Illustration by Tricia Cummins Bell
Divorce Brain. It’s a real thing—and it sucks.
During my divorce, I found myself reading the same information over and over before I could fully understand or remember it. I took notes, printed articles, and highlighted important passages because I was afraid I would forget what I had just learned.
Many times, I forgot to save the source of an article or podcast episode. Later, I would spend hours searching for something I knew I had read or heard, only to come up empty-handed.
The internet is vast, and once information is lost, it can be difficult to find again—especially when you’re dealing with a brain on divorce.
I learned that it was best to save important information the moment I found it. The mental fog that often accompanies divorce can make it difficult to absorb, process, and retain information the first time around.
I have heard this phenomenon referred to as “divorce brain.”
It’s a real thing—and it sucks.
Divorce brain can make you feel slow, forgetful, distracted, and sometimes even a little crazy. You may wonder why simple decisions suddenly feel overwhelming or why it takes so much effort to concentrate.
You are neither stupid nor crazy.
You are experiencing trauma.
Divorce is one of life’s most stressful events. When your mind is busy processing loss, uncertainty, fear, and change, it has fewer resources available for everything else.
The good news is that divorce brain is temporary.
Divorce is traumatic, but it is not terminal.
The fog will lift.
Your ability to focus, remember, and make decisions will return. It may happen gradually rather than all at once, but it will happen.
Until then, give yourself some grace.
Take notes. Save articles. Write things down. Allow yourself extra time to make decisions. Accept that you may make mistakes along the way.
I certainly did.
When—not if—that happens, pick yourself up, dust off the frustration, and keep moving forward.
Every time you persevere, you take another step through the fog and toward the next chapter of your life.
Bon Courage. You can do this.
Claire Cummins Lorenz 