Why Do I Space Out and Keep Forgetting Things?
Why Do I Space Out and Keep Forgetting Things?
Spacing out and forgetting things can happen when your attention is not fully connected to what is happening around you.
The short answer
During stress or overwhelm, some people disconnect from the present. If you were not fully present when something happened, the memory may not feel clear afterward because the information was not processed in the usual way.
You might:
- lose track of conversations
- read something and realize none of it registered
- arrive somewhere and barely remember the drive
- lose pieces of time
- struggle to remember what happened during stressful moments
- feel like you were there, but not completely present
It can feel like:
“I know I was there. I just don’t remember all of it.”
Spacing out and memory can be connected.
One possible explanation is dissociation.
Dissociation involves disruptions in the normal connection between awareness, attention, memory and your experience of yourself or your surroundings.
Research has found an association between dissociative symptoms and PTSD, although the type and severity of dissociation vary considerably between people.
Spacing out does not automatically mean you are dissociating.
Attention difficulties, ADHD, anxiety, depression, poor sleep, medications, substance use and medical conditions can also affect concentration and memory.
The pattern matters.
Flow’s perspective
How Flow looks at it.
We look at when you lose connection, not just what you forget.
If the spacing out becomes stronger around stress, emotions, certain memories or particular situations, that gives us useful information about what may be happening.
Flow’s approach
How Flow works with it.
We work on helping you stay more connected to the present before pushing into difficult material.
When dissociation is part of the picture, therapy may need more attention to pacing, grounding and keeping you present during the work.
The goal isn’t perfect memory.
It’s being able to stay here for more of your life instead of realizing afterward that you weren’t fully there.
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