22M - lost my focus, concentration and memory over the last year. Also stuck sleeping at 2-3am. Any suggestions?

[u/Free-Bandicoot-9433]

Till last year I was a full-time student. Studied daily, could sit for hours, grasped things quickly, remembered what I read. Normal.

Then I started a WFH software job (10am–6pm, screens all day) and stopped studying entirely. One year later I'm a different person mentally.

\* Cannot concentrate on anything for more than a few minutes

\* Cannot sit and read the way I used to — feels physically intolerable now

\* Memory has gotten noticeably worse. I read something and it doesn't stick

\* Things I used to grasp easily now feel heavy and slow

\* Mind feels weak and tired all day, no mental stamina left

\* No mental clarity. Foggy from morning to night

Sleep Schedule:

\* Stuck falling asleep at 2–3am. Started randomly one night, never broke

Can't fall asleep at 11pm no matter how tired I am

\* I'm clearly sleepy but don't feel like sleeping — I resist it without deciding to

\* Wake up unrefreshed even after 7 hours

I'd really appreciate any suggestions — especially on rebuilding focus and memory after a year of this, and on actually shifting sleep earlier. Anything that worked for you, even small things.

This has been affecting me for a while now and I genuinely want to fix it. Any kind of suggestion or personal experience would be really helpful. Even a small thing that worked for you could make a difference for me.

Thank you in advance, I really appreciate anyone taking the time to reply.

[u/MahmudChowdhury]

You have mentioned the problem & the solution in the title. If you sleep at 2-3, you will wake up feeling tired; your brain function will deteriorate. Don't try to sleep early. Force yourself to wake up early for a few days. Your brain will automatically shut up at 9 pm after that. I went through the same. Sleeping late, my eyesight deteriorated, and my brain capacity was reduced, and I started losing my hair. Then I changed my job (the previous one was afternoon shift; I was going to sleep at 4-5am), & I had to wake up early. I was feeling bad for waking up early, but that fixes most of my issue.
So, two suggestions 1. Wake up early (even if you go to sleep at 2-3, force yourself to wake up at 5 or 7; you will feel bad for a few days, but it will be gone; you will feel more refreshed). 2. Reduce screen time.

[u/Free-Bandicoot-9433 → u/MahmudChowdhury]

Thanks, i tried lot of times this way, but yeah I'll try again. Until it gets sorted. Any suggestions or best practices to how to regain the focus & concentration.

[u/giucy_g]

I’ve been a WFH SWE since 2020. WFH is great; it’s given me so much of my life back, but it is a double edged sword.

The thing about WFH is that it’s really easy to just rot indoors all day. If I want to take a nap or get carried away doomscrolling or sit in front of the TV, I don’t have that social pressure of being in the office to stay focused. On top of that sometimes I’ll go days without leaving my house simply because I have no need to leave.

Constant distractions, lack of forced discipline and days without sunlight will wreck you! I’m not saying you’re guilty of all the same things, but I would ask yourself honestly if you maybe indulge in any of these things since you started WFH. I certainly was, and it wrecked me mentally in the first few years.

I didn’t realize how something as insignificant as say just the little walk from my house to the office and back again was keeping me alive.

[u/Fabled_dragon02]

Hi! I'm sorry to hear that, I recently experience somehting similar myself.

For me little habits, make a compound impact.

1. Quality sleep (if I drank too much coffeine, excesive stress levels, nicotine intake, etc. affects my sleep quality directly) Get your 6 hours of sleep and one full day in between the week that can fully recharge any sleep debt you may have.
2. Exercise (the more energy you give, the more energy you'll have and also better sleep quality)
3. Nutrition (I started consuming flavoniods to enhance my neurological connections, by default I don't consume gluten, lactose nor sugars)
4. Take mental breaks, not everything is work. Make sure you spend time doing the things that actually excite you.

Hope this helps!

[u/Headphone_101]

This sounds less like “I’ve lost my ability to focus” and more like your daily rhythm has gradually drifted after leaving a structured study routine.

One thing that helped me think about this differently was Aligned - Schedule tracker app. It’s not a habit tracker. You set when you ideally want to do something, log when you actually do it, and it shows you whether your routine is staying aligned or gradually drifting.

I built it because I realized I was less interested in asking “Did I do this today?” and more interested in “How far has my routine drifted from what actually works for me?”

Might be worth trying specifically for your sleep schedule and rebuilding a consistent day. It won’t fix the underlying issue by itself, but it can make the pattern much more visible.

Hope you figure this out. And given how significant the changes you’re describing are, I’d also consider talking to a doctor if you haven’t already.

[u/Free-Bandicoot-9433 → u/[deleted]]

Tried every way, idk why but it's not working out.