Debilitating symptoms. Brain fog...extreme memory loss...spacey 24/7!

I somehow about a month ago was looking up symptoms I felt related to this, and have been severely depressed since then. I realize that I have been this way for years without knowing what it was. I'm 19 now. I feel worthless. I have no personality and no emotion or drive. I think about killing myself several times a day. I haven't tried any medication or therapy yet because I don't have health insurance and financially can't, but I have a feeling it won't help. The saddest part is knowing if nothing improves this state im in, I won't want to live.

i'm currently dealing with the same thing..I'm real good at over analyzing things and mine stared after my little boy was born but allergy season was tough to at that time.do your self a favor and look at you current pollen count for your area and see if other people are complaining about allergies.but what I have found is as humans we tend to over think things some of us get stuck thinking and thinking and before you know it you start to believe it.try not to make things so complicated just go back to the basics and you will find your problem.for me I believe it's situational stress/anxiety/a little bit of depression brought on by the anxiety.i started a small mechanic shop and been in 7 months I thought the stress of that was my cause.but I started to analyze when I started to feel different and it was 3 days after my son was born and a lot of other things where going on it's been almost two months now and with daily self positive talk and at the end of the day I'm still here and my body is still alive it gives me hope and I feel better..I still get the fatigue feeling and sometimes my mornings are a little hard to start but with positive self talk and telling myself that things are going to be fine I feel better..just don't get stuck in your thought trust me that has a lot to do with it..god bless and I pray that everyone on here gets well sooner than later.

First off I'd like to say I'm sorry that you're going through this. Secondly I believe that this is some form of depression. I felt like that since fifth grade and I just felt basically dead inside. I used to cry for hours everyday. It got to a point in ninth grade that i started crying during school. No idea why but I would just get this urge to cry and I would either have to hold back or end up crying for hours yet again. This year in tenth grade I met new people and they have helped me so much with it. I used to talk to multiple people about it but I felt so alone and like no one really cared. I was filled with so much self hatred and I had such a low self-esteem and I honestly just wanted to die for the longest time. The people I met changed that. I suggest meeting new people, and if you have a dream or a goal then start working on that without making any excuses. Do the stuff you love but add a twist to it if you're bored with it or if it didn't help. I highly suggest writing poetry. Write about your thoughts, your feelings, your desires, your fears, just write it all down. Also if you are not religious already I also suggests giving religion a try and going to God with your problems. If you don't that is okay I am just giving you suggestions that helped me. I was severely depressed for almost five years and I used that as inspiration for my poetry, and paintings and drawings. Working out also puts me in a better mood ik sounds crazy but once you get used to the pain it's fun plus beneficial. I'm sorry this is so long. If you are having thoughts of self harm or suicideplease talk to someone about it.

Hi, I'll tell you the short and then the long of my experience (that way people don't have to read a big long story if it doesn't relate to them).  And I plan to copy and paste this to many forums if you see it someplace else (forums in regards to sleepiness, brain fog, spacey feelings, not being able to take a full breath etc). I promised myself I would post it to forums if I ever found something that helped me.

The short answer is, on a whim, I cut out gluten and it saved my quality of life. I cut it out for none-of-the-above reasons. I'm not a "hippy" whole foods eater...whatever you want to call it, and  I'm not an alternative medicine person (although I'm starting to believe that you do need to think outside the box now at times).  I just randomly wondered if it would help me for a whole other reason. I didn't research it alot or put much planning into it, I just decdied to give it a try.  I am now a different person.  It took about 4 days for me to feel exremely noticably better. It took a week or two to feel my fogginess and sleepiness go away!!!!...  after years and years of wondering what it is that is causing it....sleeping too much?, sleeping not enough? etc. I even had a neurological sleep study early into this problem which showed "excessive daytime sleepiness" but they didn't know why. And taking away gluten did it!!!!!, which is not even the reason why I cut it out!!!  Within a few days, I also noticed my shortness of breath went away.  I had that problem as well, where I couldn't get a full breath in often.  That dissapeared as well.

I never got tested for celiac disease or anything like that, and I don't care to, because I know I can't it gluten!!!  I never have cheat days because it's not worth it to me... but one time I accidentally ate it and I felt like I had to sleep and sleep and sleep.  I couldn't sleep it off because I have young children, but it was a struggle to stay awake. 

Finally, it took a few months, but spacey feelings, more fog, balance problems, feeling off, .... it wall lifted. 

I can relate to what you wrote.  I'm in my late 30s but I remember this starting in my early 20s.  I swore up and down that I was more tired than other people.  People brushed it off as "everyone is tired...I'm tired too" but I had a nagging pulling need to sleep. I had to think of ways to get a quick ten minutes in and it consumed me.  I slept on lunch breaks too. 

Then in my mid-30s I had an episode of some sort that I am still not sure of.... ultimately they called it possible vertigo.  I  felt spacey, couldn't remember things, extra anxiety (which I do suffer from), off balance, tired of course, and more.  It was a scary time for me. I wasn't sure what was happening.  I had an MRI done, I saw an ENT, a neurologist, thyroid tested (which I would recomment you ask your Dr about)....everything came back "normal."  I spent time and money, crying in doctor offices begging for someone to think of something.

It wasn't until I cut out gluten, years later, that this got some relief. I white-knuckled a few years, trying to get through the day with the brain fog, and tiredness and balance issues.

I don't know if you need to talk to a Dr (people with symptoms that I had should certainly ask their doctor in case they want to do MRIs and thyroid testing, inner ear, TMJ can cause things etc. That's important.  But on many forums people said their tests always came back normal but they don't feel right.  I'm still not perfect, because I think I have leftover anxiety after going through this for years.  side note: I also got glasses which helped all this too.  Needing glasses and having astigmatism can make you tired and off balance as well.  So, getting glasses has helped me too!

I'm not a Dr or nutritionist or gluten expert, but it has helped me more than I can say, to cut it out. Night and day, two different worlds.   I even asked a doctor along my journey, "should I consider food sensitivites?" and she said "no, I wouldn't go down that route yet" and I wish I hadn't listened.

I now know that what you eat gets processed in the gut which in turn affects the brain more that I ever really gave it credit for totally.  I don't think people should cut out gluten if they don't need to. I know it's considered a trend and a fad but I truly can not eat it.

I know it sounds really hard for people to cut it out but I have to say, I went into it really non-chalently and it wasn't that bad (I know people get angry when they read that comment because it's not "easy" to many people, but I just mean, it wasn't as overwhelming as I thought it would be for me).  I just went into that first day thinking I'll just pick out what I'd normally eat out of the kitchen, and if it said "wheat" I'd choose something else. I didn't read  about it and stock up with gluten free products. I just went product by product.  You can still eat lots of healthy and unhealthy foods that don't have gluten. 

I don't know if this is your answer. I hope it helps you or someone somehow. Like I said I told myself I would post to forums if I ever felt better, because it's a difficult confusing lonely journey to try and figure it all out.  Good luck!

You all have classical symptoms of hypothyroidism.

Sometimes it's not easily detectable in the blood or doctors have little clue how to see beginning hypothyroidism by bloodtest.

I advise anyone to inform yourselves this disease

Fellow fog-heads;

It is both comforting, and saddening to read so many of us share this boat. I personally, have been struggling with this for nearly 7 years. Not in its entirety, as it very much ebbs and flows.

Most persistent symptoms include;

Hardcore Fatigue

Recurrent infections/colds - I seem to pick up every bug out there

Digestive issues

Recurrent periods of nightly dreams (that are recalled clearly and sometimes unnerving)

Visual flashes, haziness, blurring

Bouts of allergy type reactions

Headaches galore

Body aches

Dreaded brain fog

Feeling of loss of balance/dizziness

Random twitching in muscles

Panic attacks

And the list goes on.....

I have however had moments of complete clarity, where good health seems to find its way back to me and it has only ever been so after a multi pronged approach. I've seen every doctor under the sun, multiple ED trips, and tens of thousands of dollars spent.

From my experience, the key is identifying a trigger. In my case, I have now come to the acceptance that it is very much health anxiety. As a self confessed "control freak" I always experience a flare up of this "detachment" when I feel ill for some reason or another. If I contract even a simple head cold, I know that it's out of my control, and that does not sit well with me at all. Stress is another huge factor - again, beyond my influence.

What I have found hat helps though is a mix of both integrated and western medicine, and some mental grit.

My first port of call is usually the docs, to get. Talked a b12 jab. This usually helps with the energy side of things, and is a bit help in reminding me that I can actually function - albeit not overly effectively.

Second stop - my upper cervical Chiropractor for a check of my atlas/axis alignment. If you have not already read up on the importance of this, I suggest you do so - it was very much a lightbulb moment for me when I did.

Thirdly - boost the probiotic intake, and eliminate anything known to make your digestive sluggish. For some this can be gluten (not in my case thankfully) but other starches such as potato are a big culprit for me. You know your body better than anyone else - so use your own discretion.

Add omega 3 + vitd, calcium and magnesium supplements. No one supplement will help without the use of the others.

Swap out plain water for water with an electrolyte additive.

An adjustment to any discrepancies in sleep habits I found can help too. Same time down, and same time up - every day. Avoid napping at all costs.

This, mixed with an inner mantra of "I don't have time to put up with feeling like this" and refusing to accept it as the "new normal" has saved my sanity on multiple occasions. Keeping busy physically, quietens the mind.

On most occasions a couple of weeks of taking care of myself before anyone else (near impossible with kids) somehow re-sets the balance and lightens the brain load. This usually rectified things for me until the next stress bomb, or bout if unfortunate luck knocks me back down again.

Where all else fails, I opt for a prescribed antidepressant - but NOT an SSRI. My many trails with SSRI's have shown that the side effects can and often mirror the symptoms I'm tying to rid myself of. I will NOT advocate any particular product, but please know that there are more options out there - they're not commonly promoted at this time, but the results are impressive. No withdrawal symptoms, can be taken ad-hoc, and little to no side effects.

If there's one thing I've learnt from hundreds of doctors, is that I need to tell them what I want and why I want it. My confidence in their ability to identify, sympathize and treat this beast was shot to pieces many years ago.

All the best in your hunt for clarity!

I for years had all symptoms evereyone here talks about, extreme brainfog, depression, anxiety, gastroparesis, insomnia, extreme fatigue, too cold, too hot, etcetera etcetera. visited every specialist known to men. got every diagnosis you can think of. than one day i looked at the bloodtest and saw my thyroid numbers where little off. all docters said this could not be the rootcause. i insisted that i could try thyroid medication. all and i mean all of my symptoms vanished. but there is one thing that makes it real difficult and that is if i take little too much or too little of the medication all my symptoms come back with a vengeance. i take the lowest dose there is and cannot tollerate more or less.

So stop looking in the wrong directions, its your thyroid, period!!!!

I have this brain fog and many of the symptoms described here, it’s difficult. I self-medicated with drugs and alcohol for a long time. Skip 10 years. I began taking an anti-inflammatory recently with the active ingredient indomethacin. Strangely, it reduced the fog quite a bit, it was almost enough, the positive effects have reduced now. The point is it is cognitive, there are chemical balances in the brain which must be out somehow. I have had this for 15 years. All these psychiatric labels are subjective. The drugs you try, anti-depressants, anxiety medication, whatever….. it doesn’t mean that you have that condition, that condition is a label. The only way to approach it is trial and error, try different drugs and see how they affect the fog. I know that I am worse when I am under allot of stress, when I drink, when I don’t sleep and when I don’t exercise. It doesn’t matter if I do all of those things it is still there. I put systems in place for things that I do, so I can drift through subconsciously and still get things done. I write down my thoughts about a particular situation and read them over to re-enforce what I need to. Important not to surround yourself with people that bring you down, not being able to repond to a**holes quickly causes stress. If you have difficult family members, work out one sentence that to say to them to redirect the conversation.  

I don’t know if that helped anyone, good luck to us all!!   

““And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened."

Did you ever get any feedback on this problem? This is EXACTLY how I'm feeling lately but I am much older than you. Have had little episodes like this for years but this one is awful. I am currently without insurance too but with high deductibles, I can't be going to doctors for a few months yet😬

This was me over the last few years. But some things helped me but you have to maintain your self.

start keeping a journal this will help you with your memory.

Start eating right, eat lots of fruit and veg this will help your body and mind feel better.

Start doing excercice like cycleing or running (but running takes time to get used to) This will help your mind and body but make sure you have 2/3 days off a week.

If you do drugs, cut down to 2x a week or even better once a week.

Start to do creative stuff like making music, drawing or memes this will make you think.

Stop worrying and being paranoid this will only make things worse.

Try to keep your mind occupied, i would say get a job if you dont have one or be productive.

If you do all this i promise your life will get better but it is hard work.

No pain no gain.

 

Dear all,

I have just found this discussion and I am hoping that together we could find a cure or at least understand more about this.

Same – I suffer exactly the same – everything you described

I have an underactive thyroid but with pills it is balanced.

It feels like I am running on auto-pilot but the real me is not there.

It is hard at work because now I can only focus on one thing and I get agitated very easily if someone talks to me while I focus on something. This was never a problem for me. Even people started to comment that I became short fused and it is because I get so easily irritated.

I don’t remember anything I did in the morning

It is so scary

It affects even my eye sight as I see things around me less sharply

Also it affects my speech – I say words that I don’t mean to say

My nose and eyes feel blocked all the time

I used to suffer from this when I was 19 years old just before Alevels when I studies really long hours but it was only temporary. I used to be one of the top students in our class enjoying learning and it was easy for me to pass exams. Now I would not remember what I learnt a few hours ago.

But in the last 5 years it kept creeping into my life on and off

And in the last 7 months nearly every day mostly in the morning and it would clear up by the midday

But now it is constant and it never goes away

I am scared

I am a type of a person who thinks too much and I have anxiety so maybe the brain is exhausted from overthinking

I even think it could be some sort of inflammation

Meditation and or even triple expresso does not help

I cut out sugar and carbs from my diet but it did not help

I used to suffer from panic attacks but these have stopped but instead I have this constant brain fog

Maybe we should form a group online dedicated to find an answer. I wish and pray that we can still live a long and healthy life.