I'm doing it reading these comments right now

I've reread so many pages and chapters because of this, sometimes even restarted books entirely

I used to read a lot more, and I do remember this happening, but it happens a lot for me now with podcasts. I'm a big podcast junkie and I will often find myself going down a rabbit hole of thought and realizing I have no idea what they're talking about anymore.

It's normal if you have dylsexia/ADHD <3

It happens. I usually take that to mean that either I'm distracted by other things, or I'm stressed, or very tired. Sometimes it just means it's time to go to bed.

who are you and how do you know me

Oh ya. I'll read 3 pages and be like "wait what did I just read?" Then go back and re read.

I'm pretty sure I have undiagnosed inattentive type ADHD so this is the story of my life. One word could send my brain on a journey of other related things even while I'm still reading the words. I have to reread so much.

We need a new r/adhdmemes over here

This happens to me a lot. I have ADHD.

I'm sure it's normal for everyone to do occasionally, but if it's debilitating/all the time it's probably something like ADHD. I cannot even read a book but I can listen to an audio book. I might have to rewind it a lot but it's better than actually reading.

I remember reading a new book that interested me, finished it, and realized I remembered NOTHING and didn't understand the ending at all. So I read the book again. It was pretty good. ... can't remember the book lol

I do this pretty often, though usually it's a sentence or line here and there. of course sometimes books are just written that way and the meaning comes later.

It's a bit of an ADHD thing and you get better at reading with purpose as you go. I used to barely take anything in and I can see books in my list that I've read but remember almost nothing about, try to read with conviction, take it in, imagine it as it happens, your comprehension will improve as you go.

Worse still: starting a book, forgetting it exists for 3-4 days, and having to reread like 3 chapters back because you don’t remember what’s going on.

Or so I’m told…

Usually happens because I start thinking about something else without quite realizing it. I do the same thing with podcasts sometimes, too.

Can you stop calling my adhd ass out?

It’s definitely normal for me at least, I have ADD though. Whenever I finish a chapter, it’s a must for me to skim it over again. I just read the first sentence or two of each paragraph and I move on when I have the order of the major events mapped out in my head. Recalling the order of what I’ve read helps me a ton when it comes to processing it.

ADHD aside, you need to ask yourself if you like it, if you're really interested in the content shown, if maybe your mind is distracted in something, or you're worried/uncomfortable in the environment you are in and the likes. Have you read How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler? the author explains that we learn to read just on a surface level, leading sometimes to problems like you express. He then teaches how to approach a book in a way that you squeeze the most information and knowledge from it, even if its just a fiction book; and in the process, remember everything that you read even after finishing it. What works for me is: give a conscious effort to concentrate in what you're reading, but don't stay in the same page, don't even read a sentence two times. See if you concentrate better with music; I have ADHD and when I read books I need to listen to three diferent playlists to concentrate. Finally, following the first thing I mentioned, giving a conscious effort is exhausting to the brain so when you realize you can't concentrate anymore just leave it and start again the next day where you left it, you will notice that your brain will stand more and more all the work out you're giving it.

This is a common issue with people who have ADHD. Source - Diagnosed at age 7.

Oh, God yes. And I do it on audiobooks no less. I was reading something a few months ago. "And she still had no idea who the spy was that one of her friends had been killed and replaced with master impersonator". Wait... WTF? The chapter just started out that way. Well crap, chapter rewind. No I heard how that one starts out, tractor rewind again... No I heard that one too. I moved back through four chapters...nothing. I went and found the ePub downloaded it and text searched it. It happened like seven chapters ago in the middle of a chapter and I missed maybe 15 pages of content.

It also happens when I'm commuting now and then if I'm listening. I'll realize that I'm not paying good attention and tap 30-second rewind half a dozen times. Listen to it all again and realize that I totally missed everything they said again even though I'm not doing anything else but driving. I just put some music on and go the hell home.

It's not even just books for me. I can watch a movie a second time it's like watching a whole new movie. Like I completely missed half the plot and most of the details. I can also watch 100 episodes of a TV show and realize that I don't know the main character's best friend's name (the best friends who had 30 focus episodes and appeared in 86 of the 100 episodes).

Very normal for me!

It happens to me with books, and also equally often with podcasts.

My theory is it happens when something else has (often subconsciously) hijacked the language processing part of my brain. E.g. if I'm reading and there's another conversation going on in the background that I'm slightly interested in. (The reason I mentioned podcasts is because this revelation happened to me when I discovered that I can do a sudoku puzzle while listening to a podcast but not a crossword.)

I do mostly audio books partly because of this. My reading is mostly monotone, I read so slow, and Ill have to start over sometimes because of what you explained above.

Audio books have amazing voice actors if you get a good one, they can also have sound effects, and they're much easier for me to absorb.

All the time dude, ADHD sucks lol

Yes! Just read the book Blood Meridian and then watched a 5 hour youtube video on it, turns out I missed a galaxy of subtext

This happens to me too pretty randomly. 99% of the time I read for pleasure and actually pay attention, but sometimes when I'm reading a book I'm not interested in or something else is on my mind I read the words but can't absorb them. Could read a whole book like that and not be able to tell you what it was about.

I've absolutely read a book, thought it was a bit predictable, got to the end and realised I've read it before 🤦

I don't know how normal it is, but I have ADHD and I have it all the time. My mind will just wander about until I'm at the end of the page and then I'll realize that I have not read anything.

Happens to me too. First post on Lemmy! When I was younger I’d read whole books in a couple sittings. Stephen King, Michael Chrichton, LotR - I read a lot. Now with tech job and kids, I don’t find as much time as I used to, and my attention span isn’t what it used to be after years of Reddit and interrupt-driven IT work. Reading one book, a chapter a night, out loud to the kids is about all I manage most days.

Sounds like adhd kicked in and you were off in your head. Ever trying listening to white noises while reading?

I reread a page for the 7th time and wonder what the hell I just read because I can't remember any of it

I can read 50k fanfic no problem. I can virtually visualize it in 3D, but give me a book about, I don’t know, rocks? And my brain stops working.

I've found taking notes in the margins or highlighting interesting parts helps for me. I do the same thing w ebooks as well!

This used to happen to me a lot before I started using an e-reader. I found that if I put the font on the 'open dyslexia' font and bump up the print size significantly, this rarely happens anymore. It's strange since my eyesight is 20/20 so I don't have a problem seeing the words, I think it might be that seeing all of the other text on the page ads eyestrain and distraction.

Try it out! It might help.

Used to be the case for me, I used to love reading books when I was younger but the stories never stuck with me because I was too used to reading quick. Nowadays I read much slower but I appreciate them so much more!

Not just with reading, personally I have this problem with hearing, more so than with reading. If I'm not actively concentrating, stuff really just goes in one ear and out the other, bypassing the brain competely. This is why I can't multitask while listening to podcasts or audiobooks, because it just becomes white noise.

That happens to me, but I usually interpret that as a signal that I should do something else, like listen to music. I also have the problem where I forget the book after I read it. It helps to write some quick notes after reading.

No ADHD here (well none that's been diagnosed at least) and I'll often have to go back and re-read a few paragraphs or pages because I didn't actually absorb what was going on.

We are human. Humans just zone out sometimes. We just need to keep going until we understand

Yep, used to do that all the time. Now whenever I'm reading introduction stuff I actively make myself think about everything that is being explained.

Really pays off later in the book I find.

This sounds a lot like me. I have ADHD.

Yeah, then I try an reread the passage and do the same exact thing. I think it happens to me moreso when I'm disinterested or tired.