View Full Version : Dealing with brain fog?
Since beig signed off work for severe anxiety last Wednesday u began experiencing a terrifying detatched, spaced out, dream like state that I couldn't snap out of.
Since then it's gone from constant to coming and going and the detatched feeling is gone but I still get episodes where suddenly my brain feels fried and I can't concentrate or focus on anything
It's really alarming and panicking makes it worse. Does anyone have any tips for dealing with this?
Female healthanxiety
14-08-14, 14:56
Hello Anony,
I know it is very annoying. It is because you have the time now to focus on how your feeling.
It is completly normal to feel like that with anxiety anyhow, especially now you are at home as well.
Every step at a time, and don't be scared or angry - most people who have anxiety will tell you the same thing - we have all had it......
Try and get as much sleep as you can and try and do things that you enjoy - they don;t have to be the physical things.
xx
Thanks for your reply!
You're right it can make you both irritable and anxious and I'm trying to fight that.
I just find it hard not to analyse and pick apart the reassurance people give me. For example my counsellor told me that he has seen it in people a lot but then went on to describe people just being generally distractable or tired.
I get hooked on the thought that mine actually feels like an altered mental state, almost like being drunk and a bit disorientated, rather than purely a thought process, and that triggers my health anxiety thinking that it's some horrible neurological disease.
Of all the somatic symptoms I've had it's the one that most feels like a real neurological illness :(
Female healthanxiety
14-08-14, 15:28
If you read my lastest post I can completely understand how you feel.
You have to keep remembering what your counsillor told you whenever you have an episode.
I used to get them - like for instance - one day I went to the ladies and I came across all funny and did not know where I was!
Just let the feeling pass xx
If you read my lastest post I can completely understand how you feel.
You have to keep remembering what your counsillor told you whenever you have an episode.
I used to get them - like for instance - one day I went to the ladies and I came across all funny and did not know where I was!
Just let the feeling pass xx
Thank you! Yeah I get that, it lasts quite a long time sometimes.
Do you ever get it where any sudden movements make you feel a bit.. off somehow, like not actually dizzy but somehow a bit woozy?
JoeGomez17
14-08-14, 16:44
Anonybrit I get that a lot. I think its because I'm focusing so much on my health and being very anxious, that any outside stimulation makes me woozy.
Anonybrit I get that a lot. I think its because I'm focusing so much on my health and being very anxious, that any outside stimulation makes me woozy.
It's like if I quickly turn around etc. you get the feeling of being dizzy without the actual dizziness? Very hard to describe.
I never really realised how much anxiety is subconscious even though I am not thinking of much this brain fog can come over me like a wave. Possibly it's the rain fog causing anxiety, but it also feels like some subconscious part of my brain has just started getting worked up about something.
I know what you mean about being hypervigilant. Any little twitch or tingle or pain or.. anything, instantly you start trying to diagnose it :(
Female healthanxiety
14-08-14, 16:58
Yea I agree with JoeGomez,
I think it has a lot to do with that too!
It may 'seem' like a long time but it's actually not, but to someone who suffers from Anxiety it is!
You will get there in time - a tired mind does so much to your body xx
Yea I agree with JoeGomez,
I think it has a lot to do with that too!
It may 'seem' like a long time but it's actually not, but to someone who suffers from Anxiety it is!
You will get there in time - a tired mind does so much to your body xx
I think I've been anxious/stressed for a long. I can point to a few big stressful events but I think it's my health anxiety that stemmed from them that has gradually burnt me out over the last few months.
Last Wednesday I was due a promotion and to start a new job, but I was dreading it as I hate the job and it'd mean longer hours, so I had a meltdown in the morning, just cried and cried, didn't sleep, and didn't go in. Then was signed off.
It was that day that I felt myself slip into this fuzzy foggy feeling, it is definitely getting slowly better but I still get waves of a few hours a day that are quite bad.
Does this fit with other people's experiences? I just don't want to seem like an unusual case..
Female healthanxiety
14-08-14, 17:25
I think I've been anxious/stressed for a long. I can point to a few big stressful events but I think it's my health anxiety that stemmed from them that has gradually burnt me out over the last few months.
Last Wednesday I was due a promotion and to start a new job, but I was dreading it as I hate the job and it'd mean longer hours, so I had a meltdown in the morning, just cried and cried, didn't sleep, and didn't go in. Then was signed off.
It was that day that I felt myself slip into this fuzzy foggy feeling, it is definitely getting slowly better but I still get waves of a few hours a day that are quite bad.
Does this fit with other people's experiences? I just don't want to seem like an unusual case..
Yes yes and yes.
I am quote a strong person, and I can take on may tasks, many of my jobs have been managerial (small companies).
I find that I do tasks fine, but then the stress of the tasks hit me later!
x
nursegreenwhippet
14-08-14, 17:53
I know that feeling well - a kind of detached dissociation, I have it slightly today as I didn't have a very good night last night. It gets worse with increased anxiety, I went on a anxiety course last weekend and they discussed this issue a lot. Lots of people there got it, they said it happens when too much oxygenated blood reaches your brain due to over breathing and a fast heart rate. It makes you feel spaced out and unable to take things in.
JoeGomez17
14-08-14, 17:58
It's like if I quickly turn around etc. you get the feeling of being dizzy without the actual dizziness? Very hard to describe.
I never really realised how much anxiety is subconscious even though I am not thinking of much this brain fog can come over me like a wave. Possibly it's the rain fog causing anxiety, but it also feels like some subconscious part of my brain has just started getting worked up about something.
I know what you mean about being hypervigilant. Any little twitch or tingle or pain or.. anything, instantly you start trying to diagnose it :(
Yeah. The dizzy feeling without being dizzy is a good way to put it. I just feel out of it, or like my body is trying to catch up with my mind or vice versa.
Happens a lot when I'm mentally tired and such.
Yeah. The dizzy feeling without being dizzy is a good way to put it. I just feel out of it, or like my body is trying to catch up with my mind or vice versa.
Happens a lot when I'm mentally tired and such.
I don't know if I have a "bad case" or not, because some people, as the previous poster, just describe the feeling of going a bit woozy when your heart races. That's definitely not what I have, it's a more constant state of mind that waxes and wanes. Pretty much exactly like being drunk without the actual dizziness.
I have never had it before in my life, I cannot wait for it to go.
AnonyBrit, it is called Anxiety, but years ago it was referred to as a nervous breakdown. It would make sense from what you have said.
Now, what you have to do, is change your Life slightly. Take more time for you, do stuff you used to do when you were young. Play, eat and sleep. Don't worry about anything else. If you are not well, you can't do anything anyway. Concentrate on your recovery. Don't try and diagnose or dissect what you are feeling. Your Mind needs to repair itself. Let it relax. Watch Movies, play games, go for a walk and eventually you will notice a great improvement. It will take time, but use this time to find yourself again,. Look at what you want to do with your Life, enjoy your day, don't sit and ponder about negatives or stressing situations. There is too much pressure on Life today. Make the most of your time off, look at it as a recovery/resting/Holiday period. Don't Google symptoms, you can chat about them on here, but Googling will start to make you fear you have something that you don't have. You have Anxiety!
I know, googling symptoms has only ever made things worse so I'm not doing it now, but being a doctor myself (2nd year) there's a nice textbook in my brain that likes to point out all the things that can mimmick semantic anxiety.
I just never realised that I was so stressed, at least not to the cremation that my actual consciousness would be affected for a period of time.. But nervous breakdown wouldn't be too strong a word for how I felt when this started.
Today seems to be a good day for brain fog, a bad day for twitches. Has anyone noticed the same relationship?
Guys I know you've reassured me a lot but I keep finding it so difficult to believe that anxiety can be causing this brain fog when it's there almost all the time. It comes and goes in severity but 90% of the time it's there in some form even when I'm not thinking about anything :( if it wasn't for the timing of when it started I would be having brain scans by now honestly..
I mean I'm sitting here right now after doing some exercise and I just feel like my brain is not 100% tuned in, I just feel spaced out for no reason at all and like there's cotton wool stuffed inside my head :(
Yes, I am afraid it is the Anxiety. It is a very powerful illness, which is controlled by the Mind. There are things to alleviate it. Drinking more fluid than normal, anxiety seems to dehydrate the body; thus making the brain fog worse. Massage around the shoulder area, you can do this yourself as there are many self-help videos on the net.
Running your fingertips lightly along your forehead starting from the middle and ending at the sides of your forehead. And pinching your eyebrows starting at the middle again. This calms the nerves and helps to settle the fog. Drinking Green Tea and Camomile Tea, helps the nervous system to calm down. Stay off of fatty and processed foods, coffee and alcohol. And plenty of sleep. :)
Thanks for the advice, they are good relaxation techniques and I am staying off alcohol and caffeine.
But brain fog is not caused by dehydration and anxiety does not particularly cause dehydration either, it worries me when I hear things like this said about brain fog because it makes me doubt people who reassure me really know what I mean :(
I'm sure you know based on your experiences, which is just as valuable, but as far as the science goes it's really not so simple :(
Do you find your Brain is all jumbled up. Does your body twitch and you can not control it or stop it? Do you feel you are going through the daily routine with a feeling that your body does these things, but your mind is detached. Do you feel light-headed and dizzy, but don't actually faint. Do you go to say a sentence and say a word that you didn't mean to say? Do you find the most simplest of tasks difficult. Are you sensitive to sound and sudden loud noises? Do you feel detached from everyone else, almost a surreal feeling? Do you have peculiar sensations in your head ranging from sensitive, tight, heavy and sharp shooting pains? Do you have slightly blurred vision? Do your arms feel heavy sometimes? Do you find you have very little attention span? Have you become impatient and agitated? Do you have a soreness in your limbs as if you have run a Marathon? The list is endless........
When I referred to the dehydration and Anxiety. Anxiety causes adrenalin. Anxiety sufferers are running the equivalent of long run without running. When you run you need plenty of liquid. No runner would not consume more liquid than usual. So, that's why I mentioned it. That's why the muscles twitch, it's the adrenalin, but we are not using those limbs, it's in the Mind, that's how powerful it is! So, you end up with a feeling like you are drunk when you haven't even had a sniff. A lot of people have to walk around or do something during the day to relieve this adrenalin. Both my Partner and myself suffer from this. I was also in a Car Crash and that's when mine started, amongst many, many stresses that are too long to go in to.
If you are worried about your eyes, you could get them tested, because they check for any abnormalities behind the eyes. But, from what you say in your posts, sounds just like Anxiety.
A lot of that does apply to me you're right! And definitely adrenaline plays a big role, although with twitches it is something neurological, not very well understood but of course the roots will be with the same old stress response that causes everything else.
I find that my brain fog is improving but still sometimes during the day it just creeps up on me for no reason I can think of. I'll just suddenly start to feel a bit spaced out and my thinking slows and I just feel like my brain is a bit.. fried. But it's not as bad as it was.
I just don't know why it happens even when I am just sitting and chilling :( In fact it seems to happen then most of all!
Yeah, symptoms are always more stronger when relaxing, sitting, lying down. Think the Mind goes in to overdrive then. That's when we do most of our thinking. Trouble is we think of our problems instead of nice thoughts.
Glad you are a bit better and hope it continues, but don't rush in to anything until you have had a proper rest. Your body/mind is obviously trying to tell you something.:)
Yeah, symptoms are always more stronger when relaxing, sitting, lying down. Think the Mind goes in to overdrive then. That's when we do most of our thinking. Trouble is we think of our problems instead of nice thoughts.
Glad you are a bit better and hope it continues, but don't rush in to anything until you have had a proper rest. Your body/mind is obviously trying to tell you something.:)
Haha, so true! Somehow having something not too stressful to concentrate on helps.
Thanks, you hit the nail on the head so many times!
Anybody else have any insight into brain fog? :( I still find it hard to accept. It just comes over me when I am not even feeling stressed.
Look up Candida overgrowth or parasites. You can do cleanses for them. Both of these cause some serious brain fog. If they don't help at least it is worth a try. The cleanses are pretty strict diet wise, but they really helped me. I also find when I eat a lot of junk I get bad brain fog. Candida and parasites also cause anxiety because of toxins. Apparently people with pets are more prone to having parasites. At the very least you'll be giving your system a nice clean out. Hope it helps!
Look up Candida overgrowth or parasites. You can do cleanses for them. Both of these cause some serious brain fog. If they don't help at least it is worth a try. The cleanses are pretty strict diet wise, but they really helped me. I also find when I eat a lot of junk I get bad brain fog. Candida and parasites also cause anxiety because of toxins. Apparently people with pets are more prone to having parasites. At the very least you'll be giving your system a nice clean out. Hope it helps!
If I had candida in my brain I would be in a hospital ICU having intravenous antifungals and hanging on for my life.
I also doubt I have a parasitic infection of my brain, I mean it's technically possible but of all the most likely diagnoses, I don't think toxoplasmosis comes particularly for mind.
If you had either of these things you would also presumably be massively immunocompromised and need to be investigated for HIV/AIDS or some kind of melodysplastic disorder or cancer.
Sorry but I think it's very dangerous to make very false claims like this to people, as a doctor I know them to be untrue but if I wasn't, I could be worrying I had an extremely serious infection now. If someone did have cerebral candida and tried to treat it only with a diet they would eventually be dead.
Claire Weekes refers to this as "muzzy head" caused by brain fatigue and tension.
when i read it i understand it - but when it happens I panic.
I sometimes think that my brain is slowly 'switching off' that it is stopping working - can't remember words or what i am supposed to be doing.
at the moment i fell as if my brain is swelling and will burst.i feel terified.
lots of other symptoms pop up to ad to my distress like my face and nose feel numb my hands are tingling and twitch - can't get enough air to breathe on and on it goes and the dr keeps saying "it is your anxiety, you must calm down"
that old saying "the light is on but there is no one home" well that is how my head feels:weep:
thank you for listening.
I didn't say that you had candida or parasites in your brain silly. I said nothing of a cerebral infection. I am talking an intestinal/digestive issue. As a doctor you know that your stomach and brain are closely connected. Both candida and parasites rob your body of it's nutrients hence anxiety and brain fog and numerous other issues especially IBS. Seriously look into it. It is very very very common. You can do a simple spit test in the morning. (just look it up) I am not making false claims, it is a very real thing. And at the very least you try the cleanses and they don't work and you've lost nothing.. except for maybe a couple quid and some weight. Also even food allergies can cause brain fog as well. Ok and if you still don't believe me just look into neurons and your stomach. Really it is no skin off your back to look into it.
---------- Post added at 02:45 ---------- Previous post was at 02:30 ----------
Also, I am just offering an alternative explanation for anxiety/brain fog which it very well could be on it's own, absolutely.
Claire Weekes refers to this as "muzzy head" caused by brain fatigue and tension.
when i read it i understand it - but when it happens I panic.
I sometimes think that my brain is slowly 'switching off' that it is stopping working - can't remember words or what i am supposed to be doing.
at the moment i fell as if my brain is swelling and will burst.i feel terified.
lots of other symptoms pop up to ad to my distress like my face and nose feel numb my hands are tingling and twitch - can't get enough air to breathe on and on it goes and the dr keeps saying "it is your anxiety, you must calm down"
that old saying "the light is on but there is no one home" well that is how my head feels:weep:
thank you for listening.
Do you just have this for a few moments when you are stressed? Or does it come and go over a period of time?
Because I find that over the last 2 weeks since it started it will just come and go during the day in waves and each will last about an hour and I am not even aware of being anxious most of the time it happens.
That's what really worries me and makes me wonder if it's not anxiety related. Like you say it really feels like your brain is fried and shutting down. I feel like it has blown a fuse when it happens.
so sorry i did not get back to you on this - i had real bad month seeing doc or Councillor 3 times a week...
""""Do you just have this for a few moments when you are stressed? Or does it come and go over a period of time? It comes and goes and is very stressful
Because I find that over the last 2 weeks since it started it will just come and go during the day in waves and each will last about an hour and I am not even aware of being anxious most of the time it happens. This is the problem with anxiety you don’t realy feel it till some symptom shows up and then you are really anxious
That's what really worries me and makes me wonder if it's not anxiety related. Like you say it really feels like your brain is fried and shutting down. I feel like it has blown a fuse when it happens. Just this morning I had the awful sensation as if all my insides were falling out through my feet / soo giddy / soo nauseous""""
I hope you have been better since this post was put up ?
June
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.