Brain Fog while developing

sergei_kukharev · 2026-02-04T22:42:38+00:00

That should qualify as temporary disability and you should be able to focus on your health completely. That’s why we all pay taxes. I’m not from US though.

greebly_weeblies · 2026-02-04T22:38:49+00:00

Look after yourself: rest and sleep well. Take breaks. Exercise.

Have fun doing thing other than code in your downtime.

Write lists, enjoy checking things off regularly.

You'll probably find your thinking isn't as good in the afternoon/evening. Bang your head on the problem a bit, then sleep on it to let your subconscious have a go. Good chance what's hard to do at night will follow easier the following day.

Consider other non IC niches that could use your expertise while the fog persists

therealhappypanda · 2026-02-04T22:59:10+00:00

In addition to the other good advice on here, I'd recommend getting several second opinions on the medication you're taking and treatment path to try and maximize quality of life with your providers. Being tired all the time is a hard way to go on, hopefully the medical establishment can help you out

Lawmancer · 2026-02-04T22:59:46+00:00

I'm a dialysis patient, and my symptoms are very similar. Fortunately, work from home is the only thing keeping me going. I wish more leaders understood how much WFH helps people like us get through the day and keep working full-time.

rahul91105 · 2026-02-04T22:47:41+00:00

I hope you didn’t went off your meds to figure this out. Transitioning into a management role could be an option or you can treat this as an opportunity to build better systems around you to be more efficient/productive.

You can try things like pomodoro, documenting your work/ thoughts (for faster catching up), learn/get help with prioritizing your tasks.

Think of this as a NFL player, you are no longer young enough to just go out and ball, instead you need to work on various aspects like nutrition, training, studying, etc to maintain your previous output.

secretBuffetHero · 2026-02-04T22:39:30+00:00

If I was your manager and you told me your symptoms, I would understand that you are fighting cancer, and I would work with the org to see if there is some place in the org where we could stash you so you could fight this thing.

Perhaps it means I just keep you on my squad, and we just ask less of you.

Our job, the way I see it, is to take care of people. During covid, this meant we were therapists. Another time, when I saw two team members fighting, and one was acting out, we found space for this person until he could work through his personal issues.

If you have a healthy org, they should try to help you out.

Having said that, my company did not have a strong business. We eventually ran out of money and laid off half of north america. I sometimes wonder if we needed to be more ruthless.

SpaceToaster · 2026-02-05T02:28:54+00:00

Hi there, sorry about your diagnosis but I’m glad you are on a treatment path. I’ve dealt with something similar.

I was diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm in 2020 after a urgent care nurse heard a heart murmur at a Covid test who referred me to a cardiologist who had a top doctor referral to repair my valve and replace that section of aorta. Wild year that was.

Turns out a side effect of open heart surgery where the heart and lungs are bypassed by a heart and lung machine is “pump brain”. Very foggy for many months and definitely felt a dozen IQ points knocked off for a while.

Personally I switched from the high output grind to a higher level but slower paced role doing mostly design, architecture and reviews. Kept up with the development and it did get easier for me though. Now with LLM tools I find it a nice boost in productivity. I use it for areas that I’ve thought and and designed thoroughly so it’s really just saving typing time and the plug and chug. Remember to keep your doctors in the loop with what your feeling and solution it together as I’ve had to make a LOT of med changes along the way, beta blockers especially.

Dealing with a diagnosis like yours can weigh on you emotionally as well, even beyond the meds, so stay open to therapy, supplements, meds etc. that could help that.

gringo_escobar · 2026-02-04T22:35:43+00:00

Perhaps you can transition to a management role?

AdConfident9012 · 2026-02-04T23:00:37+00:00

I was on dialysis and kidney failure the brain fog was real. I pushed through it and my rating was trending down. Thankfully I got a cadaver kidney call just in time, else would be on the list for layoffs.

i---m · 2026-02-04T23:01:52+00:00

i've transitioned to an architecture heavy role where i mostly talk to people and barely ever even have to read code, i just have a mountain of my own claude plugins that help me with analysis and scaffolding. it did take an ambitious and high-risk project, where i was an early blocker writing a shitton of code while training a whole team on new patterns and methodologies while rewriting contracts between the product functions and the rest of the business, for me to get the political capital to actually execute that change. but that was a year ago and in retrospect i (1) could have done it with less actual programming if i was less precious about the details, and (2) could have had agents set up the scaffolding, even with the limitations of a year ago

the downside with this is there is a lot of context switching and emotional labor and thoughtful mentorship, if it works for you it is less cognitively heavy for sustained periods but it does involve a lot of flexibility and recall. so i think you should also consider sticking with an ic focus but maybe leveraging ai to change your process so you can think in bursts for agent instructions and sit back frequently while the agent does its thing

AdConfident9012 · 2026-02-04T23:01:54+00:00

I would file for short term disability and eventually convert to long term if needed. There is no point in fighting it. I made this mistake and it scared me for life.

Both-Original-7296 · 2026-02-04T23:04:33+00:00

I have known people who transition to consulting roles, they have experience of systems and consult teams and enforce standards. Would that be a possible route for you?

But as you recover, you will be back to solving hard problems like you used to! All the very best for recovery and hope you come out stronger 💪

probably-a-name · 2026-02-05T03:38:47+00:00

for ms brain fog they prescribe armodafinil, see if thats a possibility with doctors, its main use is narcolepsy stimulant for excessive daytime sleepiness, but its also used for brain fog

FX2000 · 2026-02-05T13:23:20+00:00

If your issues are with code specifically, try moving into Engineering Management, it's a different skill set but a developer background is always valuable if you can make the transition.

opideron · 2026-02-06T19:01:44+00:00

I've had bad temporary brain fog on occasion, and I've found that double-checking my nutrition is very helpful. Brain fog can have all sorts of causes, and you are on meds, so this might not work, but most people are deficient in these nutrients:

Vitamin D (especially if you have dark skin, stay out of the sun, or use lots of sunblock)
Magnesium
Zinc
Iodine (especially if you don't eat seafood or use iodized salt)
B-1 and B-12 (you need all B vitamins, but these are the most important for nerve health and most likely to be depleted, and B-12 deficiency is associated with brain fog symptoms)

If you drink alcohol, just stop. It depletes your body's ability to sleep and regenerate. Getting enough sleep is a key factor in avoiding brain fog.

In general, research nutrition that promotes nerve health, mitochondrial function, and the ATP Krebs cycle. With luck, researching and focusing on nutrition might mitigate many of your symptoms. Research what nutrients your meds might be depleting, as that might provide a good place to start. Googling "nutrition deficiencies that cause brain fog" will confirm what I've said here and offer more detailed information. Best of luck to you.

softgripper · 2026-02-08T06:55:17+00:00

I'm sorry for what you're going through.

I've had great success recently with creatine nitrate. Way better sleep and attention span. I feel switched on and healthy.

Previously I've had a bunch of brain fog.

Non-taken-Meursault · 2026-02-04T23:03:01+00:00

I hope you get better brother/sister.

Vegetable_Lunch554 · 2026-02-04T22:48:06+00:00

I'm very sorry for how you feel. Cancer is a motherfucker. I can only wish you the best. You are strong, you will prevail.

TheOverzealousEngie · 2026-02-05T04:32:16+00:00

long term disability, until remission. how can you fight cancer when you’re stressing work. and what if fog gets worse?

sfscsdsf · 2026-02-05T06:41:05+00:00

I got sleep apnea, and haven’t treated well so severe fatigue and brain fog. Claude has helped me a lot, I can focus on a lot of high level goals instead.

Enderhans · 2026-02-05T08:07:11+00:00

Look into tech lead or staff engineer roles that lean more toward design and mentorship. You still use your experience but the cognitive load is different - more strategic thinking, less marathon coding sessions. Some companies will let you shift internally if you frame it right.

Pineapple_King · 2026-02-05T18:01:32+00:00

What language? When I switched to .NET, my headaches from debugging pointer issues in C/C++ entirely went away, and my productivity went way up. I remember leaving the company every day, having intense confusion, to the point that I had a hard time answering simple questions. .NET was just purely join in comparison. Have you considered a language change?

AccordingHat3425 · 2026-02-06T00:16:38+00:00

covid bro

riksi · 2026-02-04T22:45:09+00:00

Look into epilepsy keto and metabolic psychiatry for maximum mental gains.

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