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Recognizing Symptoms of Brain Fatigue Can Help

My last article discussed how to use pacing and energy budgets to improve performance and reduce symptoms.  However, I did a poor job of listing common signs of brain fatigue and how to recognize when a rest and cognition break might help so I decided to remedy that with this post.  Many of the warning signs are counterintuitive, so without a list it can be challenging to recognize when a symptom might be caused my mental fatigue and thus when a mental break is needed.
Below is a list I copied nearly verbatim from a handout from a long-COVID recovery program from a highly respected research hospital.  It is not copyrighted nor proprietary, so I am free to share it here:

Common Signs of Brain Fatigue

Cognitive Symptoms of Brain Fatigue

  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Forgetfulness
  • Slow speech
  • Headache
  • Word-finding difficulties

Emotional Symptoms of Brain Fatigue

  • Irritability
  • Nervousness
  • Withdrawal

Physical Symptoms of Brain Fatigue

  • Loss of appetite
  • Low energy
  • Nausea
  • Balance Instability
  • Numbness/tingling
  • Sensitivity to light/noise
  • Blurred Vision
  • Dizziness

My Experience with Brain Fatigue Symptoms

I have every one of these symptoms, and I was surprised to learn that most of my seemingly physical symptoms are actually signs of brain fatigue.  For example, after a rough workday I will often have a painful stinging sensation (harsh version of “tingling”) in my hands, lower legs or feet when I pause to rest or try to sleep at night.  I mistakenly assumed that to be a circulation problem, or perhaps a peripheral neuropathy, and not something that I could do anything about.  But my specialist told me it was a sign of brain fatigue (i.e an overloaded nervous system) and then handed me the above list.  This made a big difference as knowing what causes these symptoms lets me:

  1. reduce the symptoms by taking actions to reduce brain fatigue (e.g. pacing and energy budgets)
  2. recognize when I am pushing too hard (e.g. too much multitasking, stress, etc.)
  3. know when to take a break so I can avoid a full-blown crash

Recognizing Brain Fatigue Can Really Help

After learning the above list of brain fatigue symptoms, I feel like I have more control over my symptoms and health.  I am finding that when I recognize a warning sign and take a break or otherwise lower my cognitive load, the time that I invest in that break buys me more productivity that week than if I “tough it out” and “push through”.  Toughing it out is proving to be a much bigger blow to my productivity (not to mention comfort) because a flare up or crash typically means missing time from work, expensive hospital treatments, and a period of days where I accomplish less and make more mistakes.  
Resting when I recognize increased brain fatigue also helps me to feel less hostile to just about everyone because I retain more capacity to be pleasant and not avoid or snap at social interactions.  Since being pleasant is a critical work and relationship skill (unpleasant people are more likely to be avoided or opposed than cooperated with), being able to remain pleasant is as much a productivity booster as it is basic decency.

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© 2023 All rights reserved. This blog reflects the personal experience and opinions of a long COVID and CFS survivor and is not qualified medical advice. Consult a doctor for your situation.
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I invite on-topic, helpful comments from readers with free Google accounts. I am especially interested in comments that share useful tips for fighting long-COVID, Chronic Fatigue, Chronic Pain and Migraines. Off-topic comments, comments that name other sites or products without including much relevant textual explanation, and comments disparaging any person or group will be deleted. As I am trying to keep this a positive place, I may also delete comments in a despairing tone that focus only on symptom misery rather than helpful ways to combat it. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and helpful tips!

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