What Fixed/Aided Your Brain Fog?

[MAF14]

I came across an interesting post by Gestalt in the "Candida and Biofilms" thread below:

I always wondered how Candida created an alkaline environment for itself...now I know how!

"Candida not only prefer an alkaline (or less acidic) environment; it actually acts to further reduce the acidity of your intestines. One of Candida’s byproducts is ammonia, an alkaline gas that forms when the Candida Albicans yeast ferments sugar in your intestine. Ammonia increases the alkalinity of your digestive tract, and has even been found to promote the growth of other yeasts. A 2011 study (see here) found that “under acidic conditions, this species can raise the pH from 4 to greater than 7 in less than 12 hours”. The same study showed that by alkalizing its environment, Candida triggers a switch to its pathogenic, hyphal form, which is the form that causes Leaky Gut Syndrome." http://www.thecandidadiet.com/ph-levels-candida.htm​

Ammonia is WHY I had such insane brain fog for the last 15 years. And this is WHY yucca an ammonia binder helped me so very, very much and gave me the biggest relief ever. And this also why Resistant Starch helped me so much, by making my colon more acidic.
Recently I have been on a crusade to acidify my SI w/ lactic acid bacteria. Seems I am on the right track here.

From this post and a few others the biggest aids were:

Yucca
RS (Resistant starch)
Larch Arabinogalactan

**Not mentioned but Citrulline Malate is also an ammonia scavenger so I assume it would have similar effects

I'm curious what else has shown improvement in the community.

 

[Snowdrop]

Hi @MAF14

I see you are coming at the problem from the gut perspective.

My brain fog has been declining my cognitive abilities for years. The times I feel some improvement generally come as a result of improved sleep. And then the issue the next day is to not overdo things.

I you haven't has this for too long then you may get better chance of maintaining some recovery if you try things/suggestions from here and see what works. For me just having an improved day once in a while is a big deal.

Getting a grip on sleep can be tricky. Pharmaceuticals inevitably have their limits. I've recently read that using a 'cool' pillow helps cool down your head aiding in better sleep. I've been meaning to try it.

Other things that I think may have contributed to at least not getting worse are Vitamin D and CoQ10 and Magnesium (malate and glycinate)
I'm housebound/bedbound so don't see much sun and Vitamin D is inexpensive so I would go for a good brand you trust if you're inclined to try. CoQ10 I use the softgels. I'm really not clear how much these two contribute.

But seriously, I've found proper sleep is really important.

 

[MAF14]

Hi @MAF14

I see you are coming at the problem from the gut perspective.

My brain fog has been declining my cognitive abilities for years. The times I feel some improvement generally come as a result of improved sleep. And then the issue the next day is to not overdo things.

I you haven't has this for too long then you may get better chance of maintaining some recovery if you try things/suggestions from here and see what works. For me just having an improved day once in a while is a big deal.

Getting a grip on sleep can be tricky. Pharmaceuticals inevitably have their limits. I've recently read that using a 'cool' pillow helps cool down your head aiding in better sleep. I've been meaning to try it.

Other things that I think may have contributed to at least not getting worse are Vitamin D and CoQ10 and Magnesium (malate and glycinate)
I'm housebound/bedbound so don't see much sun and Vitamin D is inexpensive so I would go for a good brand you trust if you're inclined to try. CoQ10 I use the softgels. I'm really not clear how much these two contribute.

But seriously, I've found proper sleep is really important.

Thank you for the input... I have had CFS for about 6 years, only about 2 of them were really bad although considerable brain fog through out.

I'm not specifically focusing on the GI tract, it's just that in that thread is the only time I've seen someone directly attribute a supplement to helping their brain fog.

Unfortunately, getting a good night sleep is very hard to come by. I've tried tons of sleep aids but havent wanted to dabble with pharm grade products.

 

[Snowdrop]

I understand. I prefer to not use pharma as much as possible.
Magnesium may possibly help as a relaxant. I take usually 150mg x2 a day.
I am at the point in my illness where I can't do a lot and therefore have the ability to sleep as needed. One thing I do now (although I don't like it) is I no longer get up when I wake in the morning. I try to go back to sleep and get a few more hours. This does help.

I have been using Ativan .5mgs for a few years now but really judiciously. Like usually once a fortnight. It helps because I know I can count on eventually having a good day to break up the usual not good days. And I've never had to increase dose for efficacy.

 

[belize44]

I use Ativan for sleep, too. I can usually do one quarter of a .5 mg tablet along with a GABA for pretty good sleep. I still have sleep interruption, but I try to sleep at least 9.5 to 10 hours because this is how much sleep I need to function. And if I find that I am still drowsy after that, I have to take it easy because a crash is imminent or already happening. My cognitive function improves in direct proportion to how well and deeply I have slept!

 

[Seven7]

Midodrine+propanalol

 

[panckage]

LDN;Marijuana in small doses;ritalin was helpful before but it doesn't seem to help much anymore

 

[PennyIA]

Methylation treatment and dietary and lifestyle changes.

Pacing to avoid PEM (which also has brain fog symptoms)
Methylation to help with energy and overall well being (the worse I feel energy-wise the worse the brain fog gets)
Dietary changes have impacted the frequency of gut issues (the more diahhrea I have, the more fatigue, POTS and brain fugue symptoms I get)

It's not a 'fix' but it seems like if I can manage these three contributors, I'm fairly well able to focus and concentrate.

 

[ryan31337]

Over the years I've identified different causes & related types of my brain fog.

- Poor sleep/PEM related. I'd classify this as moderate intensity, onset the day after over-exertion, hard to shift. Going back to sleep after waking, as mentioned by @Snowdrop, helps a little. Otherwise decrease activity and wait a few days.

- Dietary related. This is acute in both intensity and duration, crippling severity but often will pass half way through the day. Can't usually sleep with this one, just have to vegetate and ride it out (and obviously not eat more bad stuff, gluten/dairy are biggest culprits).

- OI related. This is mild-moderate with increasing intensity the longer I'm upright. 30mins horizontal nap/relaxation and its gone. Caffeine also gives a pretty immediate short-term fix but causes more problems in the long run.

 

[MAF14]

LDN;Marijuana in small doses;ritalin was helpful before but it doesn't seem to help much anymore

Helps with brain fog?! Seems counterintuitive...

 

[MAF14]

Over the years I've identified different causes & related types of my brain fog.

- Dietary related. This is acute in both intensity and duration, crippling severity but often will pass half way through the day. Can't usually sleep with this one, just have to vegetate and ride it out (and obviously not eat more bad stuff, gluten/dairy are biggest culprits).

Gluten seems pretty common but what is it in dairy that causes this do you think?

Does goat milk have the same effect? Does it have the same effect with Lactaid? What about RAW milk?

 

[ryan31337]

Not sure to be honest - fairly certain gluten was primary and dairy secondary. I developed problems with both lactose (positive blood test) and casein (presumably, as I can't tolerate lacto-free dairy products either). I haven't tried goat, raw milk or lactaid.

After a 6 months on the GF/DF diet my stomach settled right down and the acute brain fog stopped. I never had the slightest inclination to eat wheat again given the severity of the reaction, but if I did have something contaminated the brain fog would be back like a punch to the face the next day.

I was better for years but now with increasing fatigue & OI, intolerances have returned and have progressively got worse, despite maintaining the GF/DF diet. I'm putting this down to dysautonomia of some sort as I don't get the acute dietary brain fog now. The gastro/other bodily symptoms are also different and can be largely controlled with low FODMAP diets and careful eating at least.

 

[me/cfs 27931]

Interesting thread. The only things I've found that mildly help my brain fog are:

Vyvanse (10-20mg).
Ibuprofen (800mg).
Fasting.
D-Ribose.

Nothing so far has helped long term. Brain fog is the most frustrating and debilitating symptom I have. I'm newly diagnosed (after only 37 years), so hopefully will be prescribed something more effective soon.

 

[panckage]

Helps with brain fog?! Seems counterintuitive...

Yep well enough to make me do computer programming for an hour or so at time. Again very small doses are needed. I think I would just take a puff or 2 from a vaporizer and then my brain would be decent for 30min or so. When my brain starts to fog over again I would take another puff or 2. This seems to work for an hour or so until the secondary effects of marijuana erodes the cognitive enchancement

 

[jamie]

I'll join in the counterintuitive anecdotes. I also used pot at first to help sleep because I didn't like the sleep medication hangover. But I had to give that up after 6 months.

But one thing for me that was weird was that alcohol, up to a point, gave me great clarity and energy, For years this kept me able to do things like have dinner with friends at a loud restaurant, go see live music and dance and stay up late. It wasn't perfect sometimes I would alternate coffee, glass of wine water. And the hangover was awful and I used to say I got a 3 day hangover but really I felt like I had a hangover with or without the booze.

Not the smartest treatment but honestly for those 10 years to have a break every week from feeling like I did and be able to have good conversation and not just think about wanting to lay down was worth it.

Later I had minor surgery and I felt GREAT after the anesthesia. I wash't doing cartwheels but I felt like me, happy, clear headed and animated and just normal. It was such a nice day,

Looking back a lot of the things that gave me energy or were just healthy made me too wired, I had the wired/tired thing from the start.

It was always the things that were nervous system depressants or just calmed me down that made me feel good even if just temporarily. And I was seemingly a very calm person to begin with so doctors would't look at me and think she needs less energy not more. Even I didn't put that together until it was too late.

This was decades ago and I wish I had the resources back then that I do now because now I can't handle any vitamins or medications that might have been good long term solutions,

I was never depressed yet talked into taking an SSRI by a dr and It was one of the worst things I ever did. It was like being on speed but not helping any of my symptoms and nobody warned me about the side effects even when I asked. I ended up with Parkinson like symptoms and a messed up brain beyond anything I knew before.

 

[ryan31337]

I was never depressed yet talked into taking an SSRI by a dr and It was one of the worst things I ever did. It was like being on speed but not helping any of my symptoms and nobody warned me about the side effects even when I asked. I ended up with Parkinson like symptoms and a messed up brain beyond anything I knew before.

Same here, hypomanic on the smallest dose possible. Feeling like that soon got old!

 

[MAF14]

Same here, hypomanic on the smallest dose possible. Feeling like that soon got old!

Interesting.. I never got any sides that I noticed. On day one Prozac made me stop randomly crying.

 

[ryan31337]

Escitalopram here think. I had 2 weeks feeling absolutely terrible with fatigue and brain fog (adaptation phase I guess), once that went my brain was just all go, all the time. Jumping from task to task to task, racing thoughts and music looping in my head, talking fast, restless etc. Stuck it out for 3-4 more weeks but then gave up - neurologist ignored my complaints and encouraged me to increase the dose...errrr, no thanks. Took 6 months to get back to normal.

 

[panckage]

But one thing for me that was weird was that alcohol, up to a point, gave me great clarity and energy

This is pretty common I think. I use phenibut which has a very similar effect. It has an advantage in that it doesn't effect reaction time. It's also GABA. Works great but can only be used twice a week at most to avoid addiction/withdrawal/tolerance

 

[irlen scotland]

I came across an interesting post by Gestalt in the "Candida and Biofilms" thread below:


From this post and a few others the biggest aids were:

Yucca
RS (Resistant starch)
Larch Arabinogalactan

**Not mentioned but Citrulline Malate is also an ammonia scavenger so I assume it would have similar effects

I'm curious what else has shown improvement in the community.