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soniaWhen I get exposed to fragrances/chemicals or eat something cross-contaminated with gluten, one of my symptoms is brain fog. With gluten, I get sleepy and low energy. With fragrances, I lose orientation, sense of direction, and sense of right and left. I also lose executive function, which makes it hard to get myself away from the fragrances.
I also lose the ability to multi-task and keep track of things. For example, the rehearsal space for my choir was recently painted. Last night, I walked out without my water bottle, which someone noticed and retrieved for me, and also without my digital recorder, which stayed behind. I remembered it when I had biked a few blocks and breathed some fresh air, but it was too late to go back for it. I went back this morning and did get it back, although the office person unplugged it without hitting Stop, so I got a zero-length recording of the rehearsal. Frustrating, but no large harm done...
In this survey of answers about brain fog, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin says
Oh, that makes sense! The part of my brain that orients in space gets knocked offline. Fortunately the part of my brain that retraces a familiar route doesn't, so I can still bike home after an exposure.
Brain fog symptoms vary for each person, and for each illness or trigger. Does this model of brain fog make sense to you? Have you had experiences with brain fog you'd like to share?
I also lose the ability to multi-task and keep track of things. For example, the rehearsal space for my choir was recently painted. Last night, I walked out without my water bottle, which someone noticed and retrieved for me, and also without my digital recorder, which stayed behind. I remembered it when I had biked a few blocks and breathed some fresh air, but it was too late to go back for it. I went back this morning and did get it back, although the office person unplugged it without hitting Stop, so I got a zero-length recording of the rehearsal. Frustrating, but no large harm done...
In this survey of answers about brain fog, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin says
Brain fog is often caused by some parts of the brain sleeping—taking a nap—while other parts of the brain are not. Awakeness and consciousness are not binary things (on or off). The brain has thousands of special purpose processing modules. Some are working when others are not. If you set down your car keys and then can’t find them later, the part of your attentional system that should have been taking notice was probably off-line, catching up on some much-needed down time.
Oh, that makes sense! The part of my brain that orients in space gets knocked offline. Fortunately the part of my brain that retraces a familiar route doesn't, so I can still bike home after an exposure.
Brain fog symptoms vary for each person, and for each illness or trigger. Does this model of brain fog make sense to you? Have you had experiences with brain fog you'd like to share?
great question
Date: 2019-12-12 12:35 am (UTC)In other words, when I get foggy I don’t realize I’m foggy. I have a 30 second attention span.
Re: great question
Date: 2019-12-12 03:27 am (UTC)