Have you ever had one of THOSE weeks? The kind of week where you wonder if your brain decided to take a vacation and forgot to tell you? My week certainly started out that way.
Whenever I have one of those days or weeks, I hear Thomas Dolby singing “She’s an airhead” or “My brain is like a sieve; sometimes it’s easier to forget.”
Is this what being in one’s 40’s is like? You walk into a room, stand there, and say to yourself “I know I came in here for something.” Then you proceed to stand there for a minute; you stare at the wall, you stare at the furniture; maybe you look at your hands and scratch your head.
And sure enough, as soon as you walk out of that room, BANG, what you remember what you were looking for.
“My brain is like a sieve…”
Sometimes you’re talking to someone. They ask a simple question that requires a simple answer. But you begin by presenting two possible answers to the question, debate them to yourself, maybe explain why you gave two possible answers and then decide on the best answer.
In the meantime this person is looking at you and politely nodding his/her head.
“Cause she’s an airhead…”
A friend once told to wait until I hit my 50’s. If I think I have some-timers and brain farts now, well, well…
I guess in your 40’s you start to gently slough off your brain cells but in your 50’s…WHAM-O.
I know it is nothing to really worry about. It is all a part of that process they call, gulp, aging. I’ll probably forget about it anyways.
Musings from the Moonroom 
July 18, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Does it help if I say I used to be able to do ten things successfully at the same time, and now I can only do one, and that’s a bit hit or miss? I didn’t think it would help.
What I can say is that with age comes a certain wisdom that wasn’t there before. Not everry principle has to be thought out from scratch, and LB still brings wonder and awe.
July 18, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Brenda, you made me laugh.
Maybe another way to look at this is that the loss of some brain cells is replaced by the growing wisdom of other brain cells. That must be why we forget; to make room for wisdom.
I could convince myself of that : )
-Amy
July 18, 2008 at 3:30 pm
I can relate, Amy, especially to walking into a room and forgetting why I’m there, LOL !!! I’m in my fifties, and yes, I do notice that I cannot rely on my memory for things like appointments, items on a grocery list, ‘honey dos’ (hubby’s requests), etc…I really need to write things down, and then not lose the list, which happens often ! I also find I am very unfocused and unproductive when I try to multi-task, it’s almost like I become ADD..I function much better when I do one thing at a time, but unfortunately life does not always allow that. I recently watched a program on PBS called ‘Brain Fitness’, which described the effects of aging on brain function. It featured a doctor who developed a program of brain ‘exercises’ to improve memory, flexibility, and other mental skills. I don’t recall the particulars (I wasn’t taking notes, LOL!!), but one thing he mentioned repeatedly was the importance of learning new things, and challenging oneself. Doing what is ‘easy’ or within one’s comfort zone does not create new connections between neurons, and your abilities start to decline…I thought that was good advice, and will try to remember that next time I’m reluctant to try something new because I might not be good at it..
July 19, 2008 at 4:49 am
Amy…Your friend was right…Just wait till you’re in your fifties! I’m fifty-four and between the peri-meno moments and trying not to act my age, my brain is in a fog most of the time. But then again…I hear that your sixties are even more fun!…
July 19, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Hi Paula,
Yes, I’ve heard of the elusive brain fog. Something else to look forward to : ) Oh yea! more fun in our sixties. I think having a sense of humor about all of it is truly the best approach. I know everyone who has responded to this post definitely has a sense of humor.
-Amy