Be a Little Better with ADHD: Improve Your Ability to Focus
Continued from Blog post #2: How Life Coaching and Hypnotherapy Work
Understanding the Desire to “Be a Better Person”
The concept sounds good: "I want to be a better person." However, I've noticed that with Daniel, as with most clients, the common issue is resistance— resistance to change. "Resistance" is a word that clients pay attention to because it is so direct. Some clients are more open to looking into their resistance than others. It is my job to peel away the layers to find out what is underneath.
In time, I learned from Daniel that he already had a strong perception of himself. He felt comfortable making positive changes by creating lists. He developed lists of personal interests, as well as lists for his workday and to improve his work skills. He also kept a daily journal, which could be as brief as one or a few sentences.
I also learned that Daniel had ADHD, which makes sense given the lists he kept, but he did not want to address ADHD as a problem because he thought of it as a weakness, and he was not interested in changing that thought. His habit of moving from one subject to another during our session became part of my work. Without making an issue of it, I suggested he write down what he wanted to focus on before we met. This simple task helped Daniel prepare for our time together.
Recognizing the Ongoing Challenge of Focus
It is clear to me, and probably to you as well, that one of Daniel's issues continues to be improving the ability to focus; even though he does not fully admit to it in our conversations, he will acknowledge it when it comes to needing an hour or two during the day to focus on a particular aspect of a case. Often, the work he needs to focus on is researching and collecting facts and background information to strengthen his case; to him, that is boring.
Daniel and I have spent a reasonable amount of time using hypnotherapy as a tool that has been successful at helping some of his ADHD symptoms, like focusing and dealing with boredom, and developing better habits with social media, gaming, and other distractions.
A Guided Hypnosis Example for Improving Focus
To help improve Daniel's ability to focus, here is an example of guiding Daniel into hypnosis.
I spoke in a softer voice that drew automatic, focused attention to the moment.
I asked Daniel to listen carefully to my voice as I guided him through a brief body scan, starting with his breath, which helped release tension, relax the body, and calm the mind. I used the word "focus" repetitively to create a positive suggestion for his subconscious mind to respond to: "Focus on your in-breath, the pause between the in- and out-breath, and now focus on the out-breath. Notice the muscles of your stomach area begin to relax and let go. Now move your focus of attention to the lower area of your body..."
Once I sensed Daniel was ready, I guided him through a scenario where he saw himself in the time period of preparing evidence research work. He set a timer on his phone that rang at 10 AM to begin his one hour of focused work. He turned off notifications, turned on classical music at a low volume, and pulled up a photograph of the client (I suggested that he take a photo of every case and paste it to their initial interview) to motivate himself. Next Daniel saw himself on the computer pulling up various websites and documents about his case. I asked him how he was feeling to gauge how absorbed he was in his work. When we were about to end the time period with another set timer, I asked again how he was feeling and where he felt it in his body. Identifying the location of the feeling anchors the body to the feeling. I then ask him to take that feeling and apply it to feeling prepared and positive about going forward. Daniel awakens from the hypnosis feeling more focused and motivated to do a good job. I've done this exercise with Daniel a few times to reset the ability to focus and motivate.
The following blog post will discuss how to improve focus in other areas of life and develop the skills to do so.
