TED Tech What happens in your brain when you pay attention? w/ Dr. Sasha Hamdani | from TED Health
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Jan 2, 2026 Dr. Sasha Hamdani, a psychiatrist and ADHD specialist, dives into the complexities of attention and ADHD. She breaks down how ADHD involves not just hyperactivity, but also challenges in emotional regulation and focus. Dr. Hamdani emphasizes the importance of understanding ADHD’s nuances, especially in women. She shares insights on strengths associated with ADHD, like hyperfocus and creativity. Dr. Hamdani also discusses practical strategies for support, including her innovative Focus Genie app and the significance of community in managing ADHD.
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Attention Is Selection Plus Filtering
- Attention is both what you focus on and what your brain filters out.
- Covert attention engages frontal brain regions to amplify targets and suppress distractors.
Flicker Entrainment Reveals Covert Focus
- Flickering stimuli entrain brain signals at their specific rates and reveal attention location.
- When attending covertly both flickers appear but the attended one shows stronger resonance.
Frontal Cortex Acts As An Attentional Filter
- The frontal cortex acts as a filter during covert attention by boosting relevant signals and inhibiting distractors.
- This top-down filtering is crucial for sustaining focus across tasks.
