Fight Brain Fog With These Tips

By Stepy Kamei

When you first wake up, it's normal to feel a little groggy sometimes. However, have you ever woken up, started your day, and found that you still feel that brain fog refusing to lift even hours later? Brain fog is essentially a feeling of mental fuzziness, fatigue, lack of mental clarity, and an inability to focus that continues after waking and well into the day. A few different issues can cause these symptoms. Regardless of the cause, it's not pleasant to deal with. Brain fog can disrupt your whole day, leaving you feeling fatigued, irritable, and causing issues with your productivity and concentration. While it is relatively common, and certainly a hassle to deal with, the good news is that it's usually pretty easy to resolve, both in the immediate moment as well as preventing it from occurring in the future. Read on to learn more about the condition known as brain fog, as well as what you can do to fight it and prevent it.

What Causes Brain Fog?

The first big cause of brain fog is a lack of restful sleep. You shouldn't be too surprised if you feel foggy after a night of less than five hours of sleep, or a night in which you kept waking up every few hours and struggled to get back to sleep. However, if you know you got at least seven hours of sleep without waking up, and you still feel brain fog, you may want to examine your sleeping habits more closely because this probably means you aren't getting the deep sleep your brain needs to restore itself each night. You may be eating junk food too close to bedtime, which can disrupt your sleep. Or your bedroom is being infiltrated by light from the windows or electronic devices, which can also mess with your circadian rhythms.

Stress is another common cause of brain fog. If your brain is overloaded with stress and anxiety, it can cloud the other areas of your mind, such as focus, memory, and cognitive thinking. Stress can also increase your blood pressure and disrupt your blood sugar levels, which further adds to a feeling of mental fatigue. The brain will become exhausted fighting these physical and mental symptoms. Therefore, it's important to reduce your stress levels every day, whether by writing in a journal, taking a walk outside, exercising regularly, or consulting with a mental health professional on a regular basis.

Preventing Brain Fog

Generally speaking, if you take good care of your physical health, you'll be less likely to experience brain fog. This means eating nutritious foods, staying hydrated, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep each night are some of the best ways to prevent brain fog.

To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Mansfield, Tex.