How to stay focused and avoid distractions as you age

Chronic stress can shrink connections between brain cells and even reduce the size of the hippocampus, a brain area involved with memory. The antidote? Daily mindfulness meditation, says

Julia Basso, an assistant professor in the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise and director of the Embodied Brain Lab at Virginia Tech. In her 2018 study, adults who meditated

for eight weeks saw improvements in working memory and attention. As little as 10 minutes a day shows a benefit. Smartphone apps that teach you to meditate include Calm, Headspace and

Insight Timer. BANISH MULTITASKING “A big part of the reason people feel scattered, forgetful, in the midst of some sort of cognitive decline is our multitasking, technology-rich,

distraction-laden existence,” says Maura Thomas, a productivity expert based in Austin, Texas, and author of _Attention Management: How to Create Success and Gain Productivity—Every Day._ 

Juggling two or more activities that require concentration isn’t a time-saver, especially for a midlife brain, notes Zanto. “There’s a cost to task switching,” he says. “If your phone rings

or email dings, it disrupts your train of thought.” Getting back on track takes significantly longer than if you hadn’t been interrupted. Thomas suggests turning off notifications on your

devices for scheduled chunks of time during the workday so you can focus. Let people know in advance. “What’s the boss going to say — don’t focus; don’t get your work done?” Thomas asks.

Time-management strategies such as the Pomodoro technique could also help: Set a timer for 25 minutes and commit to focusing on just one task until it rings. Then take a five-minute break

and start over.  MANAGE MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS Hot flashes caused by hormone shifts can interfere with the brain’s ability to encode memories, according to research by Pauline Maki, M.D.,

director of the Women’s Mental Health Research Program at the University of Illinois Chicago. Other research shows that hot flashes interfere with attention and disrupt sleep. When these

symptoms go on for a decade or longer, “it’s a chronic stressor to the brain,” Maki adds. If hot flashes are disrupting your life, she recommends talking with a health care practitioner

trained in menopause care (find one at menopause.org). As for me, I’ve been able to manage my new distractibility by staying well rested and practicing mindfulness, particularly when it

comes to taking in new information. I have also accepted that my brain is going to need an assist every now and then. So I’ll keep writing “COUNT!!!” on my sheet music.