Wait…what was I just talking about??
Carol Yepes / Moment / Getty
Uh oh.
Welcome to the club.
Carol Yepes / Moment / Getty
At a Glance
Brain farts can be frustrating and worrisome.
Are they just normal absent-mindedness or a sign of something you should be more worried about?
If you are concerned about your memory problems, be sure to have a conversation with your doctor.
What Causes Brain Farts?
According to researchers, it happens because our brains create a temporary “event model.”
This event model contains information about the environment and the various thoughts and actions that relate to it.
Juggling multiple mental tasks often means doing some things onautopilot.
Since yourattentionisnt fully focused on what youre doing, youre more likely to experience these mistakes.
Age
Unfortunately, research suggests that this mental flatulence may start to increase as you get older.
Stress
Mental mistakes are more likely to happen when you’re dealing with a lot ofstress.
“Stress is known to be a factor that can contribute to memory issues.
Evidence suggests that these types of brain farts might be brought on by sleep deprivation.
A tired brain doesn’t function well, leading to more frequent lapses in memory and concentration.
When your brain drifts off, your default mode connection becomes activated.
This consumes a lot of the brain’s energy.
Maybe you forgot what you were talking about in the middle of a sentence.
Or you walked into the grocery store only to find that you couldnt remember what you stopped to get.
Forgetting Someones Name
I am the worst at remembering people’s names.
After being introduced to someone, I’ll often realizeliterally just moments laterthat I’ve already forgotten their name.
Inattention and distractions are frequently to blame.
You know you put your keys…somewhere.
A place that made sense.
A place youddefinitelyremember later, right?
So why are you scrambling to remember where they might be when youre already late for work?
Chances are good that you sat them down somewhere without really thinking about it.
These mistakes might stem from overconfidence in our abilities, but fatigue and distractions can also play a part.
Either way, they are a reminder that everyone has their moments.
You might forget the point you were trying to make or forget what you were talking about altogether.
It can be a bewildering experience, but it’s important to remember that it happens to everyone.
Factors like fatigue, distractions, and information overload can leave you scrambling when you lose the plot.
Impact of Brain Farts
In most cases, we only recognize these mistakes after the fact.
We’ve made the error, and now we need to make an excuse to explain why it happened.
But can these mental lapses really have an impact on your daily life?
Particularly when the people around you begin to notice,” Dr. Podkovik says.
“It can be very worrisome when it begins affecting your functioning at places such as work.”
Taking these steps can better support your brain’s functioning and minimize those frustrating blips.
So what should you do when a brain fart does happen?
Trust us, it happens to everyone, so it helps to maintain a sense of humor about it.
Laugh, apologize for your mistake, and move on.
Takeaways
According to the experts, brain farts generally aren’t a cause for concern.
Try utilizing some simplememory-boosting strategies, such as avoiding multitasking, taking notes, and slowing down when possible.
They can evaluate your memory for signs of a more serious problemand suggest treatments or solutions that can help.
Pettijohn KA, Radvansky GA.Walking through doorways causes forgetting: environmental effects.Journal of Cognitive Psychology.
2016;28(3):329-340. doi:10.1080/20445911.2015.1123712
Murman DL.The impact of age on cognition.Semin Hear.
2008;105(16):6173-6178. doi:10.1073/pnas.0708965105
