A Rosea By Any Other Name
It’s extremely popular to look for alternative options for anxiety, but note that very few of them work, and even if they do, you should always be looking for ways to reduce anxiety without any supplement or medicine.
Rhodiola rosea grows in the cold and goes by many other names, including arctic root, golden root, rose root, Aaron’s rod, and king’s crown. All of these refer to a small plant with yellow flowering stalks.
In Russia, Scandinavia and the mountainous regions of China, the plant has been traditionally collected and consumed to cope with the stresses of life in frigid climates. Specifically, it is meant to treat fatigue, increase sexual potency, and promote happiness.
In the U.S., where studies have been made supporting its use as an antidepressant, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has removed some products containing rhodiola rosea from the market. This is due to growing claims in alternative medicine circles of its potential as a treatment for the flu, migraines, bacterial infections, colds and even cancer – all of which have been proven false or not proven at all.
The plant is believed to have combined stimulating and relaxing qualities make it a good one for people suffering from depression, but a more complicated choice from people who experience anxiety on a regular basis. The following section will review the possible positive effects of rhodiola for anxiety sufferers.
Can Mental Health Problems And Stress Affect Your Memory
Many of us feel more forgetful than normal at times of stress and anxiety. So why is this, and what should we do if we’re experiencing poor memory in conjunction with poor mental health?
Reviewed byDr Sarah Jarvis MBE
27-Aug-20·5 mins read
It’s a familiar situation: you rush out of your house feeling stressed, only to realise you’ve left your wallet at home. Or you start to panic during an exam or interview, and find your mind going blank. If you’ve ever been accused of being scatty or distracted, you’ll be all too aware of the ways stress can affect your memory.
As the COVID-19 pandemic lingers on, chances are we’re all feeling the strain. And while stress and anxiety can affect our functioning in many different ways, memory issues are an important piece of the puzzle. Whether you’ve been experiencing complete blanks in your memory – or are simply feeling preoccupied and repeatedly misplacing your keys – it could be due to shaky mental health.
Focus Concentration And Attention
Both depression and anxiety can affect our processing speed, focus, concentration, and how well were able to pay attention.
All of these things can lead to memory loss, particularly in the short term. If we cant concentrate on, or pay attention to the things going on around us, then we struggle to remember them properly. Even if we do manage to focus, poor processing speed can add another layer of difficulty in learning and retaining information
Each of these symptoms can be worsened through lack of sleep something thats really common when we have anxiety and depression.
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Memory Loss Cause # 5 Depression And Anxiety
Serious clinical depression or sorrow can in some cases create lapse of memory as well as amnesia, along with generally impacting your capacity to concentrate. Feelings of despair, severe sorrow at the loss of a liked one, and also other psychological injury can result in feeling out of touch, or in a fog and also failing to remember small details..
Anxiousness affects between 3% and also 15% of older adults, according to Mental Health America, as well as recent research studies show that 2.2% of seniors report major emotional distress throughout the 30 days prior to the study. Those aged 45-65 reported distress 4.4% of the moment, as well as also report a high level of anxiousness. There are numerous distressing signs and symptoms of stress and anxiety, including:.
Chest discomforts.Lightheadedness.Concern of dying.
There are many reasons a person can become distressed, from household troubles, life adjustments, money problems, and health worries. No matter the factor behind your stress and anxiety, there are a variety of ways you can handle your challenging sensations in the house, and also options for when depression and anxiety become hard to cope with:.
Anxiety And Memory Loss
Memory loss can be a confusing and frightening anxiety symptom. It’s also an extremely common symptom, but the memories that people lose are often so minute that people don’t realize they’re losing them.
Memory loss is a byproduct of stress, but various other anxiety symptoms can actually create further memory loss as well. Below, we’ll explore the effects of memory loss on anxiety and provide tips for controlling it.
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How Memory Loss Affects Our Life
Poor memory can affect our lives in all sorts of ways.
Staying on top of household jobs can be difficult. We might start cooking, get distracted, forget that weve left something on the hob and end up with a blackened pan to clean. We could start cleaning and forget where we put the cloth we were using. Our plants might go unwatered, keys get lost multiple times a week, and bins start to overflow as we keep forgetting to put them out for collection.
Beyond housework, we might start to forget things like taking our medication, going to appointments, doing vital a report for our boss, or paying bills on time.
Reading can be difficult because if we cant remember what weve just read then we have to re-read the same page again and again. This can make books inaccessible to us.
Staying in contact with people can be hard because we forget to reply to messages, forget to ring people back, and forget things that people say to us.
Memory loss can affect our work life, social life, relationships, finances, family and health.
What Does Anxiety Do To Memory And Why
First things first, anxiety isnt likely to have you waking up with full-blown amnesia. It doesnt tend to affect long-term memories. Its your working and short-term memories that might slip under anxietys sweaty yoke.
Theres a reason some peeps describe mild anxiety-related memory loss as being a brain fog.
You might forget stuff like:
- directions
- conversations you straight-up know you had
- dates for engagements and deadlines
- information youve just read
Anxiety-forgetfulness usually comes with feelings of confusion, dissociation, and concentration difficulties its not your standard total sci-fi alien brain-wipe amnesia. There are a fair few neuroscience reasons for anxietys short-term memory meddling.
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Other Causes Of Memory Loss
Other reasons you may experience memory loss can include the following:
- Normal age-related memory loss is common and manageable. One example of this is forgetting where you put your glasses but remembering later in the day.
- Alzheimers disease is the most common form of dementia. It can cause progressive, irreparable brain damage and memory loss.
- Mild cognitive impairment can alter thinking skills and eventually progress to Alzheimers disease or other forms of dementia.
- Minor head injury or trauma can trigger slight memory problems, even if you didnt lose consciousness.
- Forgetfulness is a potential side effect of certain medications.
- Brain tumors or brain infections can affect your memory or trigger dementia-like symptoms.
- Vitamin B-12 deficiency can create problems with your memory. This is because youre not maintaining healthy nerve cells and red blood cells.
- Alcoholism or drug abuse can impair your mental state and abilities. This can also occur when alcohol interacts with medications.
- Hypothyroidism slows your metabolism, which can lead to memory problems and other issues with thinking.
- Brain or nerve damage caused by diseases such as Parkinsons disease or multiple sclerosis can cause memory problems. A 2013 study found that people with depression have a greater risk of developing Parkinsons disease.
How To Manage Memory Loss
Memory loss due to depression is typically managed with regular counseling or therapy and antidepressants. Leading an active lifestyle and getting involved in your community can also elevate your mood.
You can also manage your memory loss by using memory aids. Depending on your needs, this could mean using alarm clocks to keep track of time, color-coding household items, or placing safety notes with instructions on appliances. You may also consider getting a home care provider to help you as needed. You may also consider joining a support group.
Medications that can improve memory and brain function in people with Alzheimers disease or other neurological disorders are also available.
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Different Types Of Depression
There are different types of depression, and there are some conditions where depression is a symptom. These conditions include:
- Bipolar disorder people with bipolar disorder, which is also known as “manic depression”, experience times of depression, where the symptoms are similar to clinical depression. They also go through phases when they have excessively high moods . Bouts of mania can include harmful behaviour like unsafe sex, spending sprees and gambling.
- Seasonal affective disorder is also called “winter depression”. It’s depression that is related to weather, usually winter, so it happens seasonally.
- Postnatal depression happens to some women after they’ve had a baby. It’s treated similarly to other types of depression, with antidepressant medication and talking therapy.
Learn more about how depression is diagnosed here.
Spend Time With Loved Ones
Staying connected to friends and family can help improve memory indirectly.
Enjoyable social interactions can help distract you from anxiety, making it easier to focus on other things.
Talking about your worries to people who care about you can also help. Knowing you have their support can help relieve stress, decreasing cortisol levels and helping you sleep more easily.
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Panic Attacks And Memory Loss
Some people who have panic attacks find it difficult to recall what happened just before or during an attack. Panic-related memory loss can happen for some of the same reasons that general anxiety leads to memory loss.
Panic attacks brief episodes of extreme fear are a type of anxiety. They come on quickly, often without warning, triggering symptoms that can feel overwhelming and terrifying:
- difficulty breathing or feelings of choking
- pounding or racing heart
- numbness, tingling, or blurred vision
- feeling of doom
- feeling of losing control
Some people having a panic attack might believe theyre dying or having a heart attack. You might feel totally preoccupied by these unpleasant feelings, lose track of time, and think about nothing except getting through the attack.
Afterward, you might recall the intense panic vividly, but you might not recall exactly how you made it through.
If youve had a panic attack before, you might also worry about having one again, especially when you find yourself in a situation that triggers feelings of worry or fear. When this increase in anxiety occupies your focus, you might also notice some memory trouble.
Memory loss can happen for plenty of reasons.
A few of the other potential causes include:
- regular alcohol or substance use
- side effects of certain prescription medications
Even when you live with anxiety, other concerns can contribute to memory loss, so its important to monitor your difficulty remembering things.
Causes Of Anxiety Memory Loss
The main cause of memory loss is a hormone known as cortisol. It’s the hormone released during stress, which is why those with severe anxiety are more at risk for developing memory loss problems. Numerous studies have confirmed that cortisol contributes to memory loss, especially short term memory loss, because it is a toxin to the cells of the brain.
The longer you deal with anxiety, the more cortisol you’ll have in your system, and that means that you’re more likely to continue to suffer from memory loss in the future. But cortisol is not the only culprit. Other reasons for trouble remembering include:
Memory loss may be its own cause of anxiety. People are afraid of getting older and forgetting things, so when they forget anything they start to feel as though their minds are failing them.
All of these examples of memory loss are normal, and simply a part of dealing with anxiety. In order to overcome that memory loss, you need to do two things:
- Learn Memory Improvement Tricks
- Control Your Anxiety
Memory improvement tools are always important, and when you have anxiety they’re even more so. You should be focusing on new and interesting ways to keep your memory active.
Daily blogging is one useful way. Give yourself a personal recap of your day. You don’t need to go into great detail, but you should take relevant notes of things that you want to remember and then re-read those notes often in order to keep those memories alive.
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Memory Loss Cause # 9 Brain Tumors
Current researches reveal that over fifty percent of all cancer cells people display symptoms of memory loss that can be perplexed with dementia- 90% of these symptoms were connected to spoken memory as well as exactly how swiftly the research individuals can bring up memories as well as resolve problems. Study shows that chemotherapy can straight trigger cognitive impairment, but it is extensively recognized that memory loss as well as cancer cells are both intricate concerns that much more likely have a number of reasons, instead than simply one drug.
Some signs and symptoms of brain concerns that suggest you need to visit a specialist include:.
Sudden or severe vision troubles, like double as well as obscured vision.Seizures.Dizziness.Problem strolling and talking.Unexpected significant modifications in the detects, like smelling something that isnt there and also listening to points .Unusual throwing up.
Memory Loss Cause # 6 Head Trauma
Minor Head Trauma might be suffered from even a small from a fall or accident, and also can cause memory loss due to harm to the brain. In addition to the initial trauma, troubles are commonly worsened by the bodys inflammatory response, which can make the brain swell or reduce, depending on the circumstance, making even a short fall have the potential for significant effects. Every loss ought to be reported to your primary care physician, so they can analyze you for any type of type of stressful mind injury . TBI is attributed to many signs that impair our capacity to work, such as:.
Short-term memory loss.Lack of ability to manage stress, and episodes of aggressiveness.Headaches.Failure to hold your urine.Modification in cravings as well as resting patterns, as well as character.
Autumns are one of the most common reason for TBI in older adults; with 60% of TBI in those over 65 being attributed to a loss. Clients over 75 having the greatest event of falls leading to TBI, hospitalization, and also death. Because professional monitoring can miss out on up to 30% of TBI, a computerized brain scan is recommended to verify no brain swelling or shrinkage takes place after a fall..
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Does Depression Cause Memory Loss
Research shows that there is a link between depression and memory issues, including confusion and forgetfulness. Symptoms of depression also make it challenging to focus and make good decisions.
Associated with short-term memory loss, depression is not believed to affect other types of memory, such as your long-term or procedural memory, which controls your motor skills.
However, it does appear to affect working memory, which is part of short-term memory.
Various studies have explored this connection, including:
- A 2013 study found that depression negatively affected participants ability to complete memory tasks. It was concluded that depression may diminish memory.
- Another 2015 study found that depressive thoughts were associated with working memory capacity deficits.
Recent research shows that depressed individuals do not generally have trouble recalling bad memories. Compared to non-depressed individuals, those living with depression tend to have an easier time remembering negative memories than positive ones.
Relief Through Rhodiola Rosea
Rhodiola is believed to have beneficial effects for people suffering from depression that should also be beneficial for people with anxiety. These include:
Though such tests look promising, it is still unclear what components of rhodiola rosea cause it to work the way it does, and causes some people to question whether the effect could be primarily placebo. There are few if any controlled studies, and it’s possible the mechanism may be something harmful. In any case, along with the potential benefits to taking rhodiola rosea, there are also a few potential risks that you may want to bear in mind.
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Anxiety Is A Sh*thead
As well as messing with your neurochemistry and reducing your hours-to-winks-caught ratio, anxiety has found a whole bunch of ways to screw with your memory.
24/7 worrying is a big slice of the anxiety pie, and it leaves little room for other thoughts. For example, hypervigilance about an upcoming review at work could make you space that its your partners birthday in 2 weeks.
Hypervigilance may make your brain not great at retaining and recalling information that doesnt relate to your personal anxiety focus. Plus, theres the perpetual-motion-like way anxiety can sustain itself in your mind. Many folks with anxiety start getting anxious about their anxiety, leading to a state of Anxiety-ception.
Memory loss is scary because it can point to serious brain conditions. Its not uncommon for memory loss and confusion to become an anxiety trigger or focus. Your anxiety leads to memory loss, which leads to anxiety about memory loss, which leads to more memory loss and more anxiety.
Not nice at all.
How Untreated Depression & Anxiety Affect The Brain
Without treatment, depression and anxiety disorders can cause measurable changes in key areas of your brain. Experts arent entirely sure all the ways in which these conditions can affect the brain, but heres what they know so far.
Anxiety & Depression Can Shrink Areas of the Brain That Regulate Cognitive Function
Brain imaging tests, such as MRIs, show that people living with depression and anxiety disorders have abnormalities in areas of the brain responsible for cognitive functions like problem-solving, memory, and planning and executing activities. But thats not all. Untreated anxiety and depression can actually shrink regions of the brain, including:
- Hippocampus, the region of the brain primarily responsible for long-term memory. The hippocampus also plays an important role in regulating our emotional responses. Constant, severe mood-altering symptoms cause this part of the brain to shrink. Doctors call this shrinkage atrophy, and its associated with Alzheimers disease and dementia. A 2014 study revealed that damage to the hippocampus can also hinder social behavior by preventing you from accurately interpreting and responding to information. Hippocampus atrophy can even affect your ability to use language effectively.
- Prefrontal cortex, which helps regulate your short-term memory and how well you plan and prepare for activities. A shrunken prefrontal cortex can cause short-term memory loss, difficulty planning and executing events, and increased irritability.
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