Maybe this sounds familiar. You are standing in the Checkers aisle with the list in your hand, and you cannot work out what you came for. At work you read the same email three times. Your joints or your stomach you have learnt to manage, but this thick, cotton-wool feeling in your head is the part nobody warned you about.
Why autoimmune conditions cloud your thinking
In an autoimmune condition, the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own healthy tissue. In Hashimoto's it is the thyroid, in rheumatoid arthritis the joints, in Crohn's disease the gut, and in lupus it can be several organs at once.
Brain fog is not a medical diagnosis. It is the everyday name for slow thinking, poor concentration, forgetfulness and mental tiredness. In autoimmune illness it rarely has one single cause. Several things tend to pile up:
- The illness itself, especially during a flare, when the body's immune messengers can make you feel as you do with flu
- Thyroid hormone levels that are not yet well controlled
- Low iron, vitamin B12 or vitamin D
- Broken sleep because of pain, night-time bathroom trips or worry
- Side effects of some medicines
- The steady strain of pain, uncertainty and low mood
Start with your doctor
Autoimmune conditions must be diagnosed and managed by a doctor, often a specialist such as a rheumatologist, endocrinologist or gastroenterologist. If fog is new or getting worse, tell them. A simple blood test may show that your thyroid dose needs adjusting or that your iron is low, and no amount of brain training will fix that.
Some symptoms need urgent medical attention and should never be put down to ordinary fog:
- Sudden confusion, a seizure or a severe headache unlike any you have had before
- New weakness, numbness, slurred speech or loss of vision
- A fever or signs of infection while you are on medicine that dampens the immune system
- Severe abdominal pain, or blood in your stool
- Chest pain or shortness of breath
What neurofeedback can and cannot do
This is the part where honesty matters most. Neurofeedback does not treat autoimmune disease. It does not switch off an overactive immune system, and there is no good evidence that it lowers inflammation. You may read online that brain training calms inflammation through the vagus nerve, the long nerve that links the brain with the heart and gut. The connection between the nervous system and the immune system is real and scientists are studying it closely, but it would be wrong to claim that neurofeedback treats your condition through that route.
What neurofeedback does is train regulation. Small sensors on the scalp read the brain's electrical activity. Nothing is sent into the brain. When your brain shifts towards a calmer, steadier pattern, you receive feedback through sound or a picture on a screen, and the aim is that, over time, the brain learns that pattern. Our article on how the brain learns through neurofeedback explains this step by step.
Why would that matter if the cause is physical? Because a body that has been ill for a long time can get stuck on high alert. Sleep may become light. Small stresses can feel large. Attention scatters. A nervous system in that state may make fog and fatigue feel heavier than they need to. Neurofeedback aims to help the nervous system regulate better, which may support sounder sleep, steadier coping with stress and clearer thinking, while the underlying illness is still being managed by your doctor. Evidence for neurofeedback in autoimmune conditions is limited, and results vary.
You cannot train away an illness, but you may be able to help a tired nervous system carry it more lightly.
Reading the brain before training it
Every client at our Krugersdorp practice begins with a 19-channel brain map, which takes about an hour and a half.
The map does not diagnose your illness. It is a recording of how your brain is functioning at the time. Sessions last 45 to 60 minutes and begin with a short check-in. Our what to expect page describes the process in full.
Small things that help on foggy days
Brain training is one support among several. These habits cost little and are sensible places to start:
- Pace yourself. Do the task that needs most thought at your clearest time of day, and build in short rests before you crash.
- Protect your sleep with a regular bedtime and a wind-down hour away from screens.
- Take your medication as prescribed and keep your follow-up appointments.
If you would like to read further, we have a broader piece on autoimmune disorders and neurofeedback, and one on brain fog after a viral illness, which shares many of the same features.
Common questions
Can neurofeedback treat Hashimoto's, lupus or Crohn's disease?
No. Neurofeedback does not treat autoimmune disease, change your immune system or reduce inflammation. Those conditions need medical diagnosis and ongoing care from your doctor. Brain training is a complementary approach that may help your nervous system regulate better, which may ease how fog, poor sleep and stress are experienced.
Will neurofeedback get rid of my brain fog?
Nobody can promise that. Fog in autoimmune illness has several causes, and some of them need medical treatment. Training aims to help the nervous system settle, which may support sleep and steadier stress levels and, in turn, clearer thinking. Results vary, and flares can still bring foggy spells.
Should I change my medication while doing neurofeedback?
No. Carry on taking your medication exactly as prescribed and keep seeing your specialist. Neurofeedback can be done alongside medical treatment. If you feel better and wonder about your dose, raise it with the doctor who prescribed the medicine. Never stop or reduce it on your own.
Fog can make you doubt yourself, and that is often harder than the physical symptoms. You are not lazy and you are not imagining it. If your condition is under a doctor's care and you would like to explore whether brain training could support you, you are welcome to send Irine a message and ask your questions.
- autoimmune
- hashimotos
- lupus
- crohns
- brain fog
- inflammation
