If I only had a brain 🧠

Late Summer Brain Fog

Cloudy, Foggy Mind and Rainbow outlook depends on your elevation and perspective Photo by NOAA on Unsplash

Hi there,

Late summer has us wanting to putter around the house with no obligations. Take naps and lounge outside. You are not alone. The entire european continent takes time off from obligations at this time of year.

I’ve been postponing writing because I am doing my version of slowing down during summer. Ayurveda has taught me that late summer is the time when the earth tries to cool herself down. The same is true for my body. Moving slower with less intensity helps cool me down. Homemade electrolyte drinks, naps and cool water also helps.

Every week

Clarissa Kristjansson

and I host Art and Heart of Menopause a live conversation on Substack. This past week we discussed brain fog from an Ayurvedic and TCM perspective.

Brain Fog like everything else menopause has become pathologized.¹ Forcing women to live in fear of perimenopause and menopause.

Brain Fog is one of those symptoms in which the fear of alzheimer’s looms large.

This week we set the record straight.

Different Perspectives, Different Origins Different Solutions for Brain Frog

The whole video of our conversation is on YouTube here’s the link.

What is Brain Fog?

There are some general common signs and symptoms all having to do with the mind.

• Difficulty in concentrating

• Impaired Attentiveness

• Short term memory issues (forgetting words)

• Forgetfulness

You may have your own conglomeration of symptoms for brain fog. This list is not all inclusive.

You may also have lethargy, which also can mask as brain fog but it is a condition of the body. Lethargy is a state of tiredness, weariness, fatigue.

Both Brain Fog and Lethargy can resolve with resting, making sure you have adequate sleep, exercise, reduce stress and proper nutrition.

BOREDOM can also bring on Lethargy and/or Brain fog.

Brain Fog in āyurveda

By now you must be tired of me describing the three doṣha (bioenergetic archetypal consciousness) but that won’t stop me! The doṣha are foundational groupings of qualities, great elements and actions. The interactions of the doṣha is what makes life life! Today I will offer a simplified version : vāta is made up of the elements space and air and is involved in all movement - without vāta there is no movement. pitta is made up of fire and a little water and is involved in all transformation - without pitta there is no change. kapha is made up of water and earth and is involved in stabilization - without kapha there is no growth.

Five subdoṣha for each doṣha

Each of the doṣha have five offspring which helps an ayurvedic practitioner pinpoint the location and function when looking at a health or disease process.

Even more subtle are the qualities and channels of the mind. When working with brainfog we have to consider all the these more nuanced aspects of āyurveda.

Brain Fog in āyurveda involves two qualities of the mind, rajas and tamas and is seen as an imbalance of the doṣha in the head - 2 types of vāta, 2 types of pitta and 1 type of kapha. If you want to know details about these go ahead and ask.

Brain Fog in vāta predominent women may look like:

• difficulty concentrating

• impaired attentiveness

• short tem memory loss (words)

• forgetfulness

• distraction

• insomnia

Brain Fog in pitta predominent women may look like:

• mental fatigue

• headaches

• various inflammatory conditions especially in the head

• burning eyes

Brain Fog in kapha predominent women may look like:

• difficulty focusing

• forgetfullness

• decreased motivation

Remedies for Brain Fog

• Daily Morning Cleansing of sinuses - neti pot and/or nasya oil

• Remove foods that are incompatible for your system and difficult to digest

• Drink Brahmi² and Tulsi Tea

• Yin Yoga

• Alternate nostril breathing

• Abhyanga - Whole Body Oil Massage

• Shirodhara - Pouring of Oil on Head Oil

I hope to see you soon either at one of the lives, during a Make New Moon Ghee with Me or in our membership.

Peace

PS. Here’s the calendar link for our next Art & Heart of Menopause live - we’ll be 🎼 working on those night sweats. 😇

1. pathologized; pathologizing transitive verb : to view or characterize as medically or psychologically abnormal - Merriam Webster Online Dictionary

“natural hormonal shifts have been pathologized”—Joyce C. Mills

2. Brahmi is an herb which is excellent for Brain Fog, it promotes memory and reduces stress