Individuals with POTS often struggle with brain fog, but the severity and frequency varies. Whether it involves experiencing difficulty with word finding or difficulty remembering if we took various medications, brain fog can feel relentless and difficult to navigate at times. We put together this list which we hope can provide you with some helpful tools, and we also developed a brain fog safety checklist/handout you can print out below! It is designed so that you can pick and choose what you feel may allow you to navigate brain fog more easily.

1.) If you have an idea or need to remember something, write it down! Typing or using voice dictation are two alternatives if that helps you save energy.

2.) Set alarms 3 hours before, 1 hour before, and 30 minutes before meetings, appointments, and other important scheduled events. You can change the timing to meet your needs.

3.) When in doubt, please set a reminder for yourself. When it comes to navigating brain fog, you can never have too many reminders and it is always better to be safe, just in case.

4.) Verbalize out loud when you perform important tasks that you might forget, like locking a door. An example might look like you saying out loud, “I am locking the door right now,” and you can even make a note that you locked it just in case you forget later whether or not you did. You can do the same thing when you come home. Verbalize locking your doors, locking your car, and keep a log if it helps you. We put together a helpful safety checklist that can be personalized and found below.

5.) Before leaving the kitchen always check to make sure that nothing was left on and keep a log. Writing down that you checked to make sure the oven and stove are off can be helpful. This can include having a “safety kitchen board” or sheet where you physically check and keep track of safety items. We put together a helpful safety checklist that can be personalized and found below.

6.) We recommend staying away from candles, but if you need to light a candle in an emergency, set a reminder for yourself on your phone to blow out the candle within X amount of time. Definitely do not want to forget about it because this can be a significant safety hazard.

7.) You can use voice dictation to set helpful reminders for yourself which you can listen to each morning.

8.) Use an electronic calendar to set reminders for yourself throughout the day.

9.) Use a medication App that gives you reminders to take your medications throughout the day, such as Medisafe. Other App ideas will be listed within our Supportive Resources section.

10.) Take advantage of post-its and to-do lists where you can cross off items when needed. It can feel empowering to be able to cross things off and keep track of what you have done throughout the day. This can include resting.

11.) Take brain breaks that allow your brain to rest throughout the day. This can allow for healthy and supportive resets.

12.) Focus on one task at a time instead of multitasking, as multitasking can be even harder when struggling with brain fog.

13.) Create a brain fog flare-up plan that you can refer to when it is more severe.