Do you get distracted easily?

Your phone. Something in the sky. A really cute puppy walking by.

These are several common distractions that people encounter every day. Being distracted breaks your concentration.

“As powerful as the brain is, it can only do so much at once,” says Dr. Munther Barakat, the director of behavioral health for Aurora Health Care. “Distractions demand that your brain pay attention to them, and you lose focus on what you’re currently doing and what’s going on around you.”

Does being distracted directly lead to having a bad memory?

Our memories are put together like a puzzle. Different pieces of a single experience are stored in different parts of the brain. When we recall something, the brain puts the pieces back together to make the memory.

Often, we chalk up having a bad memory to having a “brain cramp,” the passage of time or just being forgetful. However, the root cause might be because a distraction led your brain to incorrectly perceive reality. Your brain could piece together an incorrect memory from that experience.

“Whether we remember something that happened accurately or inaccurately, memories impact our overall health every day. They can drag us down or lift us up. Gaining a better understanding of the potential causes and influences of memory making could help improve the mental health of people everywhere,” Dr. Barakat says.

One day, he says, research may help provide better treatment and education for people with attention disorders, particularly children, and help them avoid conditions like depression, anxiety and anger issues.

Until then, remember to do your best to stay focused…no matter how cute that puppy might be.

Want to learn more about your health? Take a free online quiz to learn your stroke risk.