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Ever feel like you can’t keep things straight anymore? Like your mind is in a haze and you can’t concentrate, think quickly, or remember to complete important tasks? These are some of the signs of brain fog. You might be worried that it’s the onset of dementia, or you may be aware that certain everyday things are associated with brain fog—like poor sleep, some medications, or hormonal imbalances (hello, pregnancy brain or menopause!). But what you may not realize is that anxiety can also be at the root of brain fog. You may be aware that certain everyday things—like poor sleep, some medications, or hormonal imbalances—are associated with brain fog. But what you may not realize is that anxiety can also be at the root of brain fog.
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How Anxiety Taxes the Brain

Anxiety takes up a lot of your brain’s precious resources. When anxiousness fills the corners of your mind with worrisome thoughts and fears, it’s akin to something researchers call cognitive overload. That’s when your brain is bombarded with too much information to be able to process it all effectively. When stress and anxiety hit, your brain is so busy processing those nervous thoughts that it drops the ball on the other cognitive tasks you need to handle. It makes it hard to concentrate, difficult to pay attention, and gets in the way of memory formation. This leads to feeling spacey, being easily distracted, and being forgetful. And that’s a recipe for brain fog.

Brain SPECT Imaging, Anxiety, and Brain Fog

Brain SPECT imaging shows that people with anxiety tend to have a very busy brain with too much activity in areas such as the basal ganglia (the anxiety centers of the brain). Overactivity floods the emotional circuits in the brain diverting resources away from important mental processes. In addition, being plagued by chronic stress causes the hippocampus—a brain region that is critically involved in memory formation—to shrink. In the healthy brain, about 700 new neurons, or nerve cells, are formed each day in the hippocampus. However, when your brain is under attack by a constant flood of stressful thoughts, this process can be disrupted, resulting in fewer new neurons. This is bad news for your memory and can be a major contributor to an inability to recall information. Imaging the brain can be helpful in determining if worrisome symptoms of brain fog are a sign of dementia or related to anxiety, exposure to toxins, or other factors.

4 TECHNIQUES TO CALM ANXIETY TO CLEAR THE BRAIN FOG

1. Use hypnosis, guided imagery, or progressive muscle relaxation.

When stress and anxiety get out of control, hypnosis, guided imagery, or progressive muscle relaxation can quickly decrease the stress response. Here are the basic steps of you can do this on your own:

2. Practice diaphragmatic breathing.

When people get anxious, their breathing typically becomes shallow fast, causing a decrease in oxygen to the brain and body and an increase in toxic carbon dioxide. This can lead to feelings of confusion and disorientation, which are associated with brain fog. Deep breathing—inhaling for about 4 seconds and slowly exhaling for about 8 seconds—reverses that, increasing oxygen to the brain and helping eliminate carbon dioxide to calm panic and restore clarity in the mind.

3. Say a prayer or meditate.

Prayer and meditation have been found to calm stress and quell anxious thoughts. But that’s not all. They also improve focus and memory, and brain imaging shows they enhance activity in the prefrontal cortex. There are many effective techniques, including reading, memorizing, or meditating on Scripture; writing out a personal prayer; reading classic spiritual writings; focusing on gratitude, or meditating.

4. Listen to soothing music.

Music can help you relax, calm anxiousness, and improve focus. In a fascinating study in the journal Brain and Cognition, research subjects rated Mozart’s Sonata for Two Pianos (K. 448) and Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata as happy and sad, respectively. Listening to happy music (Mozart’s piece) increased activity in the brain’s left hemisphere, associated with happiness and motivation, and decreased activity in the right hemisphere, often associated with anxiety and negativity. Beethoven’s piece did the opposite. Create your own playlist to counteract times of stress and anxiety and to increase focus and energy. Anxiety, chronic stress, brain fog, and other 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, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy for adults, children, and couples. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or visit our contact page here. Memory is the fabric of our soul. It makes us who we are and allows us to keep our loved ones close, even when they are far away. Memory houses our joys, our hurts, and all of life’s lessons. It reminds us who is trustworthy and who isn’t, who helped us and whom we need to help. Memory helps us recall important elements of our lives and helps keep us centered and growing. And it’s also what provides us with a sense of purpose that gives our life meaning. When our memory is diminished or damaged, it can rob us of our ability to make good decisions (because we forget important life lessons) and causes us to become disconnected from those we love. Memory problems limit our success at work, steals our independence and ultimately makes us vulnerable to the wolves in society who are out to take advantage of us. Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia, robs us of those memories, rendering our lives unrecognizable. Over 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s and that number is expected to roughly triple by 2050. If you want to save your memory and prevent Alzheimer’s disease, you may be engaging in well-documented strategies that protect your physical fitness (such as eating a healthy diet and exercising to improve blood flow) and mental fitness (such as engaging in new learning and mental exercise). There’s a powerful Alzheimer’s prevention strategy you may be overlooking—spiritual fitness. There’s a powerful Alzheimer’s prevention strategy you may be overlooking—spiritual fitness.
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What is Spiritual Fitness?

Spiritual fitness is a new concept in medicine that centers on how psycho-spiritual wellness can reduce the risk of memory loss, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer’s disease. According to BMJ Open, scientific evidence suggests that spirituality and religious involvement can preserve cognitive function as we age. To understand the concept of spiritual fitness, we must first look at the meaning of spirituality. Contrary to what you may think, the notion of spirituality is not necessarily tied to religion. In fact, a growing number of Americans view themselves as spiritual but not religious, according to Pew Research. Belief in God remains strong, with 87% of Americans responding “yes” to a 2017 Gallup Poll that asked, “Do you believe in God?” And 77% of Americans say they pray at least monthly (55% of them say they pray daily). However, U.S. church membership has dropped to 50%. In essence, spirituality has come to mean an individual’s search for a higher power or for something sacred or divine. This search may come in many forms. Regardless of religious affiliation, spiritual fitness encompasses many areas, such as stress reduction, a sense of overall contentment, and having a sense of belonging to something greater than yourself. Learning to accept and forgive yourself and others, having empathy, and being compassionate are core components of psycho-spiritual well-being. On the other side, lower spiritual well-being is associated with mild cognitive impairment and early dementia, according to research in Frontiers in Psychology.

6 Ways to Pump Up Your Spiritual Fitness

1. Harness the power of meditation.

A 2015 study in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease shows that a type of meditation known as Kirtan Kriya improves-psycho-spiritual well-being and spiritual fitness, which it says are important for the preservation of cognitive function and the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. A 2020 study by some of the same researchers suggests that spiritual and religious practices, including Kirtan Kriya meditation, are critical components that enhance cognitive well-being, and in some cases, may reverse cognitive decline. In this study, the researchers conclude, “We hope that this article will inspire scientists, clinicians, and patients to embrace this new concept of spiritual fitness and make it part of every multidomain program for the prevention of cognitive disability.”

2. Make prayer a daily practice.

A wealth of research shows that prayer and meditation have been found to calm stress; improve memory, focus, and mood,; and enhance function in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. The same way you schedule time to work out, make prayer a priority in your appointment book.

3. Put your faith into action.

Regardless of your belief system, make it a central part of your everyday life. Make the effort to flex your spiritual muscle by putting your faith into action. For example, if the tenets of your faith lie in forgiveness, find it in your heart to release the grudges you hold.

4. Look for a spiritual trainer.

Just like you might hire a personal trainer to help you get the most out of your workouts, a mentor can be beneficial to your spiritual life. A mentor could be a pastor, a rabbi, a Zen master, or any other person who can guide you in your spiritual quest. The mentor-mentee relationship isn’t about being told what to do or how to think, rather it’s a way to explore and stretch your spirituality.

5. Serve others.

Being of service to others is a key aspect of a healthy spiritual life. Research suggests that whenever you feel down, anxious, or angry it is best to get outside of yourself to change your state of mind.  Connect meaningful activities and pleasure, such as volunteering for activities you love. For example, if you love table tennis (the world’s best brain sport!), you might enjoy volunteering to keep score at tournaments.

6. Find your purpose.

To strengthen your spiritual fitness, you need to know your purpose in life. Here are 6 simple steps to find your purpose.
  1. Look inward. What do you love to do? (Examples include writing, cooking, design, creating, speaking, teaching, etc. What do you feel qualified to teach others?)
  2. Look outward. Who do you do it for? How does your work connect you to others?
  3. Look back. Are there hurts from your past that you can turn into help for others? (Turn pain into purpose.)
  4. Look beyond yourself. What do others want or need from you?
  5. Look for transformation. How do they change as a result of what you do?
  6. Look to the end. When you die, how do you want to be remembered?
At Amen Clinics, our Memory Rescue BRIGHT MINDS Program takes a whole-person approach to memory loss and dementia. In addition to brain SPECT imaging to identify any underlying brain health issues, we also look at the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors in your life that may be contributing to memory issues. We are available for in-clinic brain scanning and appointments, as well as mental telehealth, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or visit our contact page here.

Feeling more anxious due to the coronavirus pandemic? Join the club. A report published mid-April of 2020 shows that the number of prescriptions filled for anti-anxiety medications spiked by over 34% during the pandemic. And the number of new prescriptions filled for drugs like Xanax, Valium, and Ativan while people were under COVID-19 quarantine orders was even higher at nearly 38%. This is very troublesome.

The Dangers of Anti-Anxiety Medications

What’s wrong with popping prescription drugs to feel better fast? All psychiatric medications—like all prescription drugs—come with side effects, but those associated with the anti-anxiety medications called benzodiazepines are some of the most concerning. Although they may be helpful in the short-term, anti-anxiety drugs can cause long-term problems, including:

When you’re feeling overwhelmed by anxiety—even during high-stress periods like the pandemic—asking your primary care physician for Xanax or other anti-anxiety medications is literally the last thing you should do. Here are 12 alternatives you should try before considering medication.

Note: If you’ve taken Xanax or another type of benzodiazepine for a long time, don’t stop taking it abruptly as this can heighten anxiety. Work with a physician to gradually taper off the drug as you try these other techniques.

Smarter Ways to Calm Anxiety

1. Attack your BRIGHT MINDS risk factors.

In Dr. Daniel Amen’s book The End of Mental Illness, he details the 11 BRIGHT MINDS risk factors that steal your mind and can increase mental illness, including anxiety. BRIGHT MINDS stands for:

B is for Blood flow

R is for Retirement/Aging

I is for Inflammation

G is for Genetics

H is for Head Trauma

T is for Toxins

Mi is for Mind-Storms

I is for Immunity and Infections

N is for Neurohormones

D is for Diabesity

S is for Sleep

In The End of Mental Illness, you can learn how to prevent, treat, or minimize your risk factors to help calm anxiety and other mental health issues. You can also watch below for more information on how the BRIGHT MINDS risk factors impact anxiety and what you can do about them.

2. Check for hypoglycemia, anemia, and hyperthyroidism.

Low blood sugar, anemia, and an overactive thyroid can cause symptoms of anxiety. If you have anxiety that doesn’t respond to other solutions, it’s a good idea to have your healthcare provider perform the following 3 tests:

3. Eliminate artificial dyes, preservatives, and sweeteners from the diet.

Aspartame can cause anxiousness, red dye #40 is associated with irritability, and monosodium glutamate (MSG) has been linked to anger and irritability. Be sure to check nutrition labels for these ingredients. Be aware that MSG is sometimes listed only as “natural flavors,” so you may not know you’re ingesting it.

4. Try an elimination diet for 3 weeks.

Food can trigger allergies, which often impact the brain. Anything that impacts the brain can affect your mind because your brain creates your mind. To see if foods are contributing to your anxiety, eliminate sugar, gluten, dairy, corn, soy, and other categories of potentially allergenic foods from your diet for 3 weeks. Then add these back one at a time (except for sugar, which you should eliminate for good) and be alert for reactions to them, which would indicate that you should permanently avoid that food.

5. Practice prayer, meditation, and hypnosis.

Research shows that these techniques can calm stress and anxiety. You can use helpful audio programs for guided meditation and self-hypnosis on BrainFitLife. If you respond to prayer, Dr. Daniel Amen’s book Stones of Remembrance offers Bible verses for anxiety, such as:

Worry weighs a person down;
an encouraging word cheers a person up.

Proverbs 12:25

I know the Lord is always with me.
I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

Psalm 16:8

You can find many more soothing verses on anxiety, depression, fear, loneliness, and more in the book.

6. Do heart rate variability (HRV) training.

Research in Frontiers in Psychiatryshows that anxiety is linked to low levels of HRV, but you can hack your way to a healthier HRV with biofeedback apps, such as HeartMath.

7. Practice diaphragmatic breathing and hand-warming biofeedback.

Deep breathing can help calm anxiety, and it’s so easy. Just take a deep breath in for 3 seconds, hold it for 1 second, then exhale for 6 seconds, and hold it again for 1 second. Do this 10 times, and it will trigger a relaxation response. Watch Dr. Amen’s Facebook Live on the 2-Minute Anxiety Solution where he describes in detail how to do this exercise. As you practice diaphragmatic breathing, do a hand-warming exercise at the same time in which you imagine that you’re holding a hot cup of tea or you’re holding your hands up to a fireplace.

8. Eliminate the ANTs (automatic negative thoughts)

The automatic negative thoughts (ANTs) that invade your thinking drive anxiety. Some of the most anxiety-inducing thoughts are called Fortune-Telling ANTs, such as:

“This pandemic is never going to end.”

“I’m never going to get a job again.”

“I’m never going to have a successful business again.”

Fortunately, you do not have to believe every stupid thought you have. You need to develop an internal ANTeater to get control of your thoughts. Whenever you feel sad, mad, nervous, or out of control, write down what you’re thinking. That helps get the thought out of your head. Then, use a powerful exercise developed by Byron Katie and ask yourself, “Is it true?” Then write down the opposite of your negative thought, such as:

“This pandemic will end.”

“I will get another job.”

“I can have a successful business again.”

Ask yourself which statement is more true. You can find an ANT-killing exercise on BrainFitLife.

9. Engage in calming exercises.

Yoga, qigong, and tai chi are wonderful exercises that can reduce stress and fight anxiety. They help you learn how to direct your energy in a positive way. A 2017 study using EEG in Frontiers in Psychiatry found that qigong affects brainwaves in a positive way that induces relaxation.

10. Take nutraceuticals.

Several natural supplements have A-level or B-level scientific evidence for anxiousness and stress. What does that mean? A-level means there is robust research conducted with more than 2 placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trials. B-level means there are multiple studies where at least 2 are placebo-controlled, double-blind studies. Among these well-studied supplements are l-theanine, GABA, and magnesium—all found in BrainMD’s GABA Calming Support. To help you feel calm under stress—like during a pandemic—you can also try Magnesium Chewables.

11. Check your omega-3 level.

Did you know that 93% of the population is low in omega-3 fatty acids? The Omega-3 Index is a blood test that measures your omega-3 level. Try to get it above 8% by using 1,400mg (or more) of omega-3 fish oil with a ratio of approximately 60/40 EPA to DHA. Make sure to choose a high-quality fish oil like Omega-3 Power.

12. Try neurofeedback.

Neurofeedback is a type of biofeedback that measures brainwave activity in real-time and gain control of your brainwaves to achieve the desired brain state, whether the goal is to experience greater relaxation or to maintain better concentration. 

Anxiety, panic attacks, depression, and other mental health issues can’t wait. During these uncertain times, your mental well-being is more important than ever, and waiting to get treatment until the pandemic is over is likely to make your symptoms worsen over time.

At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer mental telehealth, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy for adults, children, and couples, as well as in-clinic brain scanning to help our patients. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834. If all our specialists are busy helping others, you can also schedule a time to talk.

 

When 3 psychiatrists from Amen Clinics hosted a webinar to answer people’s questions about the coronavirus pandemic, they received such a flood of queries they couldn’t get to them all during the allotted time.
Dr. Robert Johnson, Dr. Jennifer Love, and Dr. Jay Faber graciously agreed to respond to some of the most common additional questions they received. Here’s what they had to say.

“Would a couple of hyperbaric treatments a week be preventative for COVID 19?” 

Dr. Johnson: There was a study out of Wuhan, China, involving the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) in the treatment of severe COVID-19 cases. It involved 5 COVID-19 patients, 2 of whom were critically ill and 3 of whom were suffering from “severe” illness. They were treated with HBOT at the Department of Hyperbaric Oxygen in Wuhan Yangtze River Shipping General Hospital.

In that report, hyperbaric oxygen was added to the current comprehensive treatments being performed at the hospital for COVID-19 affected patients, with a dose of 90-120 minutes at treatment pressures of 1.4 to 1.6 ATA. The results were very encouraging; 5 patients received significant therapeutic benefits, including rapid relief of symptoms after the first session. The rationale for the improvement was the ability of hyperbaric therapy to quickly reverse progressive hypoxemia (low blood oxygen levels).

However, there is no data regarding HBOT’s ability to prevent COVID-19 infection.

“How do we shift focus to our values and stop obsessing with goals? Especially when our goals seem further away due to the economic and social shifts we are seeing?” 

Dr. Johnson: A good model for this comes from the domain of sports. As an athlete, all you can control is your process. In fact, most athletic breakthroughs occur when you relinquish concern about the result and focus on your preparation and execution. The same principle holds as it relates to our obsession with goals in everyday life; we as individuals don’t have control over the macroeconomic effects of the coronavirus, but we can focus on clarifying the following:

  1. “What have I learned is most important to me going forward in this next chapter of my life (relationally, physically, spiritually, vocationally)?”
  2. “What are the changes I need to make in order to live those values?” 

So, it starts with clarifying your core values at this point in time, then developing, implementing, and sustaining the habits, practices, and mindset that will serve those core values/priorities. The key is to slow down and find joy in each step of the process—really enjoying your body’s ability to move when exercising, being present to your breath during mindfulness meditations, mining a feeling of gratitude for each small pleasure in your life, and enjoying the fruit that grows from being as authentic and vulnerable as possible in your relationships.

“How can we help our friends and family not falling to depression at this time when some are isolated alone?”

Dr. Love: FaceTime, send flowers or small tokens—books, a candle, a hand-written letter. Even a picture drawn by a 50-year-old of something ridiculous like a dinosaur walking through a garden with a robot would make anyone laugh (maybe at you, but whatever).  Write a series of encouraging notes, drawings, articles of interest, crosswords from the newspaper; put them into separate envelopes with dates to open, and send them together in a large envelope.  Find out whether there is a certain time of day when they feel the most lonely, sad, or anxious, and contact them half an hour before. Send them a TikTok. Video record the family singing a favorite song or a silly song. Send things randomly, frequently, and follow up with regular FaceTime calls or phone calls.

“I have an adolescent who is experiencing some paranoia. We are mainly staying home during the pandemic and not allowing him to visit his friends during this time. What are some recommendations for him?”

Dr. Faber: Loneliness and not seeing friends has been a big issue during the pandemic. Here are my suggestions. I would highly encourage using social media like FaceTime, Skype, or Zoom to spend time with friends. With that recommendation, your adolescent may be spending more time on social media than recommended before the COVID-19 restrictions. If social time is being used constructively, parents might think of giving their children more time to be on social media to talk with friends.

“My 26-year-old daughter is out there working with kids with autism. how can I help her cope with the added stress of being exposed to Covid-19?”

Dr. Faber: This is a great question. In order to cope with the stress, I would work closely with your doctor to make sure you’re doing everything possible to promote healthy immune functioning. Talk to your doctor about the proper use of multivitamins, vitamin C, vitamin D, and zinc, as well as other agents. To decrease stress, simple relaxation exercises, such as deep breathing, meditation, and yoga can help keep our body in a protective state to stay calm and promote healthy immune functioning.

If you missed the webinar, click here for the video and the first round of questions answered.

Depression, anxiety, panic attacks, and other mental health issues can’t wait. During these uncertain times, your mental well-being is more important than ever, and waiting to get treatment until the pandemic is over is likely to make your symptoms worsen over time.

At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer mental telehealth, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy for adults, children, and couples, as well as in-clinic brain scanning to help our patients. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834. If all our specialists are busy helping others, you can also schedule a time to talk.

 

 

You’ve got questions. These 3 psychiatrists from Amen Clinics have answers. Dr. Robert Johnson, Dr. Jennifer Love, and Dr. Jay Faber recently hosted a webinar to allow viewers to ask them anything about the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on emotional health. Here’s what they had to say.

https://youtu.be/Mh_u90orH3k

“I’m early in my recovery. How can I cope?”

Here are 5 key things people in addiction recovery can be doing right now for their health.

  1. Stay connected to a sponsor or someone who’s a sober encouragement through FaceTime or video chat, not just telephone.
  2. Find small groups of people that you’re comfortable with and do group chats, so they can have accountability but also just hang out and have a cup of coffee together and have some social time.
  3. Stay on your sleep schedule. Don’t stay up all night and sleep all day and going into bad behaviors, staying on a clean diet.
  4. Schedule. Take time at the end of the day and write out everything you’re going to do the next day and fill your schedule. Even if it’s just like “Call mom, watch a film on Netflix, make lunch,” it gives a sense of structure to the day.
  5. Set an intention. Pick a word of the week—kind, honesty, bravery, peace, calm. Really think about that word and how it applies to you in your life.

“My kids are driving me crazy. They’re just arguing and getting on each other’s nerves constantly. I tried different things to entertain and distract them. It just doesn’t seem to work for very long. Any recommendations?”

“I hear this every other day from one of my patients,” says Dr. Faber. Here are 3 strategies to try.

  1. Keep a schedule. You don’t have to schedule something every hour, but just break up your day in the morning, afternoon, and evening and make sure your kids have something to do in those 3 time slots. You might want to do that for yourself too to keep your own sense of wellbeing.
  2. Keep your kids active. Kids who get fidgety or antsy at home may start taking it out on themselves and play can sometimes turn into fighting, arguing, and other unpleasantries. Take advantage of the internet. For example, if your kids are into dance, you can find some of the coolest dance lessons for free or for a nominal charge.
  3. Encourage your kids to get creative and use FaceTime or Zoom to connect with others. For example, a couple of my older kids have brunch in the morning with their friends online and talk to each other for 30 minutes. This really gives your brain and your whole body an escape from all the internal things that are coming at us on a daily basis.

“I can’t stop worrying where all this is headed—whether I’ll have a job or be able to keep my car. I just end up monitoring events constantly on my phone, my laptop, and TV. Help.”

At this time, we have to figure out what we can control and what we can’t control. And the things we can’t control we have to just put in a box. Here are some techniques based on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) you can use these to distract yourself from your stressful thoughts.

  1. Get engaged in activities. This can be anything like doing puzzles, coloring, or painting. “A lot of my patients are doing paint by numbers,” says Dr. Love.
  2. Contribute to others. Thinking about what you can do for other people is one of the best ways to stop negative ruminations and to help with depressive or anxious ruminations. Who can you be kind to today? If you’re going to the market, can you pick up something for an elderly neighbor? Can you call someone you know is vulnerable?
  3. Gratitude. Train your brain to look at the things in your space around you that you’re grateful for.
  4. Limit TV news and social media. The information we get from these sources may be sensationalized and can be harmful to our emotional health. “I had a patient this week in Spain, and she and her 3 children are literally locked up in their apartment. They can get out for 1 hour a week to go grocery shopping and that’s it,” says Dr. Faber. “She’s been trying to contain her own emotions as she watches a lot of social media.”

“What are some healthy grounding techniques to ease or cope through a busy, racing, or anxious mind?”

Practice DBT principles of self-soothing and use all 5 of your senses to help stay grounded. Here are some well-known grounding techniques for people who have trauma in their background or who can dissociate in the context of being triggered emotionally. They’re very simple but very effective.

  1. Sights. “When I’m really anxious, I like to look at color, I like to look at art. I like a fire in the fireplace or just watching candles,” says Dr. Love. “Even just noticing where you see squares in a space or the color of the carpet can help,” says Dr. Johnson. “Or try standing on one leg with your eyes closed because you can’t stay dissociated, you can’t stay in that anxious space if you have more of a present moment sensate focus.”
  2. Sound. Listen to the rain or the wind or use white noise machines. You can also go online and play ocean sounds, music, or whatever you love.
  3. Touch. For touch, many people have animals they can pet. For kids, you can get a huge bucket and just fill it with dried beans and let them stick their feet and hands in it. It’s a very tactile, calming thing. “I’ve even had patients take an ice cube out of the freezer and just stick it on their wrist because it brings you back into the moment faster,” says Dr. Love.
  4. For scent, you can use candles, food. Add spices when you’re cooking. It smells wonderful. Lavender and vanilla are really calming. “A lot of my patients are using aromatherapy or lotion with a special scent that’s really relaxing,” says Dr. Love.
  5. Taste. Don’t scarf down junk food. Make something healthy and really savor the bites and take time to enjoy the meal as if you were at a 5-star restaurant. “Yesterday one of my patients asked, ‘Can I take a bite of a lemon?’ and I told them to go for it,” says Dr. Love.

“After surviving the COVID-19 illness, with moderate symptoms for 7 days, what recovery strategies do you suggest for supplements, exercise, nutrition, or other therapeutic techniques to help you when you come out of isolation?”

  1. Focus on nutrition. Stay away from inflammatory foods like sugar, junk food, cookies, candy, and potato chips. Eat more protein—chicken, fish, or low-fat beef—with no breading. And eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
  2. Boost your immune system. Some simple things you can do right now is take Vitamin C (500 milligrams twice a day for adults), Vitamin D (5000 IUs), zinc (particularly zinc
    picolinate at 25 mg a day), omega-3 fatty acids (try Omega-3 Power) Throw garlic in there as well.
  3. Saunas. If you look at the MERS syndrome that occurred, which was a coronavirus, there was some work done in test tubes looking at how heat causes the virus to die. If you have access to heat, especially saunas that get to 170 to 180 degrees, look about doing that.
  4. Exercise. “The first several days of this quarantine, I was in absolute CrossFit withdrawal. I was cranky and impatient until I got disciplined enough to start doing some kind of exercise every day,” says Dr. Johnson. Many companies have stepped up and provided free, home-based exercise options.
  5. Boost your brain. BrainFitLife—a personalized brain training site created by Dr. Daniel Amen and based on research derived from the world’s largest database of functional brain SPECT scans—has lots of awesome content about exercise, nutrition, sleep induction tapes, and brain training games.

“Can you talk about sleep needs during these times and how to improve sleep hygiene during these stressful times?”

Sleep hygiene is so important right now. “If you don’t get eight hours of sleep, we’re more likely to keep inflammatory toxins in our brain,” says Dr. Faber. Be very consistent with the time you go to bed and wake up, don’t take naps, and skip caffeine after lunch. “I create transition times in that hour before bed and in that hour when I get up. That hour before my bed is my spa hour,” says Dr. Love.

“Can we talk about when you’re staying home with an abusive family member and not feeling safe?”

We may be on lockdown, but you have to stay physically safe, emotionally safe, and sexually safe. If you’re with someone 24/7 who’s harmful to you, you’ve got to get out of that situation. Domestic shelters are open or stay with a friend where you can have a refuge. Also be aware of when these episodes more likely to occur, such as if someone is using alcohol or drugs or if someone’s not taking their psychotropic medications. “If your significant other is doing any of those, be much more watchful and be ready to get plan B ready,” says Dr. Faber.

If you’re struggling with anxiety, panic attacks, depression, or other mental health issues, you aren’t alone—45% of Americans say the coronavirus pandemic has impacted their mental health. Just because you’re sheltering at home doesn’t mean you have to wait for the pandemic to be over before seeking help. In fact, during these uncertain times, your mental well-being is more important than ever, and waiting to get treatment is likely to make your symptoms worsen over time.

At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer mental telehealth, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy for adults, children, and couples, as well as in-clinic brain scanning to help our patients. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834. If all our specialists are busy helping others, you can also schedule a time to talk.

 

As the coronavirus continues to spread around the globe and more people hunker down at home, you may get sucked into binge-watching TV shows or endlessly scrolling through your social media feed. Neither of these activities is good for your brain, and they could increase feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression.

To boost your mood, fire up your brainpower, and feel more productive, try these 11 amazing brain healthy activities.

1. Have an indoor dance party.

Get your blood pumping and the oxygen flowing to your brain with an indoor dance party. Just turn up your favorite tunes and start moving. Coordination activities like dancing activate the brain’s cerebellum, an area associated with thought processing. Dancing can be a helpful treatment for depression, according to a 2017 study, and research in The New England Journal of Medicine shows that it reduces dementia risk by 76%.

2. Practice random acts of kindness.

A 2016 study shows that doing things for others boosts happiness by activating the release of dopamine in the brain. A simple way to do this at home is to write letters to seniors in nursing homes. Many assisted living facilities are tightening visitor regulations or banning all visitors. You can brighten up a senior’s day—and your own—by sending a greeting card.

3. Let food be your medicine.

Your brain (and your immune system) needs nutrient-dense foods to function optimally. Try these free recipes from nurse and bestselling author of The OMNI Diet and The Brain Warrior’s Way Cookbook Tana Amen to boost your brain health. Whip up a yummy protein smoothie—like the Focus & Energy Smoothie—to start your day. Make an awesome anti-inflammatory salad—like Tana’s Rainbow Chard Salad—that’s packed with prebiotics (dietary fiber) such as cabbage and carrots. Boost immunity with onions and garlic in soups and stews like Healthy Turkey Chili. And satisfy everybody’s sweet tooth with a brain healthy dessert, like Nutty Butter Cups.

4. Learn the “Loving Kindness Meditation.”

This meditation is intended to develop feelings of goodwill and warmth toward others. It has been found to quickly increase positive emotions and decrease negative ones, reduce symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), increase gray matter in the emotional processing areas of the brain, and boost social connectedness. Here’s how you do it.

Take 2-3 deep breaths, taking twice as long to exhale. Let any worries or concerns drift away and feel your breath moving through the area around your heart. As you sit, quietly or silently repeat the following or similar phrases:

May I be safe and secure

May I be healthy and strong

May I be happy and purposeful

May I be at peace

Let the intentions expressed in these phrases sink in as you repeat them. Allow the feelings to grow deeper.

After a few repetitions, direct the phrases to someone you feel grateful for or someone who has helped you:

May you be safe and secure

May you be healthy and strong

May you be happy and purposeful

May you be at peace

Next, visualize someone you feel neutral about. Choose among people you neither like nor dislike and repeat the phrases.

Next, visualize someone you don’t like or with whom you are having a hard time. Kids who are being teased or bullied at school often feel quite empowered when they send love to the people who are making them miserable.

Finally, direct the phrases toward everyone universally: “May all beings be safe and secure.”

You can do this for up to 30 minutes. It’s up to you.

5. Learn something new.

The best way to slow the brain aging process is to learn something new. Take an online course (like the Change Your Brain Masters Course to conquer anxiety, depression, obsessiveness, anger, and memory problems), download a foreign language app, or read a book like Dr. Amen’s The End of Mental Illness, which offers over 100 simple things you can to heal your brain and prevent or reverse the problems that are making you feel sad, mad, or bad.

6. Create an emotional rescue playlist.

Music can soothe, inspire, improve your mood, and help you focus. After evaluating more than 800 people, researchers have found that people listen to music to regulate energy and mood, to achieve self-awareness, and to improve social bonds. In his powerful book, The Secret Language of the Heart, Barry Goldstein reviews the neuroscience properties of music. “Music stimulates emotional circuits in the brain … Releases oxytocin, the cuddle hormone, which can enhance bonding, trust, and relationships. Soothe your stress with the following research-based playlist (without lyrics because words can be distracting).

Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major (K. 448) – Mozart

Clair de Lune – Debussy

Adagio for Strings – Samuel Barber

Piano Sonata No. 17 in D Minor (“The Tempest”) – Beethoven

First Breath After Coma – Explosions in the Sky

Adagio for Strings – Tiësto

Fanfare for the Common Man – Aaron Copeland

Weightless – Marconi Union

Flotus – Flying Lotus

Lost in Thought – Jon Hopkins

The Soundmaker – Rodrigo y Gabriela

See – Tycho

Spectre – Tycho

If you’re looking for inspiration, relaxation, stress relief, background music for meditation, or something to spark your creativity, you can find instrumental music on the BRIGHT MINDS: Memory Rescue Music CD.

7. Teach your dog a new trick.

This is a wonderful time to enhance your brain and activate the brains of your furry family members. Studies have found many mental health benefits of pet ownership. For example, petting your pooch triggers the release of feel-good neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, and it lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Just looking in your dog’s eyes produces the bonding chemical oxytocin.

8. Start a garden.

You don’t need access to a yard to get your green thumb in action. There are many indoor garden kits available that will allow you to grow brain healthy bell peppers, microgreens, and herbs (think basil, oregano, and rosemary). A 2019 study found that gardening was associated with a significant increase in levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is associated with cognitive function and memory.

9. Don’t just exercise, “socialcize.”

Social isolation drains your brain, but social distancing doesn’t have to mean loneliness and solitude. Exercise your social skills with video conferencing, Instagram Live, FaceTime chats, and more.

10. Clear your home of environmental toxins.

Exposure to toxins can harm your brain and increase the risk of depression, suicide, ADD/ADHD, learning problems, memory problems, brain fog, autism, temper outbursts, psychotic behavior, and dementia. Download the Think Dirty app and dump the chemical-laden personal care products and household cleaners that can harm your brain.

11. Seek professional help if you need it.

If you’re really struggling during this time but don’t want to leave your home, take action to enhance your brain and mental wellbeing with video therapy sessions.

If you’re struggling with anxiety, panic attacks, depression, or other mental health issues, you aren’t alone—45% of Americans say the coronavirus pandemic has impacted their mental health. Just because you’re sheltering at home doesn’t mean you have to wait for the pandemic to be over before seeking help. In fact, during these uncertain times, your mental well-being is more important than ever and waiting to get treatment is likely to make your symptoms worsen over time. 

At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer mental telehealth, remote clinical evaluations, and video therapy for adults, children, and couples, as well as in-clinic brain scanning to help our patients. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-568-6141. If all our specialists are busy helping others, you can also schedule a time to talk. 

 

Do you have intrusive thoughts that keep looping in your head? Do you check the stove 20 times before you can head out the door to go to work? It could be obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). An estimated 2 to 4 million people struggle with OCD, a condition that is characterized by obsessive thoughts and compulsions that can be debilitating. Just look at how they were making Gail’s life spin out of control.

Gail’s OCD Obsessions and Compulsions

On the surface, it seemed like she had it all. Married to her high school sweetheart, she had a couple of kids and a good job. But every night after work, Gail spent hours obsessively cleaning her house. If she saw anything out of place, she would scream at her family and become hysterical. She also felt compelled to wash her hands over and over and over again and insisted that her husband and kids wash their hands at least 10 times a day. Gail’s OCD was ruining her life and seriously impacting her family.

What Gail’s OCD Brain Scan Showed

To get an accurate diagnosis, Gail underwent a leading-edge brain imaging technique called SPECT. Her brain scan showed marked increased activity in the Anterior Cingulate Gyrus, an area involved in shifting attention. When there’s too much activity in this area, it causes people to get stuck on thoughts and actions.

Gail’s OCD Brain Scan: Note increased activity in an area called the Anterior Cingulate Gyrus (arrow).

Healthy Active Brain Scan:

Within six weeks on a targeted treatment plan, Gail was much more relaxed, greatly reduced her ritualistic hand-washing behavior, and stopped making her kids wash their hands every time they turned around. Her husband couldn’t believe the change and said Gail was more like the woman he had married.

If you have similar symptoms as Gail, you may have OCD like Gail, and you can get unstuck too.

5 Ways to Reduce OCD Symptoms

Here are 5 simple things you can do to minimize obsessive thoughts and decrease compulsions.

1. Notice when you are stuck.

Becoming aware of looping thoughts is essential to learning how to stop them and gaining control over OCD. Whenever you notice intrusive thoughts, imagine seeing a traffic stop sign in your head and silently say to yourself, “STOP. THIS IS MY BRAIN GETTING STUCK!”  For some people, the more they actively stop these thoughts, the more control they develop over them.

2. Distract yourself.

When you notice you are getting stuck, get up and do something else. If you actively distract yourself from repetitive thoughts or ritualistic compulsions, they will gradually begin to lose their control over you. Try any of the following to distract yourself:

3. Focus on foods that boost serotonin.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that can help calm the overactive parts of the brain. Eating complex carbohydrates, such as sweet potatoes and garbanzo beans, is a healthy way to boost serotonin. Avoid consuming simple carbohydrates, such as pasta, bread, cookies, pretzels, and popcorn. Although they boost serotonin, they also contribute to increased feelings of anxiety, which is common in people with OCD.  

4. Get moving.

Exercise can be very helpful in calming intrusive thoughts and can help shift your attention when compulsions arise. Exercise works by increasing serotonin in the brain. In addition, it may distract you from obsessive thoughts and ritualistic behavior and compulsions.

5. Consider supplements that boost serotonin.

Helpful supplements that raise serotonin and calm overactivity in the brain include 5-HTP.

Since 1989, Amen Clinics has helped thousands of people, including Gail, get an accurate diagnosis and overcome OCD with targeted solutions that are proven to produce higher than average success rates.

If obsessive thoughts or compulsions are controlling your life and holding you back, don’t wait to seek professional help. Schedule a visit today or call 888-288-9834 to get a comprehensive evaluation.