The Stressed Out Brain

One of the main symptoms of living in a "crazy making" environment is a decreased intellectual capacity. The brain is being caused to do too many things at once. It keeps getting switched from intellectual learning and/or creativity to defensive mode or crisis management, which are literally different areas of the brain. It's just like the Enterprise, when they had to "divert all power to the Shields" or to the transporter, or to the warp drive every time something happened. The brain does that automatically so it can feel like the mind is being controlled by outside forces, but really it's our own systems trying to protect us from others, and trying to "put out fires". For those who have natural empathy and learned ethics, the brain also automatically diverts energy to "helping others in crisis or need", which is often also part of a crazy-making environment.
~
In other words, if we have a healthy brain (with functioning empathy and balanced ethics), and we live around bullies or manipulators, our brain is constantly switching to automatic defense, crisis management, or help mode, and we are going to have a harder time getting our tasks done, or our own goals met. Often we end up "behind the 8-ball", or feeling like we're less capable than others because we can't seem to get things done. We can become "forgetful", and "messy", and appear even to ourselves like we can't hold things together.
~
The more our brain keeps getting switched to automatic modes, the less we can see what's actually going on. Bullies do this on purpose because it works, and the more they do it, the less able we are to "keep our heads on straight", which they can then use to further their agenda even more.
~
Bullies and manipulators judge, shame, slander, and further bully those who seem "forgetful", or "messy", or "airheaded", usually because they're the ones who instigated the person's "issues" in the first place, and it gives them an opportunity to appear "better" than someone else. They certainly aren't going to tell the world the real story, or the full story, they're going to portray the target as "screwed up", even while the target is doing everything they can for them, or for others.
~
Non-bullies and those with empathy and genuine ethics, on the other hand, have no agenda, and therefore no desire to shame, judge, or smear anyone. They are much more likely to SEE what's really going on (which is why they're often UNPOPULAR! There's apparently more bullies and manipulators in the world now than non-bullies, sadly).
~
So remember that feeling of being overwhelmed, less capable, messy, and behind the 8-ball is most likely because the brain keeps switching to automatic defense or crisis-intervention mode. It can keep on doing that after we've left a crazy-making atmosphere; our subconscious cares a lot more about protecting us and fixing crisis than it does about our intellectual or creative goals, so we have to consciously heal ourselves with safe Sanctuary, and any forms of therapy that we can find, that work for us. That might include prayer, or remembering what compassion really feels like by doing something purposely to help others, or animals.
.
.