Inability to read

OP I have suffered with this problem for a long time and I have overcome it, so pay careful attention to what I am about to tell you.

All of the readers ITT are going to tell you that you're a fat neet cunt raised on vidya games and the internet, and that you merely need to try harder to concentrate, just like they do.

They ignorantly assume you aren't trying hard enough, because they have also struggled to concentrate in the past due to their urge to pick up easily accessible electronic media. They ASSUME like the complete ignorant Veeky Forumsscum that they are, that this is the condition you are struggling with.

However, if this is something impacting you every time that you try to read a book, you will be able to recognise that this is an issue that you have always suffered with since a youngster.

I had a simialr issue. At first I was concerned it might be an issue with my brain iq, that my processing speed and working memory were deficient which left me with poor comprehension. I would pick up a book with all the desire in the world to read it, yet my mind would always wander off. Even when I did manage to read a paragraph, very rarely was I actually processing the words, I was just skipping over them in my mind and never truly comprehended the material. This was a horrific process that Veeky Forumsscum here cannot empathise with.

This is a condition that impacts many people, and is one of the main reasons they aren't avid readers. Sitting down to read a book is hellish.

I overcame this when I was diagnosed with ADHD and began consuming ritalin. Whenever this was suggested in the past when I spoke about my condition, the Veeky Forumsscum here would give their usual anti-ADHD diatribe and told me I just needed to focus harder. Fuck them. I've read three books this week. My life is transformed. My reading speed has multiplied and I ACTUALLY PROCESS THE FUCKING WORDS. Whilst I'm still deficient so far compared to the average reader (I'm on a low doseage atm), I can actually read a paragraph uninterrupted and actually process the text whilst reading. I'm not having to re-read every fucking paragraph.

It's a life changing experience. Look into getting an ADHD diagnosis. All the best.

Have/had the same exact problem. I suspect ADD, but I assume ADD is more a product of culture than an inborn disorder. Either way, the way I've been able to get past it is by both cutting myself off from distractions, and setting very small immediate milestones.

Want to read? Turn your computer completely off, maybe even put the power cable in another room. If you have to read on the computer, get a productivity addon that blocks sites on a timer so you can only use them for a short period of time, if at all. And while you're reading, restrict yourself based on milestones. For example, if you have to piss, tell yourself that you must get through the next 3 pages fully before you can. Hungry? You need to read the rest of the chapter before you're allowed to eat, etc. By restricting yourself, you force yourself to start actually digesting reading, and you'll be able to gradually set higher and higher goals. I've gone from being unable to read more than 1 page every 15-20 mins to being able to read about 20 pages an hour. Its still quite low, but the progress feels amazing

>everyone who advises me to work hard is scum
>its better to take addictive phenethylamines than to actually put effort into improving myself

>Its still quite low, but the progress feels amazing

You shouldn't have to suffer like that to read a fucking book mate.

Read

>>everyone who advises me to work hard is scum

You're assuming that the individual that cannot process words on a fucking page, the most basic and fundamental thing most people can accomplish, is somehow the result of not wanting to work hard.

Now go tell dyslexics they just need to focus more, you utter fucking loathsome cuntfuck.

> needing drugs to read a paragraph

Maybe you should practice meditation or something, god knows ancient man didn't need Ritalin.

I wonder how your diet is?

the result of video games, internet, smartphones and television. Your concentration capability has flattened so much that you lose focus if not stimulated actively. With reading you are the one who needs to be active.

It's like training a muslce though it's quite a bit harder, as if you really care about it you'll have to change the way you live in some ways. Personally, with ambitions as a writer, i have restructured my life completely as to eliminate easy distractions and work on my capability to analyze, to visualize and generally maintain a steady focus on reading.

It's ADD but it's not an illness in the regard of genuinely ADD-kids. It's a matter of adaption. Observe the way you browse, how (I'm speculating now) you often have several stimulus getting at you at the same time, constantly, daily. Does it really surprise you (if my speculation is somewhat true) that you struggle to read with imagination and consistence works that demand the reader to engange with the work and not be handhold as it is the case with Rowlings novels.

Jesus fucking christ, the hostility in here is just ridiculous. Grow up.

Anyway, I think it's simple. Read a book that you'll be interested in. If you're studying at university, but you're struggling to read textbooks, I would take that as a sign you really don't have passion for whatever it is you're studying. I read an entire textbook on tree biology... Just for fun. Take issue with this, not the fact that you can't read. It's clearly more to do with being interested in the subject. I know this because I will struggle to read things in which I'm not interested, but I can read perfectly fine otherwise.

OP here
I know this is probably some confirmation bias but you've made the most sense out of anyone in the thread. I've tried to isolate myself every time I read, but it never made a difference.

Its not like my mind was wandering back to video games or my computer or anything. I'll just get stuck on an idea in the book like visualizing what a character looks like while I'm on autopilot. Then after a few minutes the reality that I'm reading a book will snap back to me. I'm already a few pages ahead at that point. It just makes me feel so stupid. I was always called the smart kid in school. I should be able to read a fucking book for teenagers.

I've briefly mentioned my problem to my psych, but I feel like a scumbag wanting to get medicine to help me because of how much of a problem students abusing ritalin is. I am definitely going to ask her for a test though next time I see her.

Thank you so much for your reply. God bless you user

>Its not like my mind was wandering back to video games or my computer or anything. I'll just get stuck on an idea in the book like visualizing what a character looks like while I'm on autopilot. Then after a few minutes the reality that I'm reading a book will snap back to me. I'm already a few pages ahead at that point. It just makes me feel so stupid. I was always called the smart kid in school. I should be able to read a fucking book for teenagers.

This is me

I know exactly what you mean. A certain thought emerges and one gets lost in images, stares out of the window or just reads on without actually reading while thinking about certain things. It got much better with my change in habits though.

I became an avid reader like three months ago and I can't stop. I stopped watching tv and I don't spend much time on Veeky Forums anymore.

Here's how I did it.

-Remember the average person reads like zero books a year. If you read 5 pages a day, you are 5 pages above the average person

-Don't force yourself to read. Commit to read 5 pages a day. I swear after three days you'll feel like reading more and after a month or so you should be reading 50-100 pages a day for pleasure

-Read various books at the same time. When I grab a difficult book or one that makes me sleepy I grab another and switch. This should refresh your head. Keep them thematically different. I read economics and fiction.

-It isn't a race. Reading slowly won't make you sleepy that fast. Try to acknowledge what books are for you to read fast and which aren't.

-Buy the physical copies. When you get the books from your own money you'll feel the need to read them to avoid the feel of wasting your money.

-Start with books highly discussed here so you feel motivated to discuss.

>My eyes will look through the words and it will feel like I'm reading and flipping pages, but I'm thinking about other things without realizing it. Then my mind will snap back into the book and realize I've gone through 10 pages without actually reading anything.

I have experienced this, but only when I'm reading myself to sleep and I'm very tired. i'm reading every word, but there's no comprehension. I'm not "thinking about other things without realizing it," though. I'm just not thinking, period. but I am reading the words, somehow. it is a strange sensation.

not sure what it means if that happens every time you read when you're wide awake. you must be retarded or something.

Sorry friendo, there's much more suffering in stuffing pills down your throat to compensate for your inability to read than in actually putting your head down and working on it. The satisfaction I gain from seeing myself get better and better and know its from my own hard work is a feeling that could never be achieved by amphetamines. Its obvious how little you've developed your mind by how hostile you are to everyone.
That's because its the weak and easy way. What you describe is, in fact, textbook ADD/ADHD, which many, including me, have. But trying to fix that with ritalin and adderall is weak-willed and unhealthy.

Read the first few sentences. Stop. Check to see if you're still focusing. If not, refocus. Repeat the stated steps. It may be agonizingly slow, but it will build the focusing concept into your brain. Practice everyday for about fifteen minutes. Increase time as you get more comfortable. DO NOT pop pills, easy solutions are more often then not short term solutions.

Are you guys aware that you are literally mentally challenged? Here's how to read:
1. Read the letters on the page
Optional: 2. If you struggle with Step 1 then maybe choose another medium

this is not a good idea. will severely retard your reading speed

>retard

>My eyes will look through the words and it will feel like I'm reading and flipping pages, but I'm thinking about other things without realizing it. Then my mind will snap back into the book and realize I've gone through 10 pages without actually reading anything.
This happens to me, too, but I don't know why it takes you ten pages to realize it. I notice it before I've read a paragraph. Just pay more attention to your thoughts and learn to control them.

>NO VIDEO GAMES.
What about video games that require a lot of patience and focus, like TIS-100 ?

Read, visit the library, listen to music or podcasts while taking walks, read, get into a creative hobby like drawing or writing, watch a movie (not a dumb blockbuster, but a nice thought provoking classic or art film), read, read, read...

Keeping a dream journal might help you get your imagination back.

>but then my brain goes into autopilot.
I had a similar problem once (as a result of illness) and it was just a case of spending some time reading slowly and taking breaks, gradually increasing how much I read. Frustrating since I was stuck at a sentence or two for a while, but it built up. You could also try taking notes as you go along.

Happens to me also.

I have to be careful when I sit down with a book that I'm in a reading mindset, or I'll look at the words, go down the page, and turn to the next while simultaneously realising that I don't remember at all what the previous page said.

I find if I'm reading the same paragraph five or ten times and not comprehending it, it's time for a break.

I don't go forward when I do that, though. I just go back and reread the same sentence over and over, trying each time to focus and failing until I realize that there's nothing difficult about the text and then I get back into it. I've been experiencing this to an extreme degree with Gravity's Rainbow. But I have nothing better to do with my time, so I just power on instead of taking a break.

Nigger

We are in a digital age, and this is to say a visual age where young people grow up with the television screen and, above all, the computer screen. It is very, very difficult for them to learn how to read properly. I always tell myself: go by yourself, whether in your own room or outdoors somewhere in good weather and start by reading aloud, and listen carefully to what you are overhearing, and read it again and again.

Read out loud.

It is the best way to read, or if that tires you out just use it to refocus.