Your Hormone Advisor Pharmacist Frank

Fuzzy Thinking and Hormone Imbalance

By:  Frank Nuber, RPh

“I’m losing my mind.”

“I think I’m going crazy.”

“I can’t remember anything!”

“I’m constantly losing things.”

“Is this early onset Alzheimer’s?”

Have you something like the above recently? Are you wondering where your once-sharp memory has gone?

If your answer is “yes,” and are in your late 30s and 40s, there’s probably a simple explanation for your “fuzzy thinking.” That explanation is hormone Imbalance.

Changes in hormone balances begin to occur as women move through their childbearing years. While this is all perfectly natural, the result of these fluctuations can be frustrating and frightening. Fuzzy or foggy thinking is just one of any number of symptoms that can cause women distress and concern, especially if they lead a stressful, busy life that includes a job, family and other obligations, such as caring for an aging family member.

A general lack of self-care can also cause fuzzy thinking to worsen. This includes poor eating and sleeping habits. Your body needs good, nutritious foods and a certain amount and type of sleep to sustain it for the long haul. Less-than-adequate dietary intake and periodic sleep deprivation can be tolerated in the short term, but left unchecked will give rise to a whole host of nasty physical expressions as well as mental abnormalities.

In combination, a lack of self-care, unrelenting stress and fluctuating hormone levels (estrogen and progesterone) set the stage for unpredictable mood swings that spark Tony-worthy emotional performances, insulin resistance, adrenal fatigue, unexpected weight gain and exacerbation of food or other sensitivities that trigger inflammatory responses. But by far, the symptom most women notice first, and the one that causes them the most angst, is fuzzy thinking.

You don’t have to live with fuzzy thinking, and I can help. Contact my office today to schedule a consultation to discuss your symptoms. A life well lived is worth remembering, so let’s work together to bring it back into focus!

Get Rid of the Fuzzy in your Thinking

All too often, when women experience memory issues and complain of a lack of focus, their doctors will do a cursory examination and then prescribe antidepressants. If hormonal imbalance is at the root of their troubles, taking antidepressants to

correct the problem will only mask their symptoms. Antidepressants may make you feel better for a time, but eventually they stop working effectively. When that happens, you’ll find that your body will be even more stressed because it’s been trying to manage the extra drug interactions along with the resident systemic issues.

A simple saliva test may be the path to clear thinking again.

Determining your hormone levels is a good first step toward identifying the causes of your fuzzy thinking. Conducted on specific days within your cycle, a saliva test will reveal the highs and lows of estrogen, progesterone and other critical hormones. Once current levels are revealed, a plan of action can be undertaken to reverse the effects of hormone imbalance.

Three Steps You Can Take Now

Whether or not you elect to undertake hormonal correction, other changes can be made to hasten the return of your razor-sharp thought processes:

Evaluate Your Diet

 Internal inflammation caused by undiagnosed food and environmental allergies can wreak havoc on your mental faculties. Excessive caffeine and sugar consumption can dull your thinking. Wheat and gluten sensitivities have become more common, so eliminate foods that contain these first. Excessive sugar intake can aggravate yeast allergies, because yeast loves sugar. You may find a gentle detoxing diet helpful to give your body a break and a head start on feeling better. You may notice an almost immediate improvement in mental functioning once offending allergens are removed from your diet.

Make Sleep a Priority

 Sleep is what our bodies require in order to “reset” for the next day. It’s where our brains regenerate, our cells divide and healing is best accomplished. Lack of sleep limits these activities and more, so putting sleep as a priority will put you on the road to better health. A steady diet of high quality sleep will improve your ability to recall events and store them long term. You may also notice an improvement in your reaction times, judgment and coordination.

Reduce stress

Often easier said than done, reducing stress can go a long way in helping you sleep more soundly, lower cortisol levels (which affect weight and blood sugar), enhance your peace-of-mind and reduce mood swings. Further, chronic stress can affect our brains to the point that they “take a break.” You still function, but you may not have any recollection of how you got somewhere, or did a task. This can be confusing and dangerous. The good new is it’s correctable.