Give Your Brain a Break

I had something planned to write about this week.  I know I did.  I spent time thinking about it and pre-writing in my head when I was out walking last week.  I cannot, however, remember what it was.  I normally post on Sundays, but I didn't post yesterday because when I sat down to write, I couldn't remember what I was going to write about.  I thought perhaps I would remember by this morning, but it hasn't happened.  Yesterday, my mom and I spent some time with my 94-year-old granny.  She has said a number of things lately that we believe is remembering things from months ago but believing they happened this week.  You may have found difficulty in recent weeks, searching for the next word you want to say or remembering what you had planned to do next.  We are all a mental step behind where we are accustomed to being.

Part of the reason for our mental slowness is the imbalance of neurotransmitters that come from social distancing.  Some of it is due to the diet many adopted during the pandemic as it did not include the nutrients that were good for the brain and did include ingredients that are bad for cognitive function.  If you aren't making a concerted effort to get some sunlight, your brain will be affected as well.  If you have noticed a more profound drop in the past few weeks than the rest of the pandemic, it is likely your brain is also suffering from the impact of world events on your mental function.  Even if they are not impacting your life directly, if they are in the back of your mind, they are taking up space in your working memory.  That lowers your ability to hold as many other things in your mind at once as you usually do.

So, what can we do?  I addressed some strategies back in April in my post about isolation as a single person.  Here are a few ideas.

Eat right - It's time to stop using the pandemic as an excuse to eat trash.  You know what you are supposed to do, and you are an adult who can make decisions, so make better ones.  In particular, for your brain, you need vitamins E and D and Omega 3 fatty acids.  You can supplement if you have to, but it is always better absorbed in the context of food and natural digestion.

Get some exercise - You don't have to reorganize your life to put in an hour-long, extra-strenuous workout.  I'm talking about going for a walk.  Take a lap around the outside of your house.  The mental break, fresh air, and vitamin D inducing sunlight will help your brain function.

Put your phone down - I know everyone has grown to think of their phone as a part of their left hand, but it doesn't have to be.  The non-stop scroll of news and social media posts about the news are keeping it in your working memory.  Set a time boundary (half an hour in the morning or one hour in the evening, scrolling during lunchtime - whatever works for you) on your exposure to news.  Reading the same story over and over again makes your brain respond as if the event were happening over and over again.  You aren't more informed.  You are more anxious, and it is bad for your brain.

Challenge your brain - Do something to keep your brain exercised.  I do a daily crossword puzzle.  You might want to read a chapter of a book and do Sudoku.  It doesn't really matter what it is as long as it provides a good amount of challenge for your brain, keeping it stimulated and working.  When you are trying to remember something, don't just Google it right away.  Give your brain some time to try to remember it.

Cut yourself (and others) some slack - I'm an organizer and a planner, and I try to teach my kids to organize as well.  It's an important part of equipping them for life, so I am have always held them to due dates and deadlines.  I take their late work, but there is a penalty, because I don't believe I am preparing them for adult life (where bills have late fees and there are consequences to submitting applications late) if I don't hold them accountable for when something is due.  I am, however, cutting them way more slack during this time.  Because I know we are ALL having trouble with our working memory, I am not penalizing them for something being late by a day, and I am reminding them more if things are missing.  I am giving less penalty for late submissions than I used to.  The EduTwitter mob would find it horrible that I am assigning anything with a deadline.  I believe they are wrong.  Preparing them for adult life is still important, even in a pandemic, and sending them the message that it isn't is likely to lead them to the conclusion that they won't have an adult life.  While I plan to return to more strict policies in the future, it is only fair to show everyone around us an extra measure of grace.

Now that you have finished this post, put your phone down and go for an outdoor walk.  Your brain will be glad that you did.