part of thebrain that helps keep eyes focused on one thing

PART OF THEBRAIN THAT HELPS KEEP EYES FOCUSED ON ONE THING SERIES

That’s what helps us react so quickly to our environment. The good news is that our brains are hard-wired to be alert. “It’s astounding that our wakefulness and arousal is controlled by such a small number of nerve cells-and easy to see how this part of the brain system might be easily impacted,” says Dr. Of the trillions of neurons in your brain, just 10,000 to 20,000 secrete a neuropeptide called orexin, which research shows is one of several circuits that keep us awake and alert. There’s actually a physiological reason why it’s so common, adds Gayatri Devi, M.D., a clinical professor of neurology at SUNY Downstate Medical Center and an attending physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Other symptoms include being more forgetful than usual or sluggish when you’re trying to remember things-almost as if you can feel your brain chugging but not firing on all cylinders, says Caldwell. But when her symptoms persisted, she saw her doctor, who told her she was likely dealing with brain fog-not a technical diagnosis exactly, but a term many people use when they feel absentminded or not as sharp as they used to be or have difficulty focusing. She figured some extra sleep and a little time would help her adjust to our collective new normal. When Delia started feeling a little less sharp and a lot more distracted than usual, she chalked it up to Zoom meeting fatigue, not being able to blow off steam at the gym, and the sudden lack of socializing with friends. “Science has revealed the surprising truth that you can actually do more to make your brain healthy than any other part of your body,” says Chapman. On the flip side, if you start implementing simple strategies that will give your gray matter a rest, you’ll start feeling clearer-quickly.

But when our brains are tired, we tend to slog through.” Yet the more you ignore brain fog, the more it builds up-and the more likely it is that you’ll keep having unproductive days and many “it’s on the tip of my tongue” moments. “When our bodies are fatigued, we recognize that we need to rest. “We all do things that wear out the brain, and then we wonder why we’re not as clearheaded as we used to be,” she says. Stress is certainly a big factor behind that fuzzy feeling, experts say: In fact, being frazzled creates toxins that can build up in your brain and impact your ability to focus, concentrate, and remember multiple things, according to Sandra Bond Chapman, Ph.D., chief director of the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas at Dallas.

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“Now I’m like, ‘What did you want me to do?’ ” “Usually I can keep all the balls in the air,” says Delia. On calls with her manager, she had to type madly as they talked so she could remember her to-do’s. Tasks she used to rip through in 10 minutes started taking an hour. She’d sit down at her desk in her new home office and begin doom-scrolling instead of answering emails. Three months into the COVID-19 pandemic, Delia started feeling a little foggier than usual. Take Delia Lewis*, a marketing strategist from Manalapan Township, NJ. Discover the connection between the brain and hormones, COVID, food, and more.

PART OF THEBRAIN THAT HELPS KEEP EYES FOCUSED ON ONE THING SERIES

Learn from the brightest minds in the brain health community in the webinar lecture series Your Brain: An Owner’s Guide, put on by the Center for BrainHealth throughout February. “It’s tempting to think that brain fog won’t happen until you’re much older, but I see it in so many patients at every age-and stress is a known trigger,” she says. And that can lead to some fuzzy-brain moments, says Jessica Caldwell, Ph.D., a neuropsychologist and the director of the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement Prevention Center at Cleveland Clinic. Safe to say we’re all feeling more than a bit overwhelmed with the state of the world right now.

Part of thebrain that helps keep eyes focused on one thing