Nope!
You aren’t losing your marbles.
Menopause just makes you feel that way sometimes.
Names skip away.
Car key escape.
The brownies decide to burn.
For years, women nicknamed this condition “menopausal fog.”
The results of a recent research study confirm that menopausal brain fog is for real.
And the best suggestion for working through the fog seems to be to cut down on distractions and multitasking.
I learned to multitask as a young children’s librarian when I had bunches of kids asking me for books at the same time.
I could grab A Wrinkle in Time with one hand and Beezus and Ramona with the other while heading toward the biographies to find Helen Keller and Hank Aaron.
I carried on my multitasking tradition as a mom, when we all become Multitask Queens.
But menopause seems to be a time to let up a bit.
I find I no longer want to rush.
In fact, rushing doesn’t give me the happy rush it once did.
And not rushing helps me hold onto a few more marbles.
What about you?
Any tips for keeping your marbles in the jar?
The marbles in the photo are from my mom’s collection. They decorate her kitchen counter in her apartment in Towson, Maryland.
To learn more about vintage marbles, check out this cool blog, Marbles Galore.
MINTED: Congrats to Karoline who won the Minted giveaway!
Friend For The Ride 
List making!
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Yep!
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Too funny – I was trying to put together a shower at home last weekend, with people helping and finally asked my sister if you could develop add as an adult – I was all over the place and not finishing anything – yup – multi-tasking – not so much – and Yes, thank goodness for the lists – I really want to keep my marbles
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At first I thought you meant a shower like in a bathroom. But now I’m thinking you mean a shower for a person. We’re attending one for daughter Laura this weekend! Yep, lots to think about with a shower.
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Well, well, well. So, brain fog is real. Yup.
My multi-tasking days are over, and I might say, happily. I wrote about this a while back in a blog post that you might relate to.
http://remarkablewrinklies.com/2011/multi-tasking-tip-for-aging-baby-boomers/
I had a few kitchen near-mishaps, so now:
#1 I no longer attempt to do two things at the same time.
#2 My new best friend is a digital timer.
But, you know, this new focus on one small task at a time has given me some delightfully quiet moments. Watching a pot boil is a pleasant way to recapture the peaceful feeling I had as a kid laying under a poplar tree in the spring. Focus. Nice.
I am learning to gaze into marbles without distraction. Thank you, Barbara! 😀
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Patti,
Great post! Yes and watching a pot boil is really pretty fun, all and all.
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I am plagued as well. For the most part i just try to relax and focus. But when the fog settles in and i need a productive day it drives me nuts! List making a prioritize!
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As long as you don’t lose your list.
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Thanks for validating what I experience! But what about men? What can they blame their lapses on? And I liked the marble pictures too. Marbles will be in my WIP–and what great ones your mother has!
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Not sure about the men, but when your novel comes out,I’ll sneak you some marbles (or mom actually will be happy to give them to you) for your school visits!
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I’m trying not to multitask, too–especially when I’m on the phone. Instead, just listen to the person I’m talking to. Patti, I like what you said about watching water boil to recapture a peaceful feeling.
Don’t men go through their own version of menopause?
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First of all, Thank you for the give away – I’m looking forward to go shopping. And then, there is that bit about loosing my marbles. A colleague of mine from England referred to it as a CRAFT moment. As I am big into making crafts, I was curious. If anyone else is curious, I will be glad to share, but it would not be in a social media format.
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Karoline,
Now we’re dying to know! Can you give us a hint or word it in a way that we read beneath the cracks?
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Hi Barbara! I just found you and it feels like a kindred spirit! As for the marbles- I have lost some, but that only gave me an excuse to go out and get some new ones! Hahaha. My brain fog was much worse at the beginning of menopause. Now that I seem to have settled into it my mind is functioning again. Maybe it was only an adjustment we all have to go through-giving time for the brian to re-set (so to speak). I also forced myself to accomplish mental tasks that had once been a breeze- like reading more quickly (again) solving riddles, doing research on a random topic- even hanging the calendar up-side-down and dealing with figuring out what day it was! Sounds funny- but I’m back 100%!
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Love the upside down calendar trick! Love to have you write a guest post sometime. If you’re interested, shoot me an email.
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