I have problems with concentration, and when I was in yeshiva I found that learning from a sefer, which takes a lot of effort, inevitably led me to find every kind of distraction, including masturbation. What worked for me (the only sober stretch of my life; 35 days) was listening to shiurim while pacing back and forth or walking. That kept my mind of my ta'avos. Unfortunately this is not workable for me in my current situation.

Not for everyone, but maybe it will help someone out there...

Welcome! I am sure you will find your way quickly.

RoshYeshivasSon wrote:

Can you share any more and elaborate on some specifics of your current situation, so we can try to help you a little more?

By the way, have you read through the handbook? You should be able to find a lot of relevant tips and information for yourself there.

Bracha V'Hatzlacha, keep us posted!!!

you are correct . It is easier to listen to a shiur than it is to focus on a sefer.

Do you have anything else in your life that is making it hard for you toconcentrate?

ADD? A learning disability, Hemorrhoids?

Hi RYS!


I can relate to the frustration about spacing out. Please don't blame yourself. We only control our effort!! For me, spacing out is form of escapism. I my case I'm escaping the feeling of being a "failure" of not being the best bochur in yeshiva..

Getting mad at myself , for spacing out, was very counter productive - because it just gave me more reason to escape my shortcomings ("I cant concentrate for a couple of minutes = failure!). And often it woud lead to make "as if" I understood what my chavrusah said.


My new approach:
I just accepted that Im not capable of being focused all the time. Im trying - and if I space out thats ok too! Success should not be measured by the rank in yeshiva!! (Also see Dr. Sorotzkin regarding perfectionism)

Interestingly enough, since I stopped getting upset at myself. I space out much less.I also enjoy my learing much more. And my chavrusahs didnt dump yet. They are all very understanding when I say "Sorry, I spaced out - do you mind saying that again?"

Its hard to accept, but as soon as I did, it just went upward.

We only can give it our best and thats all that counts!


Hatzlacha!

I just realized: What would swiss cheese be - without all the holes

You have to find collections of shiurim which you can listen to for many weeks. Search Kol Haloshon for a speaker who appeals to you and has many shiurim posted. I like to use torahanytime.com where I find it easy to download an entire page of shiurim using the downloadthemall add-on to Mozilla Firefox.