My Mind’s Gone Blank!

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By Gillian Eadie –

Don’t you hate that? You’re in the middle of a telling a funny story or describing something you have read when suddenly, you can’t think of what comes next! Try as you might, the mind’s gone blank and you have no idea how to finish. It’s even worse when you are introducing a friend to another acquaintance and the name vanishes.

So what is happening?

fall scents for your home

Are you ‘losing it’?

Mental Block Risk Factors
Mental blocks like this are quite common and occur in even the youngest of adults. You will see the risk factors mostly relate to emotions or the way you react to pressure.

  • Are already tense, afraid or in a mild panic? (Often felt by public speakers!)
  • Multi-tasking can cause memory lapses
  • Feeling angry or emotionally charged in some way.
  • Experiencing loneliness, insecurity or confusion
  • The ever-increasing pace of our technological world

What causes mental blocks?
Emotions usually involve the release of adrenalin in the body and this natural reaction protects you from danger and heightens responses. Your memory is a complex and amazing set of reactions and processes which work best when you are not stressed and operating in ‘normal’ mode. Adrenalin is usually positive for brain and memory function. However, if the strong feelings go on for too long, the sustained release of adrenalin actually decreases the efficiency of your brain connections. You forget, you ‘lose’ the word you were looking for and your ‘mind goes blank’.

So what can be done to clear a mental block?

Firstly, it’s important to check that there is nothing physical causing the condition, particularly if it is happening more frequently than twice a week. Sustained stress can cause a range of symptoms including mental blocks, so have your check-up.

Relaxation is a key technique in clearing mental blocks, so take a few deep breaths and exhale slowly. Rotate your shoulders and loosely shake your arms and hands to relieve tension. Don’t panic – if you are in a public situation, make a humorous comment and move on. Find another way to continue and, chances are, the lost thought will pop back into your mind seconds later.

Resist the urge to multi-task.
Trying to carry out several tasks at one seems like an admirable skill; in reality though, your brain can only focus on one thing at a time. Multi-tasking involves flitting quickly from one item to another, exhausting your mental resources..

Thinking about the task you were undertaking in a different way will sometimes clear the block, also. Re-framing your thinking and looking at other possibilities will also give your brain more cues and associations to approach the lost information.

Trust your brain – the memory is there and, given the right conditions, your brain will remember.

If you can control the factors surrounding you at the time, mental blocks will be a thing of the past. Or, if they occur, now you know what to do:

Relax, laugh, re-frame and respond.

Want to know more about keeping your memory sharp?

allison&gillian

Dr. Allison Lamont PhD, MA (Hons) M.APS &
Gillian Eadie MEd, BA, Dip.Tchg, LTCL

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My Mind’s Gone Blank!
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