Want to study but have a bad case of baby brain

[AwkwardPaws27]

I'm currently pregnant with DC2, DC1 is 3. I'm working part-time in a school admin job but its not really making sense for me to go back after maternity leave (DH earns over threshold so no funded childcare). I had another thread on this & a number of people suggested retraining for an actual career rather than a job.

I have awful baby brain though, still seem to have it from being pregnant with the now-3 year old & this pregnancy has only compounded it . Before I had DC1 I was reasonably intelligent; I got a First in Biomed degree which I did part-time around full-time work. Since then I've flunked out of Accountancy (managed passes in the exams but then couldn't actually recall the info at work) & my confidence is at rock bottom.

I keep forgetting stuff at work - left the stationery cupboard unlocked & wide open earlier, forgot someone's name immediately after a phone call etc. I'm struggling to maintain attention span to read or even listen to a podcast - so I'm concerned I'd totally flunk an expensive MSc (I'm looking at microbiology, epidemiology or public health).

Has anyone managed to study with a serious case of baby brain?

Get checked for coeliac disease. I had exactly as you describe and I’d developed coeliac disease during my pregnancy

I have no gastrointestinal symptoms though - I thought that was the main symptoms? Happy to be corrected!
I was Googling & B12 deficiency came up (I also wake up with numb hands or pins & needles in my hands but assumed that was sleepijg position related) but there's also tons of threads saying its just normal after having kids 🙈
I'm 36 & currently pregnant so doubt its perimenopause related. Also I've had bloods recently and all was normal (although not sure what they actually test for although they said my iron levels were normal).

It could be loads and loads of things, unfortunately. My main coeliac symptoms were fatigue and brain fog (totally debilitating, I was trying to learn a language and couldn’t retain even one new word an day), it’s perfectly possible to have without digestive symptoms.

Routine blood tests don’t seem to pick up much, and another thing I’ve learned is check the iron/ferritin exact number. The ‘I have symptoms’ number is a lot higher than the ‘GP will tell you it’s fine’ level. So I felt like death on 18, but it was above 15 so ‘that’s fine’.

Good luck getting to the bottom of it. Unfortunately with brain fog and fatigue I have found most doctors don’t take it seriously at all, and it’s a lot of trial and error on your own part trying to sort it out.

@elephantsinhats thank you - I'd posted about previously and pretty much got the message that "yeah, normal, no functioning brain for you now" but I'm definitely going to speak to my midwife and GP about it now.

You may have to really fight and just try some things on your own and see if they help. It took me a month of gluten free before the brain fog started to lift.

I’d recommend a decent supplement, iron and vitamin D tablets as a way to get going.

Good luck! And congratulations on your pregnancy