Chronic Stress and Brain Fog
Give your brain a boost with these research supported techniques.
We demand a lot from our brain — constantly asking it to process, organize, and retrieve information. It works long hours with no breaks. Even during sleep, our brain is busy organizing neural networks to help with memory consolidation and learning.
After a year of chronic stress, a hard working brain can start to struggle. A lot of people, myself included, are experiencing memory problems, poor concentration, and increased distraction. A combination of symptoms often referred to as “brain fog.”
This Is Your Brain on Stress
Stress, especially the chronic kind, is not helpful to our brain. In brief, when we are experiencing stress, the amygdala, a region of the brain involved in our “fight or flight” response, takes over. We concentrate the majority of our brain power on managing or surviving the stressful event.
In the short term, this is not problematic. However, with chronic stress, the prolonged diversion of resources from one area of the brain to another can lead to difficulties. When one specific part of the brain is working especially hard, there is less energy for other areas, such as those devoted to memory and complex thought.
