Brain Ache!?

Have you ever had a moment or two when you just don’t understand something and no matter how hard people try to explain it, your brain just aches at the thought of it all! I get like this with maths – not that I do this anymore and spreadsheets – which are part of my work life! Your head just can’t figure things out and everything might as well be in a foreign language! Learning a language may be easier on your brain! So how do you get through this? Can you push past it and understand?

Sometimes you can, sometimes you just need a third party to explain it to you, or you need time to process the information and work out a few examples on your own. But there are times, when we just can’t get our head round things and that’s ok!

My husband and I had this experience this weekend. We were staying with my parents and in the evening we played a game called Mah Jong. Now, my parents have had this game for forever, they bought it in the 70’s and have played it with friends for years. So my mum wondered if we wanted to play it…..well…..learn how to play it! We were happy to give it a go and see what happened.

And so it began! Oh My God was it a complete brain ache for the first 30 minutes or so…..it was a mass of words and tiles and rules and characters and bamboo and wheels and dragons and on it went……there were times when my parents were questioning the rules as well, as it had been a good few years since they had played it. My dad was helping me and my mum was helping Scott and we were trying to help each other. Listening to their instructions on what was worth more points and what you should or shouldn’t collect for this reason was ACHING MY BRAIN! 😬

After we were talked through the first game, we were set free and left to get on with it. And guess what? The sky cleared, the birds began to sing and the ache in my brain disappeared! My husband and I got clarity and were on our way to kicking ass at this game! We ended up playing for about 5 hours, finishing just after 1.30am! Don’t get me wrong, there were still things we weren’t sure about, but it was getting really exciting and tense and I was on the edge of my seat! Loved it! Can’t wait to play it again!

Whether you are trying to understand spreadsheets or a complicated maths equation or trying to decipher flat pack instructions don’t give up! You’ve got this! Don’t let the brain ache affect you!

Here are some tips to help you cope when things get heavy in your head:

1. Stop and breathe – take a moment, put everything down, stop reading any instructions and step away from the head hurting material. We often forget to breathe properly at times of stress, so sit down and breathe slowly and deeply for a few moments. Go back to your task 10-15 minutes later once you have had a moment to yourself.
2. Ask someone else to explain – maybe having a new voice taking you through it can help – they may have a new take on it or can simplify it for you. Get them to explain it bit by bit and help guide you.
3. Google it – there may be an explanation you didn’t know about or online help to help you understand. I mean, who doesn’t Google things on a daily basis! 😊
4. Break it into pieces – take it sentence at a time, or one point to the next, this might help you discover the part you really don’t understand.
5. Don’t be hard on yourself – it doesn’t matter if it takes you longer to understand, you are or have given it a go and that’s what’s important.

So the next time you are up against something that seems completely head-achey and difficult to fathom, don’t give up, just give the above tips a go and know you are capable of anything, it sometimes takes time to get your brain to click into gear and that is perfectly acceptable. We all learn at different paces and in different ways, so understanding can take time. However, if it comes down to it and you really can’t get your head round something, don’t think negatively about yourself, instead know that not everyone knows everything and you will undoubtedly know something or how to do something that other people can’t get their head around.

Thank you all so much for reading. Take care and look after you! Have a great week.

Love Emma xx 😁😁

P.S – Thank you Mum and Dad for teaching us the game!