The BBC journalist who sparked a health controversy with a moment of brain fog on live air

Zoe Kleinman wears a black and white check top and black jacket outside the BBC headquarters in central London — photo caption, Zoe Kleinman received hundreds of messages from women offering support and sharing their own experiences.

- author, Zoe Kleinman
- Author title, BBC Technology Editor
3 hours

When I nervously shared a personal post on LinkedIn last week about dealing with brain fog at work, I couldn’t imagine the massive impact it would have.

The post has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times. Many women have stopped me in the street to talk to me about this issue.

I have received hundreds of messages from people supporting me and sharing their own experiences.

I usually cover tech news, but given the response, I thought it was important to talk about this as well.

“Brain fog” is not a medical term, but you probably know what I’m talking about.

That moment when you suddenly can’t remember the word for something obvious, or you’re in the middle of a sentence and lose track. It’s infuriating and can be embarrassing.

Oh yes, in my case, as a woman in her 40s, this experience coincides with perimenopause, the stage of life when hormone levels change.

Of course, there can also be other neurological conditions whose symptoms are brain fog.

If you have a job that requires public speaking, brain fog can be especially scary.

“I have spent 30 years expressing myself professionally and professionally,” communications expert Janet Edgecombe wrote.

“Now, suddenly I’m forgetting the words for basic things. ‘That gray thing in the oven.’ ‘Oh, the baking tray,’ my husband says. ‘Okay. ‘Yes, that thing.’

A woman is on her side, with her hands on her temples and her eyes closed — photo caption, Women usually go through perimenopause starting in their 40s.

I also listened to my teachers and founders Start-ups Who had to pitch to investors to get funding, women who taught workshops and lectures, and journalists like me who tried to report live.

Although brain fog can also appear mid-conversation, in a more intimate but equally frustrating way.

My post was about my decision to have a sheet of notes while speaking live on the BBC TV news at 10pm.

A news story came out late in the afternoon, after an already busy day, and by 10pm, I realized I was tired and my mind was foggy.

I was going to talk about a service outage affecting dozens of websites and apps, and I planned to use the technical jargon provided by the company in question and then explain what it meant.

But he could not remember the necessary phrase and he knew that without it he would not be able to say the rest.

I was reporting live from Glasgow. Like many of my colleagues, I don’t use a teleprompter, and have never used one. So, for the first time, I decided at the last minute to carry a piece of paper on which I had written the phrase in question.

At that moment I felt like I was admitting failure. I’ve learned to use notes only if there are a lot of numbers to remember or there is a specific legal reason why a statement, for example, is accurate.

Even in those cases, I’ve always prided myself on having a good enough short-term memory to deal with them.

The use of notes is frowned upon in the world of public speaking. Anyone who gives a 12-minute TED talk is not allowed to get feedback. The speaker is expected to memorize his speech.

It was difficult to face the camera and hold that piece of paper, live on TV.

Zoe Kleinman during a live broadcast. He wears a dark purple shirt and blue jacket, and holds a sheet of notes in one hand. — photo caption, BBC technology editor Zoe Kleinman had to read her notes during a recent live broadcast.

According to the Fawcett Society, a British NGO that campaigns for women’s rights and gender equality, about 10% of women report leaving a job due to menopausal symptoms.

Research by insurance company Royal London found that half of the women who experienced it had thought about stopping working. I didn’t want to do that, so I stuck to my solution.

To my great relief, some people commented saying that they found my report reliable, and that they simply assumed it was breaking news and that the page contained new information.

Other people asked me why I didn’t use an electronic device, but I thought the prospect of having to deal with a screen would be worse.

“Let’s get moving: take notes!” wrote Elisheva Markus, vice president of communications at venture capital firm Early Bird.

Hence the hashtag # was born.com. holdthenotes Or keep your notes.

A woman wearing a white shirt with black stripes wrapped in an orange blanket sits sadly on a blue sofa — photo caption, Nearly 10% of women reported they had quit their job due to menopausal symptoms, according to a survey by a British NGO.

“Have you ever had a test done to find out your testosterone levels?” asked menopause expert Dr Louise Newson.

She explains that testosterone, despite its reputation as a male hormone and its association with libido and libido, is actually an essential brain chemical for both men and women, and its levels decline with age in both sexes. One consequence is brain fog.

“It’s like you’ve been drugged,” he says. “It’s very scary, a lot of people are worried they’re going to get dementia.”

“I remember taking the test 10 years ago and saying to myself: Thank God, at least I know why I feel so bad.”

Newson adds that there are studies dating back to the 1940s that suggest testosterone can improve brain function and well-being in both women and men.

But randomized controlled studies, in which participants are given a placebo or an actual product to test its effectiveness, have focused only on improving sexual desire.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescribed by the British Public Health System (NHS) is traditionally a combination of estrogen and progesterone. Testosterone is not routinely included.

Alternatively, doctors may prescribe testosterone separately for female patients, in doses lower than those given to men.

A woman in a pink shirt holds a pimple in one hand while reading the medication leaflet she holds in the other hand — photo caption, Millions of women have chosen hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

There are also a wide range of menopause supplements whose manufacturers claim to relieve symptoms such as brain fog.

Estimates vary, but it is a thriving multi-billion dollar industry.

According to a survey conducted by Nutrition News earlier this year NutraIngredientsWomen in the UK spend an average of £147 ($192) a year on nutritional supplements to try to relieve menopausal symptoms.

“They might help a little bit,” Newson says.

“I practice yoga every day, and it helps me keep my mind clear and focused, but I have a hormonal deficiency, and I cannot completely solve the problem by dieting or exercising.

“Many women spend a fortune trying to improve symptoms of hormone deficiency with other things.”

Dr. Joshua Chen is part of the photomodulation research group at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital.

His team is investigating how red light frequencies modify brain mitochondria to improve focus.

Chen describes the treatment as “a mask for the face, but for the brain.” He also claims that it can be applied to the vagus nerve in the neck to reduce tension.

The doctor founded Niraxx, which sells a headband called the Neuro Espresso, designed to be worn for up to 20 minutes a day.

Chen emphasizes that the results are immediate. The headband must be connected; For safety reasons, it does not contain batteries.

Woman wearing a blue Niraxx headband — photo caption, The headband, made by US technology company Niraxx, uses red light frequencies to try to stimulate the wearer’s brain.

Angela Marsh is a menopause nurse and consultant. She says her patients often describe brain fog as a feeling of “living life out of focus.”

“I think brain fog isn’t taken seriously enough,” he says.

“Many women feel deeply affected by the changes they experience. They think something is wrong or that they are ‘losing their mind’, when in fact there is a clear biological reason.”

As for me, well, I’ve booked an appointment for a blood test to check my hormone levels.

I will try red light therapy. And you’ll probably see me often with notes in hand.

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