“Mold Brain” Is Real and Can Make You Forgetful, Disorganized, Depressed, and Anxious
Of the many stories about mold toxicity that are shared with me, those that impact me the most are from readers suffering from “mold brain,” or neurological decline and disorders that impact mood, thinking, and behavior, such as depression and anxiety. Some have symptoms so extreme, they fear permanent brain damage from the mold toxins. What may have started for these mold sufferers as “minor” memory issues, like trouble finding familiar words, places, or names, suddenly morphs into more troubling cognitive symptoms, like being completely unable to concentrate, perform daily job responsibilities, or to learn and retain information. These experiences can obviously be terribly unsettling, because many of these same individuals were high-performing students, professionals, teachers, or athletes before their symptoms set in and became worrisome and/or debilitating.
Another common thread in these personal stories is that many of these people actually had symptoms of mold toxicity, like fatigue, sinus infections, joint pain, headaches, sore throats, itchy skin, dry eyes, etc., preceding their cognitive decline, but willingly ignored them and “muscled through,” despite feeling crappy. When the neurological symptoms hit, though, disregarding their bodies was no longer an option. Not being able to think straight or to command your thoughts seems to be the final straw that no one takes lightly, because bigger fears of dementia and Alzheimer’s set in. Trouble with brain function is also a symptom that most people inherently know is not going to go away on its own and one that will likely get worse without intervention. This can actually be a blessing, because it sends even the strongest to the doctor or health professional for examination, testing, and analysis. Unfortunately, though, most medical professionals only look to expensive imaging and blood diagnostics and ignore the environmental factors (mold) as part of the equation.
Real-life Examples of “Mold-Brain”
To give you concrete illustrations of what mold-induced, depleted brain function can look like for a sufferer, I will share the following stories:
(Note: I chose these stories, because they are well-documented and able to be referenced online for further reading and research. I also chose them, because each sufferer had documented evidence of water damage and mold in their indoor environments at the time of their neurological symptoms. In addition, each was treated by a well-respected and top doctor in the field of neurology and psychiatry.)
In his movie Moldy, Dave Asprey shares his story of going in to have a single-photon emission computerized tomography or SPECT scan done on his brain. (Note: A SPECT scan is a type of nuclear imaging test, which means it uses a radioactive substance and a special camera to create 3-D pictures to show the function of some of your internal organs. The images show things, like how blood flows to your heart or what areas of your brain are more active or less active.) At the time, Asprey was a high-performing engineer and getting his MBA at Wharton. He was also working full time at a startup, but was struggling mentally. Says Asprey, “I would sit down to do one of my tests and I would get 100% of the first question, I would get 50% of the next one, and I couldn’t remember my name on the third question . . . I felt that there’s something wrong with me. I ended up even having extra time assigned for the tests and I still struggled. I did graduate, but barely.”