COVID Brain?
I have had more than one person jokingly say to me, "Please excuse me, I have COVID brain." It seems that they may be right. Recent research in neuroscience seems to indicate that there just may be a "COVID brain". This study describes how the pandemic changes our brain, both for those who have been infected and those who have not.
Those who have been infected with COVID-19 may have experienced mood disorders, fatigue, headaches, memory loss, and the inability to focus. These brain changes may result from inflammation and cerebrovascular events caused by a disruption of blood supply to the brain. We also now know that loss of smell is a symptom in many people with COVID-19.
Furthermore, research suggests that the virus may gain access to our brain through the brain's olfactory bulb, which is essential in processing smell (Whitcroft & Hummel, 2020). The olfactory bulb sends information about smell for processing in other brain areas, areas which play a critical role in emotion, learning, and memory. This part of the brain is also rich in dopamine, which regulates pleasure, motivation, and action (Pignatelli & Belluzzi, 2017).
Yet, this pandemic impacts all of us, not just those who have contracted the virus. We now know that an increase in stress and anxiety caused by excessive worry, isolation, and loneliness can change our brain's chemistry in the following ways (Vatansever et al., 2020):
Triggers inflammation in the body
Shrinks the hippocampus impacting our emotions
Affects levels of serotonin and cortisol, which also regulate our emotions
However, the great thing about the brain is that it is incredibly plastic, which means it can change and compensate for damage. Even severe conditions such as memory loss and depression can be improved by doing things that alter the brain's function and chemistry (Vatansever et al., 2020). One well-researched way to train your brain is mindfulness training. Decades of research have shown that mindfulness training can help us combat stress and beneficially impact structural changes in several areas of the brain:
Prefrontal cortex - involved in planning and decision making
Hippocampus and amygdala - responsible for managing emotions
Enhances brain gray matter density - containing most of the brain's cell bodies (Holzel et al., 2011)
All of these regions are impacted by the Covid-19 virus. If there was ever a time that we need to begin, resume, or intensify our mindfulness practice, it is now. Below is an exercise to demonstrate just how easy it is to protect your brain from the pandemic's negative impact. Why not give it a try?
References
Hölzel, B. K., Carmody, J., Vangel, M., Congleton, C., Yerramsetti, S. M., Gard, T., & Lazar, S. W. (2011). Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density. Psychiatry research, 191(1), 36–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pscychresns.2010.08.006.
Pignatelli, A., & Belluzzi, O. (2017). Dopaminergic Neurones in the Main Olfactory Bulb: An Overview from an Electrophysiological Perspective. Frontiers in neuroanatomy, 11, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnana.2017.00007.
Varatharaj, Aravinthan, Thomas, Naomi, Ellul, Mark, Davies, Nicholas, Pollak, Thomas, & Tenorio, Elizabeth (2020). The Lancet. Published online June 25,2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(20)30287-X.
Vatansever, D., Wang, S., & Sahakian, B. J. (2020). Covid-19 and promising solutions to combat symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression. Neuropsychopharmacology, 1.
Whitcroft, K. & Hummel, T. (2020). Olfactory Dysfunction in COVID-19: Diagnosis and Management. JAMA. 2020;323(24):2512–2514. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.8391.