Can You Heal Your Attention Span? Mental Health Experts Share Their Tips

No judgment, I do it too — it feels like I can’t make it through a 30-minute episode of even the best TV show without checking Instagram or scrolling through a few TikToks. It has to be unhealthy for my brain, right? I should be able to focus on and enjoy the things I like, to say nothing of how often I check my phone while waiting in line at the pharmacy or grocery store checkout. Is it possible to repair your attention span? Is the constant checking in and scrolling as bad for us as it sometimes feels? Scary Mommy spoke to mental health experts about how our collective focus is shrinking, and what we can do to rehab our own.

No surprise here, but experts say smartphones and social media can truly be addictive, which is why we can’t seem to stay off of them even when doing things we like. “Smartphones combine infinite novelty and variable rewards — likes, notifications, endless scroll. That combo reliably hijacks our brain’s salience and dopamine systems, training us to seek the next micro-hit instead of staying with one task,” says Dr. Andrea Gleim, licensed professional counselor, CEO and founder of Mindfully Mine Counseling Center.

This also sets a bit of a trap to tire our brains out and make it even harder to rein in our focus. Throughout the day, we do a ton of context switching, Gleim says, i.e., going from task to responding to a notification and then back to the task. This “increases mental fatigue and makes sustained focus feel harder,” she says.

Fortunately, this is all changeable, Gleim says. “Attention is a skill shaped by habits, sleep, stress, and design. What we consistently practice grows stronger.”

Healing your attention span starts with identifying what’s driving you to your phone.

A huge part of why so many of us feel glued to our phones right now is that we’re looking for distractions from our daily lives and all the bad news in the world, according to Tracy Vadakumchery, LMHC, a licensed therapist practicing in New York. “We’re scared,” she says. “It’s hard to engage with our immediate environment when there’s so much to worry about.”

That means one way to begin healing our attention spans is to engage with our real-life community, she says, keeping friends and family close and checking in with each other as often as we can. Vadakumchery is constantly promoting “apartment hangs” to her own clients so they can connect the analog way. “The expectation is that you have to go out and get dinner if you want to catch up with friends. But during this economic crisis, people can't afford to splurge $50 on a meal. As a result, people are lonelier, and our phones and social media are a lot more accessible than in-person activities. We need to bring back coming to each other's houses or apartments. Hanging out doesn't have to be a fancy ordeal. Apartment hangs allow for more connection and emotional intimacy, as well as co-regulation between people, which can help with focus.”

Maybe your issue isn’t needing connection or distraction, but truly feeling like your brain needs your phone. If you’re someone who likes a program, here’s Gleim’s four-week intensive for retraining your brain to hold its focus.

Week 1

• Sleep seven to nine hours each night
• Move for 20 to 30 minutes each day
• Create a distraction-safe zone for 90 minutes each day (door closed, notifications off, devices out of reach)

Week 2

• Try monotask intervals: Work for 25 minutes before a five-minute break. During the 25, you work in one tab, on one task, ideally with your phone out of the room. Gradually extend that time up to 45 minutes as the week progresses.
• Practice mindfulness for 10 minutes each day. “Sit, breathe naturally, and when your mind wanders, gently return to the breath. This is attention training: Each return is a rep that strengthens sustained focus and impulse control,” Gleim says.

Weeks 3 & 4

• Once a day, choose a routine activity — cleaning, dishes, walking — and do it phone-free. Notice urges to check your device; label them “urge” and let them pass.
• Put physical distance between you and your phone by leaving it in another room or a drawer during work. Choose two or three check windows when you answer texts and DMs, and stick to them.

You could also explore new hobbies (or old ones you used to enjoy) that require using your hands and senses and are gentle — Gleim says they calm the nervous system and help rebuild sustained attention. Think reading print, journaling with pen and paper, walking without headphones and noticing your surroundings, doing puzzles, cooking, baking, gardening, or knitting. You can also start small, telling yourself to read 10 pages or journal for seven minutes without distraction, Gleim says.

Apps & Settings To Help You When Healing Your Attention Span

If you have an iPhone, dive into your settings and customize your Focus Modes, Gleim says. Create a work mode that auto-activates during specific hours or when you reach a designated location (such as your office), which limits the notifications you see unless they’re from essential contacts.

You might also consider turning off badge and banner notifications for all social media apps, or setting them to only deliver once or twice a day, Gleim says. It might also help break your social media habit if you move apps like Instagram and Facebook off your home screen. Dedicate that first screen to essentials like your calendar, camera, notes, etc.

But if the feeling making you reach for your phone constantly is the need for connection, be mindful of how you use these notification blockers. “I think that focus mode can be helpful, but I have found that it's not as helpful with curbing a social media addiction. It silences calls on Do Not Disturb, but it's not going to stop you from opening Instagram, for example. What it might actually do is silence calls from loved ones and friends, who can be the ones to really help you stay focused and regulated during your day. When we feel connected to people, we feel more regulated, and this kind of co-regulation can help with focus,” Vadakumchery says.

So, the first step to healing your attention span is deciding you want to make a change in your phone habits. Once you’ve figured out exactly what keeps you coming back, then you can take steps to get your concentration back.