“Chemo brain” is very real and makes us feel mentally incompetent. It’s a heavy brain fog that messes with our memory, focus, and concentration. We often feel like we are fumbling more than we care to admit, making us feel like our own minds have betrayed us.
If you’ve ever felt like your mind has completely betrayed you during cancer treatment, you aren’t going crazy. This is a common condition called chemo brain which is also known as brain fog. It is a very real, recognized side effect that causes serious cognitive difficulties. It may affect your memory, concentration, and focus, making it incredibly hard to think clearly or do anything that requires any mental effort.
It’s frustrating and invisible, making it hard for the folks around us to understand what we are going through.
Brain fog can make handling your bills and common transactions feel impossible. (I screwed up my taxes..ugh). It can blur your decision-making capacity when you are trying to make treatment decisions. In NOT BROKEN The Unfiltered Daily Truth in Fighting Cancer, I share exactly how this side effect led to endless typos in my personal journal and left me feeling mentally incompetent. It is a terrifying reality, and it is absolutely not imagined or exaggerated.
The most important thing to know is that experiencing this is completely normal with chemo. When riding this rollercoaster of cancer treatments, give yourself grace. If you’re battling a limited attention span, struggling with short-term memory issues, or trying to find your way through the fog, dive into NOT BROKEN to feel seen, safe, and validated in the unfiltered truth of fighting cancer.
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This is number 9 in a series of things caregivers and loved ones really need to hear, even if we don’t always have the courage to say them out loud. The unfiltered truth about what we are going through.
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OMG Thank you for writing this - chemo brain. The worst thing about chemo brain for me was that I did not know my brain was not functioning normally! A month after chemo ended, I returned to the living. My loved ones relied on me to make plans and decisions. After making some astounding errors, I finally realized something was wrong. Begged people to not rely on my, give me time to heal, and I then carried a small notebook where I wrote thoughts and tasks for the day. Before bed, I'd check the notebook to see what I neglected. It took at least a year to fully be able to trust my brain!
OMG Thank you for writing this - chemo brain. The worst thing about chemo brain for me was that I did not know my brain was not functioning normally! A month after chemo ended, I returned to the living. My loved ones relied on me to make plans and decisions. After making some astounding errors, I finally realized something was wrong. Begged people to not rely on my, give me time to heal, and I then carried a small notebook where I wrote thoughts and tasks for the day. Before bed, I'd check the notebook to see what I neglected. It took at least a year to fully be able to trust my brain!
CHEMO BRAIN IS REAL