Brain fog....from age? or AN?

[Betsy]

Hi folks,

In the years leading up to my diagnosis, I noticed that my brain was starting to work differently.  Nothing dramatic, but I seem to have lost some mental agility.  My thoughts feel sluggish and it takes me longer to process new informaton.  Is that the same as the brain fog some of you have mentioned?

I've mentioned this to some of the doctors I've seen and no one was able to tell me if it's AN related, or if should I chalk it up to getting closer to 50.  Other than my AN, I'm pretty healthy and there's no indication that there's anything else going on that would affect my brain function.  For those of you who have felt this way, did it get better after you were treated?

I can deal with the unsteadiness and the tinnitus, and I can even handle SSD if that comes.  But this brain fog...or whatever it is....is ruining my career, my social life, and my confidence.  I keep thinking of "Flowers for Algernon" when Charlie realizes that his intelligence is only temporary.  Is there any hope?

Betsy

[Sue]

Hi Betsy,

I think that some of our symptoms can be attributed to our AN and also other things going on with us.  Brain Fog can also be attributed to menopausal issues as well.  I certainly have had my troubles with memory and clarity of thinking  in the last 10 years or so and I assumed it was associated with menopause, but that was before I knew I was growing my very own AN!  So...perhaps it's a combination of both.  I was not keen on taking hormone pills because my mother died from breast cancer, so I've just lived with it. But I don't have a  career to maintain.

I'm not sure who you should ask about this, but this is very real and there must be something you can do to help bring back some of your mental energy.

Encouragingly,

Sue in Vancouver WA USA

[Omaschwannoma]

Hi,

Here is a link (I hope it works, if not block & copy) that will explain what you are experiencing.  I did not have this BT (before tumor), but sure did after and I continue to struggle with this today--only not as bad.  HOpe this helps. 

http://www.backgroundfacts.com/menieres/COGDIS.htm

[Brendalu]

Arushi,
Thanks for the link.  I printed it out for my care providers and it seems to be pointing them in a different direction.................maybe now they will understand where I am and where I've been.

Brendalu

[Omaschwannoma]

Brenda,

I emailed this article to family and friends so they too can understand more why I do what I do sometimes.  My hubby got alot out of this and now understands why it takes me so long to read what he wants me to "just sign."  I ask him to "Wait!" when reading is required during a movie we watch at home. 

[matti]

what I have noticed since my surgery and a couple years before that, is that I used to be an auditory learner and have since become a visual learner. Before I could grasp complicated direction/instruction by someone just telling me, now it takes me much longer to process the info. I need to see things in writing and then process from there.

I am on the cusp of turning 50 and I have been repeatedly told by my doctos that these issues are more related to menopause. I think mine are exacerbated by menopause, but stem from the AN and surgery.

Cheryl

[mema]

Arushi,                                                                                                                                                                                         

Great link.  I printed it out also.  Thank you?                                                                                                                                 



                                        mema

[Captain Deb]

I remember that link, Karen! It's a tough read, but I printed it out for Dr Love and highlighted some of it and left it on the coffee table for months--maybe he looked at it a little, I don't know. At the symposium, I found myself reading the screen rather than focusing on the speaker--I seemed to process the information a little better by seeing the words.

Also--I'm on the patch and glad of it. I swore I wouldn't do artificial hormones until I actually tried it--makes a huge difference in my ability to concentrate on my work and not get sidetracked.
Taking some serious concerted rests during the day help, too.  Working on a big painting, I get over-visually-stimulated and on comes the wonkyhead.

Capt Deb

[Jim Scott]

I followed the link and found the information offered in Dr. Erickson's lecture was certainly helpful, even though I haven't experienced many of the cognitive problems he mentions as being common to folks with vestibular 'disorders'.  I seem to function rather well in almost all of the cognitive areas mentioned.  Granted, I've probably  lost some of my cognitive 'edge' but I'm 64 as well as being a post-op/radiation acoustic neuroma patient.  Even so, I value the knowledge the transcript offered and I thank Arushi for posting it. 

Jim

[Betsy]

Thanks everyone for your responses.  Yesterday was a bad day for me (almost fell twice at work) and I was feeling especially slow and stupid.  Today is better, if only the room would stop moving around!  Arushi, that link is excellent and I can really identify with parts of it.  Sue and Cheryl, I hadn't even thought about menopause in relation to my sluggish brain...I will definitely be talking to my primary care doc soon about that.  Captain Deb, you weren't talking about a pirate's eye patch, were you?!

There's something else behind this.  I have been so upset about it that I just couldn't bring myself to write about it yesterday.  I had an appointment with a neurosurgeon last week.  I'd read about ANs changing the protein level of the csf, and I asked him if a sluggish brain was one of those symptoms.  He said he didn't want to tell me because then I’d start having those symptoms too.  That was the equivalent of calling me a hypochondriac.  Don't worry, even with my sluggish brain I stood up for myself.  Still didn't get an answer though.

I know there are ups and downs with this thing, and I'm really, REALLY looking forward to the next up!  And I'm grateful that y'all are there for me during the downs.

Betsy

[matti]

Betsy - I am sorry the doctor said that you, it was highly inappropriate. Glad you stood up for yourself. That comment reminded me of one doctor that misdiagnosed me. He told me in a very irritated tone that my symptoms were all in my head and I needed to see a psychiatrist. One of the first things I did after diagnosis by another doctor, was take my MRI over to his office and personally show him the well lit tumor. Then he had the nerve to tell me that he was half right, the symptoms were all in my head  

hang in there!

Hugs,
Cheryl