I sometimes have times when I stare off. It reminds me of the description of a petit mal seizure except that I'm aware of what's going on around me-- where with a seizure, the person would not be aware. It's sort of like my mind is tired of concentrating on things and I'm almost compelled to not focus on anything. It happens involuntarily. Sometimes I'm sort of out in "LaLa Land" for 30 seconds or so but when I realize what's going on, I can bring myself out of it, it just takes a little effort. My eyes often lose focus during this time and everything gets a bit blurry. Can anyone here relate?

I asked this on another forum and on person gave this link:
Blinks: A Phenomenon of Distractibility in Attention Deficit Disorder (http://adhd.kids.tripod.com/page5.html) by James Reisinger, MBA, CLU, CFP, ADD

I can so relate to it. The article not only talks about staring off, but puts it in the same category as distractability-- which most all of us have problems with. In me, though, I see a difference between this and distractability in that when I "space out," even though I'm aware, it doesn't seem like I'm thinking about much anything.

In contrast, with distractability, my mind goes off in other directions and I get to thinking about things that have nothing to do with the topic at hand. e.g. I'll be watching TV and I'll notice something in the background like a river or a lake and I'll get to thinking about my vacation last summer in the Wisconsin Dells. By the time I "come back," I've lost a good chunk of the story.

Do you all also space out/stare off for a while and then come back to reality?

"she's a day dreamer" is what my parents heard about me all my school years

I still do it.....

I do that all the time! It seems to be a habit that I just can't break. In fact, I can remember my father doing exactly the same thing. I wonder what is actually going on in our brains during those moments.

Wow. In psycology class, before I found out I had ADHD, we discusssed petit mal seizures. I really thought for a long time that I had epilepsy and I became afriad to drive. Sometimes I would drift off into la la land for so long while I was driving, that I would pass my exit. (My b/f does that ALOT! I think he has ADHD. He does too.) Once I drove like 25 miles out of my way before I realized I missed my exit! I was also afraid I couldn't react in time to save an accident because of my daydreams!

I used to do it bad when I was little. My kindergarten teacher was reading us a book. She asked me a question from the book. I can't remember what it was. I was horrified that she asked me a question. She pulled me out of my pleasant 15 minute daydream. My only reply was, "A lawnmower?" The whole class broke into laughter. The answer was a dog. Interesting how I don't remember the question, but I remember my answer and the correct answer. That was my first ADHD embarrassing moment with many, many more to come....

Needless to say I was relieved to find out I had ADHD and not epilepsy! I was also relieved that there is actually a name for how I felt my whole life!

I do that all the time too. I start thinking of what I am going to say next. Then my mind wanders off. It is especially terrible when I talk to those people who endlessly go on about details or who talk too much. For some reason I seem to attract that kind of person ... maybe because they think I am listening but actually I am really not. I just agree alot.

Hah, thanks for that blink link

"Blinks chop the ADDer's attention into ever-changing, inter linked segments. The ADDer's mind takes in stimuli and adds to it all the unrelated thoughts it has been flying around inside. The ADDer's mind seems to have a dozen open channels to every thought, sound, or sight. Thoughts spring from one to another other and then wander on.

When a person is "plugged-in" to a blink his thoughts may bounce around automatically like a pinball being shot back and forth even before it reaches the flippers. Until "Game Over" or someone pulls the plug they may be bouncing across a rapid trail on topics.
...
Slow reading speed, exaggerated by the need to constantly start over, is a major problem for the ADDer and the loss of skipped material is detrimental to learning living and loving."

"Blink Link"-- how cute. ;)

It wasn't until I was about 17 years old that I could read a "real" book. Not that I didn't know how to read. I loved reading Dr. Seuss books as a kid. When the pages started getting longer and the pictures started getting smaller, then I was in trouble. Constantly re-reading lines or getting to the bottom of the page and wondering what I read was a real problem.

The first "real" book I read, I think was "Animal Farm," (which is a really short book). I think the next books I read were James Harriot's series "All Creatures Great and Small," which have fairly short chapters and the chapters are broken up into even shorter sections. I also like animals so I had an interest in the books.

I read Tolkien's trilogy at a pretty young age (totally captivating) and managed with some struggle to get through what I needed for school with lots of re-reading then pretty much gave up reading anything long for a couple decades & when I started learning about ADD, I read a few books cover to cover to my suprise because again, it was totally captivating. There have been times that I read the newspaper but usually that turns into just reading the funnies & headlines & I give it up.

I had printed this exact article last Friday, intending to post it in another thread--small world! And, of course, great minds think alike!

It's a bit of a long read, but I think it's well worth at least bookmarking for "bit-by-bit, baby-steps" reading. :D

I read part of that link (haven't gotten all the way through yet, lol) and identify with what they're saying. More often though, the reason I get distracted in class is that someone near me is making noise or causing a distraction, or someone needs my help with something and I get caught up in helping them and don't listen to the instructions that are being given (in labs especially).

Even more than what that article talked about, I identify with Sand's description of "staring off." I think it very well may be our brain's way of resting. I too am aware of what I'm doing and what's going on externally and can bring myself out of it easily. It seems sort of paradoxical for someone who is always thinking about so many random things at once to have moments where I'm not thinking about anything at all. I know it frustrates my boyfriend because he'll ask me what I'm thinking about and I'll say "nothing." I guess most people don't understand what that really means, and he probably thinks that I just don't want to tell him what I'm thinking. But truly, I'm thinking of absolutely nothing, complete with the fuzzy vision and everything.

Do this all the time, all of a sudden i go off on wild tangents then before you know it hours go by and I don't remember what has happened. or I will just zone out, my mind dosn't stop I am aware or at least I think I am at points then all of a sudden time just flies by and you have done nothing. yup been there too.

Pink, that is very Zen. I don't think I'm capable of thinking about blank fuzz. What I do is get a song stuck in my head or a boring procedural thought & repeat it to myself if I'm not daydreaming about something nice or interesting.

:rolleyes: Oh boy did I ever used to blink out when I was a kid!!! I think the most often-heard phrase at the dinner table when I was young was, "Earth to Wheezie." "Where've you been Wheezie?" might be a close second.

I don't do that as much though. Occasionally, like when I'm driving. Any time I can be on auto-pilot, as it where. I don't worry about not reacting if there is an accident though, I can snap back instantly. I think reflexes would take over if there was ever a problem I needed to react to.

Onwari's story of missing her exit reminded me of mine. I blinked out and missed my exit when I was moving from Wisconsin to a bit north of St. Louis about 15 years ago. I had to go South and West! - Basically, the exact opposite direction from Chicago. I didn't even realize I'd missed my exit until an hour (or so) later, when I started to see the Oasis Restaurant
that are built over the Illinois Toll-way. :eek: I saw the first restaurant-over-the-tollway and I got a sinking feeling - "dang, I'm outside of Chicago, somewhere."

Let me paint you a picture; I stop at the Oasis to get my bearings (*where* the he!! am i???), the map on the wall of the Oasis was missing it's "you are here" sticker, the first lady I asked for help ("can you show me on my map where we are right now?") was blind, the second woman I asked ("can you please tell me where i am?") spoke no English. The only person willing to help was an over-eager, machismo, leering, 40-something-year-old man (i was 20-something, so 40 seemed unseemly at the time, now, it's kinda sexy ... ;) ). I went back to the blind lady for help - she *told* me which suburb I was near. Great, now, how to get to St. Louis? How about through downtown Chicago during rush hour? The bird was squawking (there had to be a bird!), and I was chanting the following mantra "have no fear. city drivers can smell fear! have no fear."

I called my then-boyfriend (who i was moving in with - and later married. :D ) when I was finally pointed in the right direction. I called right about the time when I should have been arriving. He was disappointed that our re-union was going to be delayed, slightly.... Well, it was something like that anyway. :rolleyes:

To this day my husband won't sleep in the car while I'm driving "Because," he tells me, "we might end up in Chicago."

If only I were making this up....