Cognitive Sharpness

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Do you ever feel like your brain and memory are impaired and not sharp? Has your mind ever blanked out on things that you should know, like where someone lives? Have you ever wondered if you're getting Alzheimer's, or can stress do this to a person for a period of time?

Yes, stress and depression can most definitely have this effect. I'm generally quite sharp, but years of stress and isolation have certainly had a negative effect.

Do you think it can be recovered?

I think a lot of it can, yes. Exercise has a strong effect on mental sharpness. If you can get rid of the stress and depression and increase exercise, it can lead to a big improvement.

Do you think a therapist would have knowledge of this sort of thing?

Probably. A regular physician would also, though, and might know more.

Hypothyroidism can cause memory and cognition issues. Vitamin deficiencies and hormone problems can as well. These things should be checked if you feel your memory is not as good as it used to be.

I felt like that my whole life. It was worse when I was depressed, stressed, anxious, &/or not feeling well in general but I've had those issues even when I was feeling well otherwise. I'm diagnosed with dyslexia & ADD so that's probably some of it. I just never been a smart person.

Yes, the OP describes me. It has got worse with age and particularly worse with stress.

What's the difference between ADD and ADHD?

ADD is an older diagnoses that the DSM did away with. It's nonhyper ADHD now or something like that I think. It's basically problems with paying attention

I felt I was going insane and couldn't articulate myself during my period of depression which lasted throughout the whole of 2015 and very early on in January 2016. The thing is it all passed. And the biggest delight I learnt was that I was wrong, I had no less in intellectual capacities than I had before the depression started. Only once you give yourself a moment of ease, can it show however.

I have this. If you got fat and your hair got thinner on the top of your head, it's worth checking out.

If hormone levels are normal, iodine and zinc deficiency can cause the same symptoms.

Careful with iodine and zinc, though. If you overdo iodine, you get the same symptoms. If you overdo zinc you can lose magnesium.

I certainly feel the severity of my depression acts as a parallel to my mental sharpness. At my worst I feel horribly frustrated because I just can't take any information in at all. My mind is blank and I retreat. Several years ago at my worst I actually forgot my own age, and had no interests or activities to engage in whatsoever because nothing could serve to stimulate or interest my mind.
Really, if only mental clarity was a fixed state of being, but alas it's all solely based on the squiggly chemicals in one's head. :/

So as well as depression being able to cause this, could high stress also?

ANTIDEPRESSANTS cause cognitive blunting sometimes, including temporary memory loss. My friend has been on Celexa and Wellbutrin for 10 years and has it so bad she got off the toilet thinking she didn't have to take a dump after all, then realized she HAD taken a dump. LOL.

I have felt this way, however, even before antidepressants. Heat and sun make it worse for me. Stress and depression make it worse. I figured out some monumental stuff in life so my stress/depression went away a lot, so I have less cognitive blunting now.