5 Ways Quitting Drinking Affects Your Brain

Brain fog symptoms may vary from person to person, however, slowed cognitive functioning seems to be a recurring element. Most of these effects are caused by a spike in blood-alcohol content over a short period of time, said Ray. Taking breaks between drinks—and being sure not to imbibe on an empty stomach—can help reduce your risk of experiencing them yourself. Obviously, the time it takes for the brain to recover depends on the severity of the damage done.

A woman’s tendency to black
out more easily probably results from differences in how men and women metabolize
alcohol. Females also may be more susceptible than males to milder forms of alcohol–induced
memory impairments, even when men and women consume comparable amounts of alcohol
(4). Brain fog is not a scientific term and can manifest in different ways.

Healthy Withdrawal

Alcohol can impact our brain’s hard-wiring and produce cognitive problems that may persist even in sobriety. Recovering from alcohol addictive substances is possible, but it takes time and effort. Alcohol addiction the brain in different ways, some of which can be reversed after the individual stops drinking alcohol brain fog and maintain sobriety for a while, while others are irreversible and unrepairable. While the long-term consumption of alcohol is harmful, research demonstrates that alcoholism causes various toxic, metabolic, and nutritional changes that interact to produce mental impairments in alcoholic patients.

Alcohol feels great in part because it increases dopamine short term, but your brain actually adapts and eventually the small feeling of reward that comes from drinking can dissipate. Over time, dopamine production decreases once your tolerance goes up, meaning you may need more alcohol to feel the same boost over time. If you take one of these meds for insomnia, mild anxiety or agitation, talk with your doctor or other health care professional about treating your condition with other types of drugs or nondrug treatments. If you have insomnia, for instance, the first line of treatment is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). And an antidepressant might be able to treat your anxiety, Devanand notes.

Definition of Brain Fog

No matter how much you drink, adding whole nutrient-dense foods to your diet is going to help your body and brain work better. Alcohol consumption can severely affect the brain and body, ranging from short-term impairment to long-term damage. It is critical to understand the consequences of excessive alcohol intake and to get help if necessary.

In addition to eating brain-healthy foods, it’s also important to avoid processed foods as they can actually worsen brain fog. If you’re looking for ways to get rid of alcoholic brain fog, you’re in luck. https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/mash-sober-living-eco-sober-house-is-now-mash-certified/ There are a number of things that you can do to clear your head and feel better. It’s no wonder that so many people report feeling foggy-headed after a night of drinking or even days after that.

What is Alcohol Withdrawal

Many people with an alcohol addiction are malnourished, and it is possible that your body does not have the nutrients it needs for proper brain functioning. Your brain fog may also be another side effect of the symptoms that accompany withdrawal. For instance, insomnia might make it hard to think well during the day. You can rest assured that brain fog goes away just like your other withdrawal symptoms.

While early sobriety can be challenging, for this reason, experiencing life without alcohol means that you must learn new coping mechanisms and social skills. By eliminating alcohol from the equation, you can better understand your mental health and determine what it is you need to feel your best. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, roughly 14.5 million persons aged 18 and up had an alcohol use problem in 2019.

Alcohol Changes the Structure of Your Brain

It can also help you develop alternative coping mechanisms and tools to manage alcohol cravings. At Monument, you can connect with a therapist specialized in helping people cut back on drinking, such as myself. Your doctor will take a past medical history and (possibly) do blood work, as well as ask you questions about your lifestyle to examine your habits around physical activity, diet, stress management, and sleep. To treat brain fog, it’s important to address any existing underlying medical conditions that may be impacting your cognitive function. Pudumjee also says that patients describe a general feeling of cognitive sluggishness.

• Alcohol is a depressant that’s broken down by the body into many compounds, one of which is acetaldehyde.
• In the study, divided attention, which is handled in distinct cerebral regions, takes longer to rest and appears to be mirrored in brain volume shrinkage rates of these regions.
• There is safe and affordable (or free!) treatment for alcohol withdrawal.
• Alcohol can impact our brain’s hard-wiring and produce cognitive problems that may persist even in sobriety.
• Alcohol impairs GABA, a calming neurotransmitter that reduces anxiety and stress levels in the brain.

This has to do with alcohol’s effect on the brain, namely how it affects cognitive functioning. Alcohol use contributes to brain fog by impacting the way neurotransmitters function in your body and altering your brain waves. Whether or not a person engages in drinking should be a decision they make on their own, or with the help of a doctor or mental health professional. For many people without a history of dependence or addiction, Pagano said, drinking at low or moderate levels—no more than seven drinks a week for women, and no more than 14 a week for men—can be a healthy part of life. Alcohol’s most severe long-term consequences are brain damage and nerve cell death.

Can Alcohol Cause Brain Fog?

Customize the number of times you aim to get up throughout the hour and choose the duration so it’s suitable for your schedule. Then actually stand up or take a break to briefly unplug when prompted. When in a state of chronic stress, the primitive brain takes over, and we can’t use our higher thinking functions as well,” explains Wilhour. Getting a handle on stress will help you stay more in the thinking brain.

• Alcohol use contributes to brain fog by impacting the way neurotransmitters function in your body and altering your brain waves.
• The body and brain can recover as well and new cell growth can be observed after substance use and alcohol use is stopped.
• If left untreated, alcohol dependence can transition into an alcohol use disorder.
• The consumption of alcohol directly influences specific processes of the brain, the command center of the body, which results in feeling inebriated.

Here’s how to prep for when they’re away and make sure your mental health needs are being met. Stay active and aim for 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week, if you’re healthy. (Walking counts.) “Exercise activates the brain but also tires you out, helping you sleep better at night,” says Pudumjee. In addition, food allergies and sensitivities may also change your cognitive capabilities, Wilhour notes. According to Beyond Celiac, 95 percent of people in its research with nonceliac gluten sensitivity report having brain fog. One of the challenges with understanding brain fog is that there are so many potential causes, and having brain fog alone doesn’t tell doctors what exactly is going on.

“Sometimes people find it either hard to come forward and see their doctor or talk to people, but it’s really important that people try to work on recovery and getting better. “Even if people are less likely to get COVID-19 or they think the disease is going to be less severe, there’s still a risk for long COVID, including brain fog, so it is still something worth trying to prevent,” she said. Before stopping or reducing the dosage of these sleeping aids, be sure to consult your health care provider. Sudden withdrawal can cause serious side effects, so a health professional should always monitor the process. A 2018 scientific statement from the AHA says there is “no convincing evidence for a causal relationship” between statins and cognitive dysfunction.