Adrenal health
Is stress affecting your memory?
by Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP
Here are the topics covered in this article:
Have you ever found your sunglasses in the refrigerator? Or forgotten the name of
someone you know? Or what about when there’s something on your mind at a red light
and you don’t realize the light turned green until the car behind you is honking
wildly? Believe me, these things have definitely happened at certain points in my
life! We all have these moments, particularly when we are feeling stressed out.
Many well-meaning healthcare practitioners tend to laugh these mishaps off or chalk
them up to the normal aging process, explaining there’s not much you can do about
it. But loss of mental agility is not inevitable as you get older. Stress is a very
real drain on the brain at any age, and there are some practical things you can
do to keep yourself mentally sharp when you’re feeling stressed. Let’s take a closer
look at this connection to your adrenal health
and how you can help yourself.
Your brain on stress
Most of my patients aren’t surprised when I tell them that some stress is an integral
part of life. Moderate, paced or periodic stress actually helps us to learn and
lay new memories, but when stress is chronic, the adrenal glands are secreting stress
hormones like adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol too frequently. These hormones,
known as corticosteroids, are absolutely essential to life under ordinary circumstances,
as well as in the face of danger, invoking powerful life-saving changes in our bodies.
But when we lead a life of chronic stress, we may enter a state sometimes referred
to as cortisol dominance,
and this can affect brain function in powerful ways, especially when it comes to
memory, attention, and learning.
Chronic unmitigated stress leads to sustained high levels of glucocorticoids, which
over time can lead to cellular damage in the hippocampus, where learning and memory
of new information are transferred to long-term memory. This damage in turn can
interfere with the feedback loop that tells the brain when to “turn off” the stress
response, fueling the cycle further.
Reference
Chronic stress can lead to the following changes in your brain:
- Cellular changes in the hippocampus, the part of the brain central to learning and
memory.
- Slowed or halted neuron production.
- Diminished ability to clean up free radicals and inflammation, which can lead to
accelerated brain aging.
- Disruptions in the production of neurotransmitters that help regulate our moods
and cognitive function, leaving us grumpy, depressed, or forgetful.
Chronic stress can bring about a sustained stress loop, where the stress leads to
increased corticosteroid release, which can damage the hippocampus (and inhibit
our immune function). A damaged hippocampus leads to less regulation of cortisol
and the unchecked cortisol leads to further damage to the hippocampus (see diagram).
The good news is that we can interrupt and reset this cycle by the choices we make
in our lives.
Think three E’s — eating, exercise, & emotional health
In today’s world nearly everyone is dealing with stress on a daily basis, but fortunately,
you can minimize its effects on the brain — and body — by paying attention to three
basic things: what you eat, how you exercise, and how you feel emotionally.
Eating — feed your mind. Brain function is the first to
falter when you’re out of fuel. Many of my patients go long periods between meals
and snacks, but if we do this while under stress, we just can’t expect the brain
to keep up. Eating something nutritious three to five times a day will help keep
your blood sugar even, steadily fueling your brain, and improving your capacity
for learning, your memory, and your ability to pay attention.
I suggest a well-balanced, plant-rich, low-glycemic, Mediterranean-style diet. Adding
protein to each meal and snack will help keep the overall glycemic load low and
your blood sugar levels even. You might also consider adding cinnamon, or foods
rich in chromium to help with blood sugar regulation. And because we can’t always
eat a perfect diet, supplementing with specific nutrients and cofactors that target
support to the brain and nervous system in general can make a tremendous difference.
Here’s a list of key nutrients to offer your brain structural, regulatory, and restorative
properties:
- Omega-3’s
- B complex
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin E
- Calcium
- Magnesium
For soothing your nervous system, you might consider the healing benefits of passionflower,
chamomile, and valerian root. These herbs can gently dissolve stress and help you
to sleep peacefully — another powerful antidote to the cumulative effects of everyday
stress.
Exercise — a reasonable dose will do. Many of us grew
up with the notion that we couldn’t form new brain cells after a certain point in
our adulthood. But this just isn’t true! Exercise has been shown in laboratory experiments
to stimulate neurogenesis — the birth of new nerve cells. So it isn’t a surprise
that exercise is good for every system in our bodies.
Be mindful of the fact that if your exercise routine is causing stress in your life,
then it’s time to change your plan. Extra guilt, worry, and stress around exercise
can be more harmful to the brain than helpful. Experiment with different types of
exercise and try to find 2-3 forms of exercise you enjoy. Rotate them to prevent
boredom or feeling “stuck.” Practice breathing through your nose as you exercise,
to re-engage your parasympathetic nervous system — our built-in “chill
out” mechanism. And don’t forget to breathe in general! Many of us are rushing through
our days and find little (if any) time to stop and just breathe. The more contemplative
forms of exercise can be very helpful with this:
“In one rigorous study after another, exercise has emerged as the closest
thing we have to a magic wand for the brain, the best building
of branches, baby neurons, and along with education, perhaps, the mental padding
of cognitive reserve.”
— Barbara Strauch, author of The Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain,
and science writer for The New York Times
- Walking
- Yoga
- T’ai chi
- Qi gong
For those who find themselves extremely busy (like I am) consider the concept of
bursting. A “burst” in your workout includes getting your heart rate up to the point
where it is difficult for you to breathe and keeping it there for about a minute
or so (depending on your fitness level), and then returning to your normal rate.
This way, if you only have 20 minutes to exercise, you might maximize your workout
by bursting every five or 10 minutes.
Emotional health — uncover the roots of your stress. It’s
so easy to get caught up in the web of stress that many of us forget to sit down
and think about the roots of our stress. When you begin to contemplate the sources
of stress in your life, you can often learn how to distinguish between things you
cannot change and those you can, and from there be able to work toward
stress management. Consider a journal or an ongoing list of things that
cause you stress. Is it too little sleep? Not enough time alone? A draining job
or difficult relationship? Write things down as they come to you, and when you have
some time, look over your notes, and see if there are some solutions to the stressors
in your life that you can change!
For more entrenched emotional patterns, stressful relationships, or situations that
feel out of your control, you might try talking with a counselor, or trying the
Emotional Freedom Technique,
the Hoffman Process, or The Work
by Byron Katie. I’ve seen tremendous results with all of these approaches.
“Mind”ful living
Good or bad, we just can’t stop the stress in our lives. But we can learn to respond
to it in new ways and protect our body and mind from it. You don’t have to buy in
to the myth that we just become more scatterbrained as we get older. Keeping your
body, mind, and spirit healthy includes taking steps to address stress and restore
balance and resilience to your adrenal glands — and this kind of self-care will
bring health on every level. Support your brain every day with high quality nutrition,
invigorating exercise, and honest emotional support. You’ll never forget how good
it feels!
|
Do you want to:
Need to know more before you order?
|
Comment on this article:
Related to this article:
References & further reading on staying
mentally sharp under stress
Last Modified Date: 04/15/2011