It’s 2 p.m. on Friday in an Anthropology class lecture and your brain simply cannot hold another sliver of information. You teeter in and out of “twilight sleep consciousness” and slithering out of your own itchy-twitchy-fidgety skin. There’s the Economics mid-term on Monday, paying your bills by Friday, Mom’s birthday gift; and — wait, is today Friday?! The professor’s voice slowly fades into the distance, in reverberation of a starling, trilling away outside the lecture hall window.
Sound familiar? You’re not alone! Many adults (and kids too!) find themselves temporarily lodged in the phenomena often referred to as “brain fog” — the inability to concentrate, process information, reason, or make everyday decisions as they normally would.
Brain fog is basically a system overload and shut down! And, although these symptoms, if chronic or severe, can be indicators of an underlying medical condition, brain fog is more often simply a bi-product of our far-too-harried lifestyles. Essentially: too much information, too little space!
If you sometimes find yourself stuck in this confounded corner, here are three lightning-fast and seriously-simple brain fog blasters that can be one by virtually anyone, anywhere (even as you read this!) Try one (or all!) of these techniques specifically designed to instantaneously sweep the clutter from your consciousness, clear your internal cache, reawaken, reset, and allow you to be more present, clear, and receptive RIGHT HERE and NOW!
1) Breathe (what you already know but always seem to forget or simply don’t put into regular practice): your brain requires oxygen in order to function properly, just like any another major organ in your body. Lots of fresh oxygen…not just trickles or “leftovers.” Simply deepening and becoming more mindful of your breath is a fabulous start! But, to really break up the barriers that are clogging your brain, you may need to pull out the “big guns.” Here’s a quickie, shortcut version of the yoga-based Kapalabhati breath, which is synonymous with energizing and clearing the mind, among a myriad of other impressive bennies:
- Sit or stand nice and tall and relax your shoulders back and down.
- Take a deep breath in through your nose. As you do, concentrate on filling your lungs with oxygen from the bottom up — similar to pouring water into a glass.
- As you exhale that breath (also through your nose), break it up into three quick bursts of air, rather than one long exhalation.
- Repeat this for at least three rounds.
- Consciously return to your normal, most natural and effortless breathing pattern. How do you feel now?
2) “Wring out” the gunk with this simple, but powerful, mini-spinal twist, which specifically detoxifies the mind and body simultaneously:
- Sit or stand nice and tall and relax your shoulders back and down.
- Take a deep breath in through your nose. As you do, concentrate on filling your lungs with oxygen from the bottom up — similar to pouring water into a glass.
- As you exhale, keep the bottom part of your body still and facing forward while you gently twist your torso at the waist (including your head) to the right. Hold for 1-3 full breaths.
- Lather, rinse, and repeat on the left side.
- Depending on where you are and how much room you have at the time, you can also “bring your arms along,” and – say – reach for the arm of the chair on the side you’re twisting toward, if you like.
- Again, shoot for a bare minimum of three full rounds.
- Consciously return to your normal, most natural and effortless breathing pattern. How do you feel now?
*Bonus: as noted, this spinal twist can be done either seated or standing. Be creative! Find ways to incorporate it into the course of your day for brain-fog prevention!
3) Get your head below your heart: Inversions (that is, positions where your head is below your heart) are phenomenal multi-taskers. They “rinse” the circulatory and respiratory systems, release “feel good” hormones in the brain, improve listening skills and memory, and stimulate the mind on cue!
Note: OK, so this one might be a tiny bit more difficult to do in any sort of inconspicuous way, but…there’s always the bathroom, or fitness center in your office/campus!
- Again, you’ll begin by sitting or standing nice and tall, with your shoulders relaxed back and down.
- Take a deep breath in through your nose. As you do, concentrate on filling your lungs with oxygen from the bottom up — similar to pouring water into a glass.
- As you exhale, simply hinge forward and reach downward toward the floor from your standing or seated position.
- Keep everything soft and relaxed, including and especially your knees. (Reminder: we’re working on your brain right now, not warming up for a track race!) Allow your arms to dangle freely if possible.
- Continue to hold this position and breathe in and out through your nose for 1-3 full breaths –– YES – while you’re upside down!
- Slowly –– and I repeat, slowly – roll yourself up.
- Consciously return to your normal, most natural and effortless breathing pattern.
How do you feel now?
