I have recently been studying for a very important professional exam that I will be taking later this summer. I have been reading and working problems in 3 or 4 hours sessions.

 

On occasion, I get to a point that I can't concentrate, focus, or even keep my thoughts straight. I feel as if my brain is about to explode. However, I can simply turn on the TV, go on my computer or do some other activity and the fatigue instantly goes away.

 

What chemical and physiological cahnges take place at the moment mental fatigue sets in and how does the brain know the difference between reading for the sake of work verses reading for the sake of pleasure?

 

With physical fatigue, simply changing physical activity doesnt make the fatigue go away. Only rest will. However with mental fatigue, simply changing the focus of mental activity does. Why?

ever heard the saying "A change is as a good as a break"

 

I personaly think it`s to do with perceived pressure, we can all get wound up when watching something traumatic or sitting an exam we MUST pass, but it`s all mental, we MAKE ourselves feel that way, it`s part or at least a leftover from the survival instinct. it IS controlable to a certain extent with practice, but for the large part, you owe your very existance to this "pressure/stress"

it`ll go away because you can remove it, a few thousand years ago, that would not always have been the case!

actually we feel good when there is something of our interest so make up you mind that you can do it and then go and do something of your interest watch TV or do anything for about an hour or two and then come to study and then dont think of anything else you can do it by just thinking of everything in the book like just while reading concentrate on the spellings the punctuation or even after reading a sentence think it again and then proceed in the beginning you will find it difficult but then it will be easy coz after few days you will not feel this distraction.