37 Ways You Can Hurt Your Brain and Not Know It

When you think of a brain injury, you probably envision a cracked skull or a visit to the emergency room. However, physical injury isn’t the only way to hurt the brain. Many other things—such as toxins, infections, and untreated physical and mental health conditions—can also cause harm to your brain. Unfortunately, because we can’t see inside our heads, many people are completely unaware that certain common habits, products, conditions, and activities can have potentially harmful consequences on the brain. Because we can’t see inside our heads, many people are completely unaware that certain common habits, products, conditions, and activities can have potentially harmful consequences on the brain.

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37 Things That Hurt the Brain

Take a look at the 37 items in the list below that can injure the brain and see how many of them apply to you:

1. Fallen off a swing
2. Crashed your bike
3. Tumbled out of a tree
4. Had a near-drowning or other deprivation of oxygen (anoxia)
5. Hit your head on the wall at the skate park
6. Headed soccer balls
7. Gotten your bell rung playing football, hockey, rugby—or any sport
8. Been punched in the head during an assault
9. Had exposure to carbon monoxide
10. Fell off a ladder
11. Been exposed to a shock wave blast, such as during military combat
12. Have had binge drinking episodes
13. Addicted to smoking cigarettes or vaping
14. Have had chronic alcohol abuse
15. Been addicted to street drugs
16. Recreational marijuana use
17. Living with toxic mold in your home
18. Use of toxic household cleaners, or using potent solvents at work
19. Living in a heavily polluted area
20. Exposure to heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic, or aluminum
21. Having untreated sleep apnea, i.e. do you snore and stop breathing while asleep?
22. Taking prescription pain killers beyond the recommended dose
23. Having high blood pressure
24. Being overweight or obese
25. Having erectile dysfunction
26. Diagnosed with diabetes
27. Eating too much sugar
28. Having an infectious disease, such as Lyme or COVID-19
29. Living with chronic stress
30. Having untreated depression, bipolar disorder, or PTSD
31. Radiation therapy
32. Chemotherapy
33. Lost your sense of smell
34. Having periodontal (gum) disease
35. Hormonal deficiency, such as low estrogen for women, low testosterone for men and women, or thyroid dysfunction
36. Being lonely and isolated
37. Never learning new things

As you can see, there are numerous ways that your brain and its function can be damaged—and many of them may have surprised you. BUT even if you have several on this list, there are still ways to help your brain get better!

Brain SPECT Imaging for Hurt Brains

How can you find out if you have damaged your brain? Looking at the brain with advanced imaging technology called SPECT (single-photon emission computed tomography) can help. SPECT looks at blood flow and activity in the brain and can show 3 very important things:

• Areas of the brain that work well
• Areas that don’t work hard enough (low activity)
• Areas that work too hard (overactive)

Depending on what has harmed the brain, it can result in having areas of low activity, high activity, or both. Being able to see areas of the brain that aren’t functioning optimally can help determine what might be hurting the brain. This is an important step because knowing what caused (or is continuing to cause) damage to the brain is critical to healing the brain.

There’s Hope for Healing Your Brain

Although every brain is unique, all brains can benefit from being in a healing environment. Simply put, this means avoiding things that hurt your brain, such as toxins, more concussions, and a poor diet, while incorporating simple lifestyle changes that support your brain health, such as:

• Exercising regularly
• Managing your stress with meditation or deep breathing exercises
• Eating a healthy diet with lots of fresh produce, foods rich in omega-3s (i.e. salmon and walnuts), and healthy fats like those found in avocados
• Getting 7-8 hours of sleep each night
• Learning to challenge your automatic negative thoughts that can otherwise ruin your mood and your day.

Your brain is the organ of you. It is involved with everything you do, feel, think, and decide, and when it works well, you work well. When it is troubled—for any of the reasons listed above or others—you are more likely to have trouble in your life. Even if your brain has been hurt, it can get better when you choose to do the right things to take care of it and help it heal. Traumatic or toxic brain injuries, addictions, and other mental health issues can’t wait. At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer in-clinic brain scanning and appointments, as well as mental telehealth, clinical evaluations, and therapy for adults, teens, children, and couples. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or visit our contact page here.