Thanks to the Delta variant, the pandemic is not over… yet. Impaired cognition has reached a crisis point for many throughout the world.
Elanna walked into the kitchen and laid her hands on the counter top. Why was she here? She looked for her phone, but she was holding it. Well, that was good, at least. She looked around for a hint…water was OFF at the sink. Well, that was good. Finally she remembered her bill she needed to pay by check. So she hurried to her desk to write the check and mail it. What had her son told her to read about…? What to do about brain fog? What was it?
The next morning she found the envelope to pay the bill on her desk. Oh NO!!! That needed to be mailed yesterday!!! So she slipped it into her purse to take it to the post office.
Then her phone rang. It was the box store to schedule delivery for her refrigerator. “Tuesday, between 3pm and 5pm? Yes,I’ll be here.”
Next, she brought in the mail, and felt relieved that at least her bill payment had gone out today, even if it was a day late. A special envelope caught her attention. She pulled at it to free it from the rest of the stack. She recognized the handwriting and eagerly opened it.
A wedding shower for her closest friend’s daughter! On Tuesday at 3:30pm. Wonderful!
She called immediately to RSVP and assured her friend she’d be there with bells on!
Remember Elanna’s bill payment in her purse…? She doesn’t….
The following day she grabbed her purse, stuffing an apple in it on her way out the door in case she got hungry. She made several stops to find just the right gift. It wasn’t easy, because she found herself distracted repeatedly by all the appealing things on display that had nothing to do with a wedding shower.
The weekend was a whirlwind of activity, and finally Tuesday morning arrived. She wrapped her gift, dressed enthusiastically, then rushed out the door for the shower. She had great fun with her friends and their daughters, everyone twittering about Hannah’s wedding.
She asked around, super casually, what they knew about brain fog… and if brain fog was a thing. One of the young women said, “It’s a mental fuzziness, an inability to think clearly, make decisions clearly, that kind of thing.”
After helping with cleanup, Elanna got home at dusk and saw a note on her door. She pulled it off and set it on the kitchen counter.
She was tired, so she picked up her laptop, and sat in the recliner with her feet up.
After a long exhale, and relief in her throbbing feet (heels are such a pain!), she noticed the laptop stilll folded closed in her lap. What was I going to do? She closed her eyes…and drifted off to sleep…then the phone rang. “Hello, I’m calling for Elanna. Would you like to reschedule the delivery of your refrigerator?” Oh no. That was today…..ugghh.
What To Do About Brain Fog… It Affects So Many Aspects of Life
The customer service agent explained she owed another $79.00 for the repeat delivery. (Yikes!). She also encouraged her to go to their website and make a note of the new delivery order number.
Elanna thought, I don’t want to go to their website..! “Can you just give it to me now?”
“No ma’am. My department delivers the appliance. The scheduling department assigns the delivery order numbers. And keep in mind that this number is different than the order number itself. This is about the second delivery. You’ll need this to give to the delivery person so you can be sure you get the correct appliance.”
Elanna looked up the website…then thought, where?? Where do I go? How do I get there? She looked at the menu and there was nothing about deliveries or delivery order numbers. Where do I go???
The phone rang again… this time it was the creditor she thought she had paid. She was sure she mailed it. Then again…
Confusion, scatterbrained mistakes, a feeling of helplessness…can be costly.
Elanna searched her purse, and there, under the stuffed apple, was a crumpled envelope. Oh no….
“I’m sorry. I forgot it was in my purse.”
“ Yes ma’am…be sure to add $25.00 to that check as a late charge.”
Frustration! What Can You Do about Brain Fog??
Elanna was so frustrated she didn’t know whether to cry or scream. But she still hadn’t written that email. She would do that right now. Write to Ben, Write to Ben, Write to Ben, she murmured to herself so she wouldn’t forget by the time she got into her email. So many unread new messages! So much junk that needed clearing out. After a quick hello, telling him about a couple of events of the week, she transitioned to her real reason for writing.
But.. her mind was blank. And she felt blank. She didn’t remember what she had meant to say very clearly…it was all mottled and tangled in her mind…like a wisp of dust floating away. She finally wrote that there was just so much going on…and closed out the email. It was quick, insubstantial, and pretty meaningless.
How frustrating!
What in the world was wrong with her? She pushed the laptop aside, and went to the kitchen for ice cream. Elanna needed a BREAK!!!
And what about you? Have you noticed your mind is foggier than it used to be? Do you think less quickly, calculate more slowly…or have trouble with creative problem solving? When you write that cover letter or that email, is it clunky and poorly composed?
Oh to be able to think again!
Actually, neuroscientists have found that this reduced cognition — what we’re calling brain fog here — is a widespread problem for people in all walks of life.
There seems to be no question that the pandemic plays a huge role. All the depression, anxiety, and PTSD, not to mention alcohol use and substance use can blur cognition for so many.
In addition, there’s a surge of concern among physicians and neurologists that we’re actually in a global cognitive crisis.
Listen up.
We now know that 50% of people who recover from the COVID-19 infection suffer from brain fog and fatigue. 50%! Many experience ongoing difficulties in executive function, cognitive control and just overall decreases in cognition that lead to disability and impaired functioning and sometimes, disability.
An over arching fear among health experts is that these deficiencies could go on and on — for years.
The cognitive skills we’re talking about include the ability to focus attention, to perceive, register information, lay down memory and retrieve it, as well as difficulties with word finding, language and reasoning.
Besides being potential long-haul symptoms of COVID-19, impairments in many of these skills are also common (but poorly recognized) features of depression, anxiety, autism, PTSD, dyslexia, OCD, bipolar disorder, substance use disorders, as well as being found in ADHD and dementia.
Add to this, the fact that the world population is aging … and that will heighten this cognition crisis. Experts say that by 2060, the number of people 65 and older is expected to double.
Makes you stop and think. And gulp.
Who’ll take care of them all… errr…I mean all of us?
85% -94% of people with acute depression suffer cognitive impairment. Brain fog.
So what can YOU do about brain fog?
The Role of Psychiatric Conditions in This Cognitive Decline
Look at depression, and you’re looking at over 264 million people across the globe who suffer from it. Depression not only lowers mood and zest for life, but it also impairs cognition, attention focus, memory, information processing, decision making skills, cognitive flexibility, and executive functioning.
The fact is that 85%-94% of people with acute depression experience cognitive impairment. Once you reach remission from depression, you can still suffer cognitive impairment. 40-45% of people who achieve remission report cognitive impairment in at least one area.
This is huge.
And so pressing that neurologists are working hard to develop forms of cognition remediation therapy.
So far, cognitive remediation therapy shows promising. Combining holistic approaches to diet and health, exercise, cognitive training, antidepressant therapy, and neuromodulation seems to help.
And of course, if your treatment for depression, PTSD, drinking isn’t working for you, IV ketamine treatment could be just the ticket.
Bottom line, we want remission for you. Restoration of resilience and cognitive restoration.
How cool would that be??
A Ketogenic Diet May be a Promising Option for Improved Cognition and Clearing Brain Fog
It could feel so good to have the fog clear.
We work with ketogenic diets in many of our patients. (One of the many ways we’re at the forefront in our field – and why we get such good results.)
Of course, some find that overwhelming, unappealing, or inconvenient. But we educate, empower, and motivate our patients to consider all their options so they can surge forward and reclaim their best selves.
We can help you leverage your gut microbiome with food rather than too many probiotics, flavonoids for improved cognitive functioning, and your own ketones as a fantastic energy source for the mitochondria in your brain (and throughout your body) — without the brain fog or food coma that can accompany carb and sugar surges.
Mitochondria are tiny organelles in the cell that produce the energy needed to power that cell.
It’s a brilliant concept, and a novel treatment approach for mood and anxiety disorders (and in our hands even in chronic anorexia!) but you rarely hear psychiatrists talk about it
But we will. Lots more to come.
Meanwhile, one option is to treat the disorder that may be contributing to brain fog with IV ketamine treatment. While we’re not portraying that IV ketamine kills brain fog, we know that brain fog that happens with some psychiatric disorders can improve when the disorder is treated.
A few studies, between 2015 and as recently as 2020, have reported sone improvement in brain fog with IV ketamine treatment. So that’s promising, too.
You’ll be able to relax in a quiet and soothing treatment room to make the most of your ketamine treatment.
At Innovative Psychiatry, many patients ask what to do about brain fog. Of course, everyone is different and the kind of brain fog and the reasons behind it are different. The work-up, the recommendations for exercise, ketogenic and metabolic diets, the lifestyle changes — are specific to you, and to your ongoing struggle with anxiety, trauma, or mood. All of these things together can make a noticeable difference.
If there is enough difference that you can write a knockout piece of copy, complete assignments and projects, draft a quick email, pick up the house — then that’s going to improve your life. And that may be just the beginning.
Do you find you have brain fog, in addition to anxiety, depression, or trauma that just lingers? If so, call us.
Let’s talk about options that can help.
When you come for treatment, you’ll find a lovely, relaxing private room with a heated zero-gravity recliner to help you get the most from your treatment. Don’t let the gorgeousness fool you. We’ve installed hospital-grade plasma cell technology to remove all viruses, bacteria, and mold from the air and hard and soft surfaces…yes, including the Delta variant! So you can rest assured knowing you’re safe from infection in our offices.
Sometimes the symptoms attached to a disorder make the disorder so much more unbearable.
We look forward to meeting you and working together with you to help you know hope.
To the restoration of your best self,
