Brain Fog Symptoms You Should Know About

The symptoms of brain fog are associated with multiple medical conditions. Fibromyalgia, infections, a deficit of various nutrients, hormonal changes, the effects of certain medications and even stress … The triggers can be many, but in all cases there is only one detail to take into account: we cannot miss this symptomatology.

The brain nebula is still a sudden and unusual weakening of the cognitive faculties. It is something that scares, which can be striking in many cases when seeing how suddenly it is difficult to maintain attention, understand simple messages or have sudden memory gaps that make it difficult to function normally. These are situations that are seen more frequently lately.

From the field of neurology they point out that it is necessary to go much deeper into this brain phenomenon. Until not long ago, we knew for example that it was linked to diseases such as fibromyalgia or certain allergies. Studies, such as those carried out at Monash University (Melbourne), indicate that it usually manifests itself in people with a gluten allergy.

However, we know that today brain fog can be the effect of viral diseases. Therefore, it is essential to know how this neurological condition manifests itself in order to seek expert help and initiate cognitive training programs.

What are the symptoms of brain fog?

Science has been addressing the topic of brain fog for several years. Studies, such as the one carried out at New York Medical College, indicate that it is also a common phenomenon in patients with chronic fatigue or in those who experience very stressful situations. Despite this, we know that although it is a neurological effect, there is no injury to the brain.

These cognitive dysfunctions are the effect of psychiatric disorders and various diseases. The most complex thing is also that, despite the fact that each person shows brain fog with greater or lesser intensity , it almost always alters the functionality of the day. Some people forget, for example, to pick up their children from school. Others are not clear if they have had breakfast or not.

They are, as we can see, very delicate situations that usually cause considerable concern. Let’s know the symptoms of brain fog.

Going blank, the brain “off”

The person may be performing any activity, such as their job task or something as simple as washing dishes. Suddenly the mind goes blank and you forget what you were doing or how you should continue. There is a failure in brain connectivity, an escape or a state of mental fog in which you do not know what has happened or how to resume your task.

Studies, such as the one carried out at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, indicate that the origin could be in a series of cortical neurons. For some unknown reason, they suffer momentary “shutdowns” in their connectivity. This causes us to become blank, separated from immediate reality.

Forget small and big things

One of the most striking symptoms of brain fog is forgetfulness. It is common for little things to be overlooked, that which we had to buy, that which we had to deliver or sign today, not knowing where we have put the keys or forgetting someone’s name.

Now, in addition to these absentmindedness that could become relatively normal, other manifestations attract attention. Many people forget important things. They can walk into a store and not know what to buy. It may arrive at noon and not remember that we had to pick up the children. They are more serious events that tend to further increase the feeling of stress.

The phenomenon of I have it on the tip of my tongue

We know that the phenomenon of the tip of the tongue or PDL is something everyday, most of us have experienced it at some time and it is also common in older people. However, it is also a symptom of mental fog and in these cases it is experienced with high frequency on a day-to-day basis.

The truth is that today we do not know the origin that determines the feeling of having a word on the tip of the tongue and not being able to verbalize it. It is suspected that there is a phonological failure, that is, we know what word we want to say (semantic aspect), but incomplete phonological activation occurs and we cannot express it.

Problems focusing attention and holding conversations

“Can you repeat it to me?” Mental fatigue makes us slowed down, people who are left behind in those tasks in which we were so competent before. It is difficult to keep the thread of a conversation, remember what they tell us, be skillful to respond, to make use of resources such as irony, a sense of humor …

Changes in mood

Another symptom of brain fog is emotional ups and downs. Although it is true that the most common is to present deficits in the cognitive area (attention, memory, ability to solve problems), it is also recurrent to suffer changes in how we feel. All of this leads us to feel that we are losing control over ourselves.

Symptoms of brain fog: constant bewilderment

But what is this about? Why has this other happened? Why has this person told me this?… Bewilderment, defined as that feeling of incomprehension, strangeness and surprise, is also a common phenomenon in people with mental fog. They are situations in which one feels that the world is going very fast, that the stimuli overwhelm him and that he cannot understand or foresee many of the things that surround him.

Other associated symptoms

As we have pointed out, the symptoms of brain fog go beyond the cognitive aspect. It is common for this condition to be associated with many other manifestations. Among the most recurrent we could highlight the following:

• Headaches
• Physical exhaustion.
• Apathy.
• Dizziness

To conclude, it should be noted, once again, that this condition can have multiple origins and triggers. Sometimes there is an allergy, stress disorder, anxiety or fibromyalgia problem behind it. Be that as it may, the best thing to do is to have a good diagnosis and start an adequate cognitive training therapy. In most cases, these symptoms are reversible.