Brain Fog

One of the many joys of Sjogren's Syndrome is a side effect called "Brain fog".  Brain fog, according to this article, is a "condition that most people are familiar with, and yet there is no medical term for it and it cannot be researched by putting ‘brain fog’ into an Internet search engine. The closest term would be ‘mild cognitive dysfunction,’ but this encompasses a wide spectrum of often subtle changes. Brain fog is often experienced as problems with memory or difficulty focusing or problems with processing information or numbers or with paying attention. It is an experience of feeling not quite ‘all there’ mentally."  

Many SJS patients complain of brain fog and it manifests in varying ways.  Prior to the onset of all of the meningitis, I never really had any memory problems.  In fact, most people would have said I had a fantastic memory.  After my first bout of meningitis, where I lost consciousness for a few days, when I first woke up my speech was impaired and my memories were sketchy.  I now consistently have problems with word retrieval and definite issues remembering things.  If my husband is not going to be home when I leave the house, he calls to make sure that the stove is off (I now regularly forget to shut it off), the light is on, the door is locked, etc. 

Yesterday was a perfect example of brain fog.  As part of our homemade life, I make two loaves of English muffin bread every week to have on hand for breakfast.  I mixed up the dough, put them in loaf pans to rise and popped them in the microwave to avoid drafts.  An hour later, I went to grab the loaves and wouldn't you know, they were practically as flat as a pancake.  I had forgotten the yeast!  How I could have forgotten the most vital ingredient in bread is beyond me but I wasted a ton of flour and some time just to prove that SJS can strike at any time.  Lucky me.