Hello,

I have strong cognitive issues since the beginning of the year but doctors in my country didnt find the reason. It started quite suddenly after withdrawing one magnesium supplement, but the reason can be also different, and there was sudden decline in short-term memory, and worsening of thinking and concentration. Then it has been worsening slowlier but till now significantly.
Gradually I wasnt able to focus on reading sentence by sentence, now I can only skim the text, I can read it only with strongly concentrating on it. My short-term memory is in the state that I dont remember most of the things from the previous day unless I get some clue. Thinking is also impaired, especially about complicated issues.

For some background, for the last almost 9 years I have been treated by psychiatrist for social anxiety disorder. Before starting having these cognitive problems I got antidepressant induced akathisia one and a half year ago. This was suppresed quite a lot by clonazepam but then again worsened and I am still suffering with it. I am mentioning it because maybe there is some link but I dont know. I am still on clonazepam which is my only medication currently.

So basically there are two neurological problems, but as for cognitive issues I dont know what it is. Can anybody give me some clues about this as it is still only worsening even after almost a year?

Thank you very much, I appreciate it a lot.

Welcome to NeuroTalk:

Anyone with cognitive issues should get their B12 tested. It should be at a minimum...400pg/ml.

Here is a video to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvEizypoyO0

Also the clonazepam may be a culprit. The Benzodiazepine family is well known for causing amnesia. This is why they are used in anesthesia, for some medical procedures, and dental extractions.
The patients don't retain a clear memory of the invasive and painful issues during those procedures.

So yes, you could be having cognitive problems. If you are over 50, you could not be clearing the the drug properly and it can build up and cause side effects. These drugs are not recommended anymore in the elderly.

Thank you very much mrsD.

I cannot watch the video because of akathisia but will check the B12 testing. Which doctors can make the testing?

I was also suspecting clonazepam, but I started it in May 2013 and the problems came suddenly with withdrawing magnesium supplement in January 2014, there was no change in clonazepam.

I am before 30, what do you mean by not clearing the drug properly, like that I take doses but it goes above steady state dose, like the daily dose? Wouldnt it build up to infinity in that case?

Thanks

The elderly do not metabolize and clear the drug thru the urine
efficiently.

Any doctor can do the B12 test. You should be above 400pg/ml so get that result. Old lab ranges still report low levels as "normal" and some doctors don't understand that.

Why did you stop magnesium? If you don't get it thru food sources you could be low, like most US adults.

Welcome smithy1928.

That magnesium supplement was worsening akathisia which I wasnt aware of as it was unexpectable. Odd reaction.

But dont know whats going on with the cognitive issues. I dont understand it.

Thanks Kitt.

Are there any diagnostic possibilities to find out whats going on? I had MR which was ok, and EEG but with clonazepam, also ok.

Hello smithy1928,
Welcome to the NeuroTalk Support Groups.

My daughter had extremely low B12 and it affected her cognitive abilities. She was in her early 20s when it was finally picked up. She'd had years of struggling to study and to think clearly. A regular doctor/general practitioner here can organize B12 testing.

I wasn't aware that magnesium could make akathisia worse

It is definitely work investigating in my opinion.

take care

Hi smithy1928 and welcome to NeuroTalk

I have used Clonazepam for 14 years, sometimes on a relatively high daily dose and sometimes on an as needed basis (I currently am not using Clonazepam).

A few years ago I needed to have NeuroPsych testing done. The Dr. told me that Clonazepam can cause cognitive dysfunction. In my case Clonazepam was not the problem but something I needed to be aware of.

Are you on any other medications? Such as a cholesterol lowering medication? These have been known to cause cognitive dysfunction.

Best wishes on coming off of Clonazepam I have read it can be quite difficult. Please speak with your prescribing Dr. if needed. As has been mentioned slowly tapering down is very important.

The video link I gave you has dramatic true stories of patients with low B12.... You should watch it. One of the patients is a doctor himself and almost died from low B12. Even if you have to pause it several times due to your inattention issues, you should watch it.

The citrate in the magnesium supplement is not enough to cause any problem. Citrate is common in our foods.
Citrate is not acidic....it is actually alkalinizing (basic)

Thank you for your responses.

Snoopy, what was the neuropsych testing about? My only medication currently is clonazepam, which Im trying to lower but its very difficult.

mrsD, I was thinking today about B12 and checking some info. My cognitive problems started very suddenly over a few days, Im not sure if the B12 could have been depleted so fast, and they started immediately after withdrawing the magnesium supplement. Actually my cognitive skills came 100 % back in February when in 2 days I ate a big amount of almonds and cashew nuts. I tried them because of high magnesium content but anything could have helped. Almonds for for example a lot of vitamin E.

I checked also vitamin B12 in them but they dont have any. I didnt think it was normal to eat such a huge amount of nuts just to be able to think normally so I quit. Then I reinstated the previous antidepressant for month but it made my state even worse. Now the nuts cannot help that much, anyway its strange to eat so much of them for my brain working normally.

I have no idea what happened and cannot figure it out, as before nothing like this happened even slightly. Both problems, strong cognitive issues and akathisia seem for me to be neurological problems, but cannot figure out what can help, and for the brain even whats going on.