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mschuster91 t1_jat12ky wrote

Reply to comment by heresacorrection in Does being sick impair the body’s ability to form memories during that time? by Temporary_turbulance

Covid has been linked to severe memory degradation (https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2022-01-19-attention-and-memory-deficits-persist-months-after-recovery-mild-covid).

Anecdata: was out sick for two weeks, can barely remember anything from that time. Friend was out sick for months and struggled with massive memory issues for even longer.

We barely have an idea how viral infections affect the human body, and we're only now after covid beginning to take the significant toll that post-viral infections can have seriously. The ME/CFS / EBV link goes into a similar direction and I would not be surprised if recent research linking Alzheimer, Parkinson and ALS to viral infections (https://www.science.org/content/article/study-links-viral-infections-alzheimer-s-parkinson-s-many-caveats) gets onto a more significant foundation as well.

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Ieatadapoopoo t1_jatk910 wrote

Brain fog to an extreme degree for many, many months after being sick when I never had any previously, only cropping up after I caught Covid. It feels like such a clear link. I sincerely hope the silver lining here is that it helps propel our understanding of this topic.

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JackTR314 t1_jatyoun wrote

I can try to find the study for you, but they infected brain organoids with covid, and then found hyper active immune cells, causing significantly fewer neuron synapses.

Basically a type of immune cells that normally cleaves axons and synapses as part of healthy function became over active. The reduced synapses were hypothesized to be a potential cause of the brain fog post covid.

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Suitable_Success_243 t1_javonm9 wrote

ADHD has also been associated with an overactive immune system and chronic inflammation. Many ADHD patients also suffer from asthma, allergies and auto-immune disorders.

Also, this is why vaccines are important. Natural exposure provides immunity but at the cost of inflammation and damage to the body.

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moonflower_C16H17N3O t1_jazn9st wrote

That would be great. I've got permanent brain fog. I wish I could take something that would help my brain repair itself. It's ridiculous how bad my recent memories are compared to my old ones. Also I have to try to work like a human thesaurus because very frequently I'll forget words and have to reach for a replacement.

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Mrshaydee t1_jaup21w wrote

There’s, like, 10 days in my COVID experience that I don’t even remember. I had it pre-vaccine and it was brutal.

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time2fly2124 t1_jaurjxj wrote

Probably a good thing you don't remember it. I remember alot of when I has covid, specifically that my body was was in pain for about a week until my room mate, who had lesser symptoms than me said "maybe you should go to a hospital". The whole time I also had these incredibly strange dreams that I was flying around new york city for some reason... also about a week after the hospital visit I had to drive (in a stick shift no less) and pick up 3 boxes of honey bees for my very first season, and I definitely remember thinking I should not be driving, but I had to. Miraculous that I didn't hit anyone or run any red-lights.. that I know of.

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jraad86 t1_javen1g wrote

Covid brain fog was wild. Never experienced something like that before. I didn’t get very sick at all, extremely mild. But my brain was just mush. Forgetting if I’d done everyday tasks, re-doing things I had already done.

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mschuster91 t1_jawivha wrote

Yeah I 'member being under the shower and apparently soaping myself three times because I forgot I'd just done that...

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Chicken_Water t1_jaw4iw6 wrote

Covid infects the brain though and causes vascular damage. Most viruses don't do that.

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