How to Get Rid of the Brain Fog during Addiction Treatment

She specializes in a variety of health topics including mental health, dementia, celiac disease, and endometriosis. Not always, but typically, the level of dependency on alcohol will correlate to the severity of symptoms. Keep in mind that alcohol use disorder is not the same thing as drinking excessively or beyond moderation.

• After 30 days of sobriety, physical withdrawal symptoms should be well in the past.
• They experience different degrees of impairment, and the disease has different origins for different people.
• As alcohol consumption continues, the brain becomes accustomed to this hyperactivity.
• The structured guidance of a counselor helps the patient stay on track and in the right perspectives as they strive to achieve their potentials and goals of recovery.
• While cirrhosis scars from excessive drinking are irreversible, quitting alcohol and leading a healthier lifestyle can help your liver heal from alcohol-related liver disease.

Most people who have dealt with alcohol addiction have some idea of what brain fog feels like because it is very similar to how you might feel after a round of heavy drinking. During brain fog, you may experience any or all of the following symptoms. Pursuing cognitive behavioral therapy is one part of alcohol addiction treatment. Many people find staying in an inpatient facility helpful because they can avoid the places they used to drink in. They can meet new people and learn stories about how to live a sober life. Most people realize that heavy, long–term drinking can damage the liver, the organ chiefly responsible for breaking down alcohol into harmless byproducts and clearing it from the body.

How to Recover From Alcohol Brain Fog

Answer these questions and you can start your alcohol addiction recovery journey with a clear mind. 47% of COVID-19 patients who have prolonged symptoms experience brain fog. Alcohol can produce detectable impairments in memory after only a few drinks and, as the amount of alcohol increases, so does the degree of impairment. Hallucinations – Visual, auditory, and tactile hallucinations usually occur within patients before the onset of delirium tremens. These patients are usually younger, consume other drugs, and drink larger quantities of alcohol. However, certain food groups also have benefits when it comes to helping with the discomfort of withdrawal symptoms and detoxification.

With over 8 years of professional treatment experience, Erik’s favorite part of his career is getting to support those in need as they engage in the inspirational process of asking for help. When not working, he enjoys spending time with his family and attempting to be decent at golf.

Day One

The symptoms of Wernicke’s encephalopathy include mental confusion, paralysis of the nerves that move the eyes (i.e., oculomotor disturbances), and difficulty with muscle coordination. For example, patients with Wernicke’s encephalopathy may be too confused to find their way out of a room or may not even be able to walk. In fact, studies performed after death indicate that many cases of thiamine deficiency–related encephalopathy may not be diagnosed in life because not all the “classic” signs and symptoms were present or recognized. We do know that heavy drinking may have extensive and far–reaching effects on the brain, ranging from simple “slips” in memory to permanent and debilitating conditions that require lifetime custodial care.

• Alcohol addiction the brain in different ways, some of which can be reversed after the individual stops drinking and maintain sobriety for a while, while others are irreversible and unrepairable.
• Submit your number to receive a call today from a treatment provider.
• Finally, alcohol-related brain damage may be present in infants subjected to alcohol while in the womb.
• Rico Hernandez serves as the Director of Maintenance for Renewal Lodge.
• Medical professionals are on hand and readily available around the clock.

However, after a few days of withdrawal, the brain fog should get better. In most cases, when you have completed the detox process, thinking returns to the way it was before alcoholism. After an alcohol-induced stroke, it can take your brain several years to fully recover. Proper medical treatment is critical in preventing long-term brain damage following a stroke. A study completed by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that consuming five drinks in one sitting increased participants’ risk of high blood pressure and other cardiovascular issues. Those who consumed five or more drinks per day were 25 percent more likely to develop health problems such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, and liver diseases.

Concentration Problems and Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome

At six months, you’ll also get your clarity back and begin to like being sober. Six months was the turning point for me — it was when I thought that I could really get used to this sobriety thing. If you give up before you master a skill, you are cheating yourself of opportunities to retrain your brain. Endurance, persistence and perseverance are essential in sticking with the program and training yourself to regulate emotions while staying focused on the task at hand. With plenty of resources like Rosetta Stone and Duolingo, you can pick up a new language and find a reason to travel to other parts of the world to showcase your new linguistic skills.

How Shakespearean that alcohol damages the very parts of the brain that we need to use in order to control and quit drinking. Alcohol can impact our brain’s hard-wiring and produce cognitive problems that may persist even in sobriety. Fein and colleagues warn that their study wasn’t able to prove that sobriety eventually overcomes the effects of drinking. For one thing, they did not know for sure that their alcoholic volunteers actually had mental deficits to begin with.

Physical Fog

You can expect to learn new habits and new ways of enjoying life without alcohol. Sarah Bence, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist and freelance writer.

Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. You may choose to stay close to supportive family members or friends, or have an “accountability buddy,” who is aware of what you’re alcohol brain fog doing and can come assist you or call for medical help if needed. Keep a list of important phone numbers on hand, because you might not be thinking clearly during withdrawal. The important thing is to stay safe in the case of a medical emergency.

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Adjoa Smalls-Mantey, MD, DPhil, is a board-certified psychiatrist and lifestyle medicine physician. She practices emergency psychiatry in New York City at several institutions, including Columbia University Medical Center, where she is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry. Verywell https://ecosoberhouse.com/ Health’s content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. “I feel great. To all those that are ready to give up because of withdrawals, hang in there! It does get better.”

Prioritizing open-mindedness, teachability, and faith as the foundational principles of his own recovery, Julian helps our network of community partners continue to grow on a daily basis. Counted amongst his favorite hobbies are weightlifting, reading, dancing and service work. Evan Varty serves as the Director of Utilization Review at Renewal Lodge. His experience as a client with The Lodge back in 2018 is what launched his passion for helping others.