01/27/2026
Brain fog during perimenopause and menopause is SO FRUSTRATING!!!
I hear about it constantly - in my practice, in casual conversations, at social events. Women everywhere are asking: where has my focus gone? Why does my brain feel suddenly offline?
The fear is real: forgetting a colleague's name, going blank mid-presentation, making a major mistake at work that simply cannot happen.
Here's the good news: brain fog is usually temporary! Your brain isn't declining - it's actually going through a major pruning process that will shape your cognitive function for decades to come. You can actually emerge sharper after this transition.
And you're not helpless during these foggy years.
What I look at first with patients:
✨Sleep quality (disrupted sleep = disrupted memory)
✨Diet (Are you eating breakfast? Drinking enough water?)
✨Movement (Are you active throughout your day?)
✨Stress levels (chronic stress directly affects memory)
Often, these lifestyle changes combined with acupuncture help women feel like themselves again.
I'm also exploring something powerful: the benefits of community on brain health. We tend to search for individual solutions - supplements, treatments, solo word games. But group participation stimulates beneficial brain activity! Storytelling and connection trigger neurochemicals like acetylcholine and oxytocin, pushing out the fog.
We can't be passive about brain fog. We're lucky to live in a time where we're finally studying and talking about this. It's why seeking the right resources and joining forces matters - so we can use our amazing brains to their full potential, during this transition and beyond.
