I'm starting to go a bit thick....

LegacyUser

Heres my problem, pretty simple really...Im starting to go a bit stupid.

I mean over about the last year, my ability to think and remember stuff has slowly started to disappear...I now just hate the effort involved in thinking about stuff.

I used to real quick and witty, but thats gone now and i hardly knwow aht to be talking.

Ive probably started drinking a lot more this year and that may be a reason...i also read and suff like that so my brain does get some excercise.


Anyone any help or tips here to stop me going completly thick?

nyarlothothep

take up a new hobby, like 3d computer art, or a new course. Are you in college? Doing a degree keeps your mind active, if you take an interest in it. Kung Fu is great for memory, you have to learn forms and duplicate them accurately, it also provides excellent exercise which improves brain function

beertons

If you have a nintendo ds, get the brain training game. I got it for my dad for christmas, to improve his memory. It's fading a bit, has been slowly for the last few years. But we've noticed an improvement already!

biko

Less TV, more books and newspapers.
Learn chess or other boardgames that requires concentration.

Captain Slow IRL

Get plenty of sleep, unaided by any sort of substance preferably.

Victor

Hows the substance abuse?

Even from your mid-20s, your concentration and memory start to deteriorate. No doubt, any teenagers about will remind you of this.

Captain Slow IRL

Victor wrote: »

Hows the substance abuse?

If this is directed at me, I was referring to the op's increased intake of alcohol and also if the op was using any other type of drug, legal or illegal.

LegacyUser

You can loose concentration because of stress and other factors, which can mean you over do things like food, drugs or alcohol which can make things worse. I'd go to a GP, get a checkup and see what your blood pressure is like. Has anything happened recently which might explain things?

Victor

Captain Slow IRL wrote: »

If this is directed at me,

This thread is about slowsimon.

KTRIC

Give up alcohol and coffee for a couple of weeks and see how you feel. I noticed that I get more lucid and more motivated when I cut the too of them out.

Monkey61

I'd put money on it that it's the booze.

I muddled through the first three years of college, and a year or two before that, in a constant dulled down haze, convinced that I was becoming stupider.

It really bugged me until as an experiment I stopped drinking entirely for six months and it made a huge difference. One morning I was sitting up in bed and actually realised that I had just had an actual thought, for the first time in years. (I'm not really explaining that very well, but I felt very clear headed and focused.)

Pat MaGroin

Captain Slow IRL wrote: »

If this is directed at me, I was referring to the op's increased intake of alcohol and also if the op was using any other type of drug, legal or illegal.

Paranoia is a good sign if the OP's problem is related to past endeavours

tismenotyou

i dunno if you can blame the drink !!
i dont drink at all and can relate to this ..

for some reason i just seem to be going backwards at times ..
i blame stress and tirdness .. (IMO)..

gary the great

.

Madame Razz

Try taking some essential fatty acids; Omega three, six and nine.

Udos choice brand or similar...

works wonders for the oul brain;)

LeixlipRed

Do things that keep your brain ticking over. Read more, crosswords, sudoku, puzzles, general knowledge books. Brain training and similar games like that are great as well.

The Sweeper

How's your focus? Do you find yourself drifting in the middle of a sentence because you've started thinking about something else?

mikemac

+1 for fish oils and as said, Udo's choice is what you want. Many recommend 3 litres of water a day, you doing that? Many don't and many disagree but hey, give it a go.
I'd also recommend some sort of early morning exercise. If you can't go jogging or to the gym, can you walk or cycle to your workplace?

And play chess, even online you can have great craic. I hear so much about poker, I don't know how to play but it seem pretty tactical

And finally, read some good books, read the Guardian or the Irish Times and try to keep up to date with what's going on. Avoid Sky News!!

japbyrne

Stop drinking or at least cut down on your drinking for a while, see what happens, little bit of exercise is good for the brain too.
healthy body heathy mind.

estar

for a period of three months at least. take more exercise. eat properly. start taking notice of yourself more and how you are feeling daily.

beks101

The booze is definitely your culprit. It effectively wiped out my short term memory for a few months when I was a teenager no less, to the point where I was forgetting appointments I had made and things I had said (sober) a few days before. Had a physical impact too - basically made me one hell of a clumsy person (and the world's worst waitress)

Within a few months of cutting back I was back to normal. I suggest you do the same.

Firetrap

+1 on the food/cutting down on the booze.

As has already been mentioned on the thread, those Nintendo brain training games are great.

wylo

Your brain is like any other part of your body , just say you were to always eat fatty foods and do no exercise, eventually you'll get fat. just like when your drinking and not 'using' your brain it gets stupid.
go running and start reading books, eventually the focus and attention span will improve. I was never so stupid as I was when I was traveling, drinking every night, I was constantly forgetting things, was very gullible, was never paying proper attention to things, was clumsy and probably a pain to be around lol.

IvyTheTerrible

Eh, does anyone else think the OP should pay a visit to his GP?

The suggestions of drinking less, exercising more etc are very good but it would be no harm to check with a doctor that there is nothing else amiss.

HashSlinging

Omega 3 and ginseng are great, recommend them esp the omega 3 almost instant results.

smileykey

Is there a reason why you have inceased your alcohol intake? Stress and depression affect cognitive processes such as memory, attention, concentration, etc. Maybe whatever is causing you to drink more is also affecting your mental abilty via stress and low mood and in adition the alcohol is likely to be affecting it.

Try to cut out the drink and in doing so try to figure out why you are drinking so much when you know it is having a negative effect on you

LegacyUser

Ok thanks for the replies.

I go the gym 3 times a week and would consider myself pretty fit; I eat quite well, very little crap; get about 7.5 hours sleep a night; read books, currently reading crime and punishment.

So as you can see I have a healthy enough lifestyle...I only drink once a week like most people and enjoy it so dont really want to give it up.

I think getting a DS and doing crosswords may be the best option.

This all seems to have happened over the last 2 years since i finished college, where obviously my brain isnt as active as it used to be. I think laziness may play a part to. My job can be pretty mundane and i think thats adding to my brains demise.