Losing Track of Time Due to Stress or Anxiety in Teens
Have you ever been so absorbed in a task that you fail to realize hours have passed? When we’re having fun or are fully engaged in an activity, it’s normal to lose track of time. And this applies to both children and adults. However, the loss of time awareness teens can experience may happen during times of prolonged stress or upset.
Being stressed about school, family, friends, and other responsibilities can lead to a feeling of time slipping away for teens. You might not notice it as a problem for your child at first, but when this behavior interferes with their daily functioning, it could be a sign of a deeper issue.
If you’re concerned about a lack of time awareness or dissociation symptoms in teens, a mental health professional can help you get to the root of the issue. This page can also help you better understand the potential causes of a lack of time awareness by exploring:
- What time distortion is
- The link between anxiety and losing track of time
- How anxiety can lead to a lack of focus in teens
- Dissociation symptoms in teens
- Mental health warning signs
- Teen treatment programs for mental health
- Where to find professional support
What Is Time Distortion?
The way we perceive the passing of time isn’t necessarily the objective reality. When we feel like a second is longer than it is or an hour is less than a minute, this is the idea of time distortion. It’s been reported that people experience time distortion when they’re under stress, and that what happens during a time period impacts how long we perceive it lasting.1
Studies have supported this concept by showing that when we induce stress or pressure, people cannot accurately measure time. In the past, many of these studies focused on life-threatening situations, but more recently, we see that anxiety can lead to a loss of time awareness in teens.1,2 In the next section, we take a closer look at this link.
The Link Between Anxiety and Losing Track of Time
You might hear your child say that they keep “zoning out” when they are stressed, or that time feels like it is slipping away. If this happens occasionally, it might not be an issue, but if it happens repeatedly and leads to functioning problems, it could be a sign of an anxiety disorder.
We can lose track of time in the present moment (prospective duration), but we can also lose track of time when we reflect back on past events (retrospective duration). For example, when you are in an anxiety-provoking situation, like taking a test or completing a difficult task at school, it might seem like time is slipping away in the present moment. For others, they might experience the event fully in the moment. However, when asked to recount the events later, they can’t remember how much time actually passed when completing a task.3
Some studies show that people underestimate time when they are anxious. However, there may be differences depending on the type of anxiety disorder a teen is managing. For instance, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is associated with the feeling that time is slipping away, or moving too quickly. In contrast, in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or specific phobias, it can seem like time is slowing down.2
Anxiety Effects on Focus in Teens
The anxiety effects on focus teens experience can lead to attention problems in adolescents that are also related to a loss of time awareness. This may come down to how teens with anxiety have been shown to process information differently from teens without anxiety.
For example, having a greater tendency to focus on negative information, a lack of attentional control, and avoidance behaviors are all associated with anxiety. One theory behind this explains that this effect happens because children who are hyper-aware of threatening situations are more likely to develop anxiety disorders. Another theory is that high anxiety causes cognitive impairments, such as problems with focusing.4
An important concept to consider when looking at anxiety effects on focus in teens is attentional control. The attentional control theory of anxiety suggests that in anxious teens, brain processes are altered that are required to help them meet goals. When these parts of the brain act atypically, it causes adolescents with anxiety to not be able to sustain attention (attentional focus). It may also prevent them from being able to block out distractions or update and maintain information in their working memory.4 In other words, it can lead to cognitive overload in youth.
Knowing that these processes are disrupted in teens with anxiety helps researchers develop treatment options tailored to the specific issues.
When Lack of Time Awareness Signals Dissociation Symptoms in Teens
Sometimes, when a teen is experiencing cognitive overload due to anxiety or stress, they can dissociate. Dissociative symptoms are typically related to traumatic events, such as childhood maltreatment, neglect, natural disasters, and other forms of abuse.5
However, it is important to note that not all children will dissociate after experiencing a traumatic event. Some adolescents will show signs of dissociation after experiences that might not be perceived as major trauma. For example, children who are bullied, rejected by their peers, or are under a lot of stress at school or at home can also present with dissociative symptoms.5
Some dissociation symptoms in teens include the following:
- Having periods of “blackouts” or trance-like states
- Forgetting information about themselves and their lives
- Mood swings (indicating issues with self-regulation)
- Believing in imaginary friends in order to cope with life
- Depersonalization and derealization (meaning they aren’t aware of their body or themselves)
- Intrusive thoughts and feelings
- Flashbacks
A trance-like state can range from momentary lapses in attention to longer periods of being nonresponsive, or even fainting. In addition, there are certain somatic symptoms associated with a dissociative state that can be especially troubling in adolescents. These include issues like loss of physical sensations, unusual pain tolerance, or hypersensitivity to pain.5
In some instances, self-injurious behaviors occur in teens who dissociate because they could be trying to self-regulate or interrupt a period of zoning out or time slipping away. These behaviors can range from cutting, burning, scratching, and head banging, to name a few.5
It’s important to seek professional help if you notice that your child is experiencing these dissociation symptoms and other mental health warning signs in youth.
Mental Health Warning Signs in Teens
We’ve already covered a few signs of mental health problems in teens related to losing track of time and zoning out. Now we will focus on additional mental health warning signs youth may experience that could suggest they need extra support.
Some of these issues include:
Signs of Depression
First, we will look at signs of depression in children and adolescents. Some common examples are feeling down or sad for a majority of the time, experiencing more tiredness than usual, and losing interest in activities that used to be enjoyable. A teen with depression may also not feel good enough compared to others and have trouble making decisions. Along with time lapses, adolescents who show these signs consistently are at a higher risk of developing major depressive disorder (MDD) and having problems with functioning in adulthood.6 For this reason, timely intervention and support are necessary to prevent symptoms from worsening.
Other Symptoms of Anxiety
We looked at losing track of time and dissociation as signs of anxiety, but there are other symptoms that can be identified in adolescents. Emotional symptoms include increased fear and apprehension, and cognitive symptoms include negative thoughts and worries. There are also behavioral signs of anxiety, like avoiding situations, including social events, school, or family gatherings.4
Other anxiety symptoms can be more severe, especially in conditions like PTSD. For example, teens with PTSD might reexperience traumatic events from their past as if they are happening in the present moment. They also tend to have heightened fear responses to things around them, like horror movies or conflict.4
If you recognize any of these mental health warning signs in your child, we recommend seeking professional support.
Teen Treatment Programs for Mental Health
There are many teen treatment programs for mental health, and they differ depending on the therapeutic model. The right approach for your child will likely come down to their specific symptoms and needs. However, in this section, we will look at one type of therapy that is commonly used for adolescents with mental health disorders: cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Teens
One form of therapy that is effective in treating a wide range of mental health disorders in adolescents is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT can help with both internalizing and externalizing disorders. Internalizing disorders include anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and PTSD. Externalizing disorders include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD).7,8
CBT is based on the idea that many of these disorders are linked to negative thinking patterns. Therefore, the therapist works with a teen to restructure negative thoughts and help them build coping strategies for stress in teens. CBT can be delivered in an outpatient setting or in a more intensive residential treatment facility or inpatient hospital, depending on the severity of your child’s symptoms.7-9
By being more aware of their emotions, teens can better accept them without judgment, and can then make more effective decisions13.
MissionPrep: Providing Mental Health Support for Teens
At Mission Prep, we are dedicated to providing accessible mental health support for teens with all types of challenges. If your child is losing track of time due to stress and anxiety or experiencing other signs of emotional burnout, we have different options to meet their needs.
If you’ve been searching endlessly for “therapy for anxious teens near me” without getting clear results, we can help. Our licensed team of professionals can talk you through the right approaches for your teen and how they can be personalized based on their unique needs. Issues like emotional burnout in teens and the effects of anxiety and depression don’t have to be set in stone. Contact us today to speak to our team and start the journey towards better mental health and lasting well-being.
References
- Hancock, P. A., & Weaver, J. L. (2005). On time distortion under stress. Theoretical issues in ergonomics science, 6(2), 193-211. https://doi.org/10.1080/14639220512331325747
- Sarigiannidis, I., Grillon, C., Ernst, M., Roiser, J. P., & Robinson, O. J. (2020). Anxiety makes time pass quicker while fear has no effect. Cognition, 197, 104116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2019.104116
- Block, R. A., & Gruber, R. P. (2014). Time perception, attention, and memory: a selective review. Acta psychologica, 149, 129-133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2013.11.003
- Hadwin, J. A., Visu-Petra, L., Muris, P., Derakshan, N., & Macleod, C. (2016). Introduction to the special issue: understanding the role of attentional control in the development of anxiety in childhood, adolescence and across the lifespan. Journal of Experimental Psychopathology, 7(3), 277-295. https://doi.org/10.1177/204380871600700301
- Silberg, J. (2004). Guidelines for the evaluation and treatment of dissociative symptoms in children and adolescents. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 5(3), 119-150. https://doi.org/10.1300/J229v05n03_09
- Psychogiou, L., Navarro, M. C., Orri, M., Côté, S. M., & Ahun, M. N. (2024). Childhood and adolescent depression symptoms and young adult mental health and psychosocial outcomes. JAMA Network Open, 7(8), e2425987-e2425987. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.25987
- Wergeland, G. J. H., Riise, E. N., & Öst, L. G. (2021). Cognitive behavior therapy for internalizing disorders in children and adolescents in routine clinical care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 83, 101918. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101918
- Riise, E. N., Wergeland, G. J. H., Njardvik, U., & Öst, L. G. (2021). Cognitive behavior therapy for externalizing disorders in children and adolescents in routine clinical care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 83, 101954. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101954
- Golamikhah, K., & Abdolhosseini, A. (2025). Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Depression, Anxiety, Negative Autonomic Thoughts, and Coping Strategies of Students. International Journal of Applied Behavioral Sciences, 12(2), 9-16. https://doi.org/10.22037/ijabs.v12i2.47155
