A few weeks ago I was captivated by the beauty of the fog outside. The misty cloud-like blanket covering trees, streets and structures made that morning drive into work a pleasant one.
On the elevator, I joked with someone that it looks like my brain isn’t the only thing foggy this Monday morning. We both laughed.
But then when I sat at my desk staring at the computer for ten minutes trying to remember passwords, what I was supposed to do for the day and who I needed to call…I thought to myself, this is not a laughing matter.
I hate brain fog!
And just like outdoor fog, (sometimes visibility is 10 miles and sometimes a few feet) there are varying degrees of brain fog.
If you’ve read my book Wow Your Mom Really is Crazy, you know of my Googling habits, so, trying to understand fog and how it works both meteorologically and cerebrally… I took to the internet.
Weather –
Fog is made up of condensed water droplets which are the result of air being cooled where it can no longer hold the water vapor it contains. –Source weatherquestons.com
Brain –
(Umm…This is where it gets foggy)…I couldn’t find a good explanation as to what exactly is going on in the brain during brain fog. IS THERE A SCIENTIST IN THE HOUSE?
But I did find causes – Here are five common causes of brain fog
1. Hormonal imbalance
2. Dehydration
3. Diseases
4. Food or Chemical allergies
5. Drugs
We throw the term Brain Fog around, however it is not technically a diagnosis or a medical term used by doctors. This is unfortunate because chronic or severe brain fog can produce a wide range of issues anywhere from immense personal insecurities to dangerous situations causing bodily harm. I’m sure it costs businesses billions of dollars globally due to unproductivity. (I am still trying to remember my work password).
Here are five key techniques to help with brain fog.
1. Eat a healthy diet-The brain needs a lot of nutrients to function properly.
2. Get adequate rest.
3. Stay on your doctor-If your quality of life is affected by brain fog, don’t settle for this.
4. Stay hydrated-Drink the recommended 8-10 glasses of water per day.
5. Exercise-Exercise increases the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the brain.
Good luck, here’s hoping the only time you experience fog is when it is weather related.
The Crazy Thyroid Lady
It makes me so angry that so many people are expected to just put up with brain fog. I've always felt incredibly lucky that this has not been one of my thyroid symptoms. Despite mind-numbing fatigue, my brain is thankfully as sharp as ever which is just as well considering all the multitasking my daily life requires.
ReplyDeleteAs my profession involves me having to think simultaneously in different languages, if brain fog were to come into the mix I'd probably have had to throw in the towel. I feel bad for those who have had to step back from their careers as a result of thyroid disease. The fact that I work from home (at present) makes all this doable despite the fatigue.
Sarah so glad you don't have to deal with brain fog. It sucks. I had it BIG TIME...still get it from time. Yes, you are very lucky. I hope the "fog" never rolls in on you...LOL
DeleteBrain Fog Anatabloc at GNC
ReplyDeleteSee testimonials http://tinyurl.com/9w655yr
FourmiPharm
Dietary Supplements to Combat Aging
“Come on you apes! You wanna live forever?”
2012 June 21
Added Anatabine citrate supplement (Anatabloc at GNC) under the new category of“Anti-inflammatories
remains in place. And this can happen even with a low-grade inflammation of which you aren't aware.
Anatabine citrate
Anatabine citrate is an alkaloid found in plants of the Solanaceae family, including peppers, tomatoes, and tobacco. It is known to be a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI), which basically means it makes you feel Mill Valley mellow, but more importantly it suppresses inflammation, even low levels of which you may not be aware. As noted above, inflammation is bad, but these little pills, which you take just three times a day by letting them dissolve in your mouth, are potent when it comes to putting an end to that particular consequence of aging. Then I began to hear reports of interesting results from people I respect, which motivated me to order three months' supply of the unflavoured tablets. The pills are tiny, but the price is a big gulp—on the order of a hundred Yankee dollars a month if you go for the maximum dosage (I opt for half that).
But here's the thing, which was totally unexpected: within 48 hours of taking these pills, all of the “senior brain fog” I had been accustomed to as part of aging simply went away, as best as I can evaluate it from introspection. In terms of functioning of short-term memory and prompt cognition, it's like I'm thirty-five again. Now, I am very aware of the seductive pull of the placebo effect, but I note that this cognitive effect was entirely unanticipated and only after I experienced it myself did I discover that others had reported it.
As to the anti-inflammatory part, that seems to work as well. In January of 2012 I had hyper-extended my left calf dropping stuff into mychariot at thehypermarché, and while it“got better”over time, it wasn't really quite right. Well, until I started taking these pills, after which it was completely fixed within two weeks. Is this probative evidence of effectiveness—of course not! Does it mean that if I had a long-nagging injury and was fretting over “senior moments” I'd be inclined to give it a try? Of course I would, and I did, and I'm glad I did. I suspect that as the customer base increases the price will fall, but even at the present (outrageous) price, I consider the benefits worth the cost.
This stuff is very expensive, and the claims for it and the marketing set off almost all of my scam alerts. But the incontrovertible fact is that it seems to work for me, enough that I've re-ordered. I'd say, if you can afford it, order a single bottle, take the pills at the minimum rate of three a day, and if they don't change your life within a week or two write off the experiment and move on.
Thanks for the info
DeleteCarol
American THYROID Association is holding it’s 82nd Annual Meeting in Quebec City, Canada this week.
ReplyDeleteAt 1:20 PM they will present their Annual Lewis B Braverman Award to Dr. Paul Ladenson of Johns’ Hopkins. Dr. Ladenson is the head of Endocrinology at Johns Hopkins and will follow the award with a 45 minute presentation. He has been heading up the research at Johns Hopkins on Anatabine.
When he was recently asked if there was any successful treatment for thyroiditis he said, “Outside of Anatabine, noThis is THE conference for THYROID specialists and it is very well attended.
ANATABLOC at GNC =Anatabine
Great post carol, brain fog can be horrible, I know, I had to give up a good job I loved because of it. For anyone suffering with brain fog now I'm pleased to be able to share that I seem to have overcome it and put it behind me. Good advice is to get vitamin d levels checked and find out if you are intolerant to any foods, particularly wheat, gluten and dairy. Addressing both of these issues in my case has been life changing. I've been able to reduce my thyroxine and completely stop taking t3 medicine. Those of us with hard to treat hypothyroidism can often have other issues going on besides so we sometimes need to look for other possible causes of symptoms, the answer isn't always obvious and we are not all the same but it's worth remaining positive and open minded.
ReplyDeleteThanks for Lorraine. I am surprised I did not lose my job back when I was suffering so...Brain fog really really sucks
DeleteThis is a great post! I didn't know why I just couldn't seem to remember things, then I found out when you have hypothyroidism, brain fog can be one of the symptoms. It can get very frustrating. I have found that by making better food choices for my thyroid, it also seemed to help with the brain fog. Especially the Omega 3's (plant and animal)
ReplyDeletehttp://hypothyroidsymptoms-signs.blogspot.com/