Can Stress Cause Memory Loss? Experts Say It’s Not the Stress—It’s How You Handle It
Discover three simple strategies to create calm and protect your brain
Key Takeaways
- Internalizing stress may significantly speed up memory decline over time.
- Chronic stress can affect key brain areas tied to memory and focus.
- Simple habits like venting, exercise and avoiding rumination help reduce stress levels.
You’ve been dealing with stress your whole life. So when you forget where you put your keys or blank on a neighbor’s name, you might brush it off as “just getting older.” But can all that stress and anxiety actually cause memory loss over time? New research reveals it’s not the everyday stress itself that threatens your memory—it’s how you handle it. Scientists have discovered that internalizing stress and dwelling on negative thoughts can impact your memory. Here’s what you need to know.
What exactly is stress?
Beyond a general sense of discomfort, we all have a slightly different idea of what stress is. For some with high stress levels, it’s a discomfort so intense it’s not too dissimilar to panic. Others dealing with bouts of acute stress from everyday bothers may feel a general sense of unease.
“Stress is a physiologic activation of the body’s threat-response system,” says Kardie Tobb, DO, MS, FASPC, FACC, a board-certified preventive cardiologist and medical director at Cone Health HeartCare Women’s Heart Health and Cardio-Obstetrics Clinic. “It triggers the sympathetic nervous system, raising heart rate, blood pressure and stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.”
Woman's World Answers
Can stress cause memory loss?
When it comes to memory loss, most of us think of mild cognitive impairment that comes with age or conditions like dementia and Alzheimer’s. But stress deserves a spot on that list too.
Stephanie Johnson, PsyD, MSCP, a licensed clinical psychologist with over 17 years of experience, uses a simple analogy to explain how stress affects the brain. She asks her clients, “If you were in a boxing ring with a bear, could you solve mathematical equations?”
In other words, just as no one could focus on math at that moment, high levels of cortisol during stress can mimic cognitive deficits, making it harder to concentrate, remember names or focus on what’s right in front of you, Johnson explains.
Johnson adds that stress not only can impact your short-term memory in the moment, but can also affect your brain over time. Long-term stress can shrink the hippocampus, a part of the brain that stores memories, making it harder to remember things or learn new information, she explains.
She also explains that stress can increase activity in the amygdala, the part of the brain that controls our fear response It, essentially puts us in a mindset of feeling like we have to survive another day rather than live it, which can impact memory performance when you’re in “fight or flight” mode.
What new research on stress and memory loss shows
So if we all experience daily stress, how can you tell if you’re internalizing it? Dr. Tobb explains the key difference: “Everyday stress is typically short-lived and resolves once the situation passes,” explains Dr. Tobb. “The body returns to baseline. [But] internalizing stress is when the stress response continues internally through rumination, emotional suppression and persistent self-criticism.”
“The key difference is that internalized stress leads to prolonged physiologic activation, which is what drives harm,” adds Dr. Tobb.
A study published in The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease followed 1,528 older adults without dementia over about five years, tracking changes in memory and cognitive function. Researchers found that those with a pattern of internalizing stress, along with more negative thinking and lower coping traits, experienced faster memory decline over time.
Aside from the brain changes that happen due to chronic stress, Johnson explains that negative thoughts can exacerbate stress, keeping our bodies in a constant fight or flight state.
Dr. Tobb also offers a cardiovascular perspective on the study’s results, explaining that when we internalize stress and prolong the body’s stress response, it can lead to long-term elevations in cortisol, inflammation and reduced blood flow.
“The brain depends on healthy circulation,” says Dr. Tobb. “When that system is compromised over time, memory-related structures are particularly vulnerable.”
How to avoid internalizing stress
While you can’t always avoid day-to-day stress, you can take steps to help decrease how much of your stress you internalize and protect against long-term memory loss.
Talk to someone
Whether it’s a trusted friend, family member or a mental health professional, it’s important not to let those stressors build up. “Venting is an excellent way of getting all of those emotions out,” says Johnson. “[Or] write in a journal, if you don’t care to talk to somebody about the depths of what you’re going through.”
Get moving
If more traditional forms of exercise like walking or strength training are your jam, that works. But Johnson says movement can be as simple as dancing around your living room or putting on your favorite ’80s music while cleaning, which can help you process emotions.
Limit rumination
We’ve all been there: You’re stressed about something you did or something someone did to you, and before you know it, you’ve spent all day thinking about it. Dr. Tobb recommends setting aside time to think through what’s bothering you and then letting it go. Consider giving yourself about 20 minutes to work through those thoughts, then try your best not to revisit them for the rest of the day.
The bottom line on stress and memory loss
Stress is a normal part of life, but how you handle it makes all the difference when it comes to memory loss and your overall health. By talking through your worries, moving your body and limiting rumination, you’re not just managing stress in the moment. You’re protecting your memory and giving your brain the care it needs to stay sharp for years to come.
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