.
2) For the next four minutes, move between the sounds at a greater speed: two to four seconds per sound.
3) Towards the end of the exercise, spend two minutes practicing ‘divided attention’. That is to say, try to divide or share your attention and focus equally on all the sounds at the same time.
After some practice, you may be ready to take on greater challenges. You can introduce new sounds and more difficult sound combinations from one training session to the next. You can, for example, place high and low-pitched sounds together. You can also record your trigger or negative thoughts on a mobile phone and play them back on a loop at the same time as the other sounds so as to learn to detach from the trigger thoughts by focusing on other sounds. The purpose of this training is to teach you that through practice, you can make your trigger thoughts a little less distinct. They are still there, they do not disappear, but you can focus on other things and see past them. In essence, you can control your attention.
Common Pitfalls with Attention Training Include:
1) You try to push certain sounds into the background and overfocus on other sounds. You want to hear all the sounds all the time – including sounds which are not on the list of sounds which you selected to focus in on. Perhaps you will find that the sounds to which you pay the least attention drop away into the background a little, but this isn’t the aim of the exercise. The aim is solely to focus in and pay attention to one sound at a time.
2) You try to control your thoughts or feelings while training. If you start to control your thoughts or feelings along the way, you should give up this control and repeat the exercise.
3) You get dragged down by negative thoughts and frustrations. Many people get a bit upset during training and irritated by some of the sounds. They might get frustrated that some of the sounds are very faint or that too many of the sounds are similar. This is how it should be. The exercise is in learning to pay attention to – and then to detach attention from – external sounds and internal thoughts, especially the negative, frustrating ones.
4) You implement the techniques passively while you follow your daily routine, such as doing the washing, shopping and other things. Instead, you should give yourself time to focus on the training and do your daily tasks afterwards.
5) You fall asleep or use the training to calm yourself down. The aim is to consciously direct and redirect attention, not to relax.
From: Live More Think Less by Pia Callesen (Chapter 3)
Homework
Practice training your attention for the next four days by either following the do-it-yourself protocol described above or by listening to the beginner tracks available on Afternoon Break's YouTube channel. Some of the tracks have been added below for easy access. You have the flexibility to select a different track each day or stick with one that resonates with you—it's entirely your decision. When the beginner tracks become easier, you can progress to the intermediate ones.
Additionally, try to relegate your daily worries and ruminations to your set rumination and worry time. You can continue your daily mindfulness meditation practice or you can just focus on the attention training practice. Each track is 12 minutes long, but if this length of time is overwhelming, consider reducing it to just 5 minutes and gradually increase your practice time as the technique becomes easier.
Attention Training Tracks:
Optional Creative Activity
Personal Focus Object
Supplies Needed: Clay, playdough, modeling materials, or any other craft supplies you have on hand.
Create a small object or sculpture that represents focus and attention. Using materials like clay, playdough, or any craft supplies available, mold an object that symbolizes your journey of training your attention. This could be something abstract, like a spiral, symbolizing concentration, or a simple shape that reminds you of focus, such as a point or a line. As you work, think about your Attention Training practice—whether it felt easy or challenging—and how you can bring more attention to the present moment. This tangible creation will act as a reminder to keep nurturing your ability to focus through daily Attention Training practice sessions.