Yesterday, the answer to that question for me felt like a solid YES.

There were too many distractions in my day, with apartment inspections, repairmen coming and going, and work fires needing to be extinguished at every turn. My kittens were beside themselves with all the activity as well, which didn’t help my state of mind.

But, there are other days when there’s no discernible reason why my brain feels fuzzy and foggy. Saturday I locked myself out of my building, after a truly low-stress morning.

What gives?

According to Dr. Diana Bitner, who recently joined HER Radio host Dr. Pam Peeke, there can be many reasons you feel out of your mind, but she likes to start with what’s going on in your life, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Many women at the menopause transition phase lack sleep, are dealing with aging parents, and have kids in any number of school activities (or are sending kids off to college). The more you have on your mind, the less room you have for clear thought.

Brain lapses can also result from emotional responses.

Unexplained weight gain (whether due to menopause or PMS) can make you cranky, which stresses you out, deactivating your frontal cortex. No wonder you forgot your keys.

So, are you heading towards dementia, really? The thing to remember is this: you forgot your keys, sure… but did you forget why keys exist or what their purpose is? Probably not.

Many women will automatically turn to hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to address some of these foundational issues, but Dr. Bitner warns against popping pills too quickly. She prefers to start with lifestyle adjustments, such as drinking more water, exercising every day, staying away from those simple carbs, and of course, getting proper sleep.

One really interesting point Dr. Bitner made in regards to sleep was to retrain your brain that the bed is for sleeping. If you have trouble falling asleep, don’t stay in bed just to toss and turn. Get up and head out of the bedroom. Sit quietly and focus on your breathing. If there’s something on your noggin, jot it down. You need to be present in your body in order to settle down your mind.

Once you feel a bit more relaxed, head back to bed. But, if you still can’t sleep, get up and do it again. That’s were the “retraining” comes in.

I was definitely reassured about my monkey mind after listening to this episode. I hope you can find the same relief.