But what if you don’t want to keep staring at screens?

Buying an inexpensive puzzle book is a great investment. You can have a go at different puzzles at your own pace. Again it’s something that you can revisit to see which ones you can give yourselves a pat on the back. Because you’ve completed quite a lot or finished. And you can keep pushing to do those pesky ones which you find yourself wondering if the reason you can’t get it is because there’s a print error and it’s impossible. Actually it’s these ones that give me the most satisfaction when the penny finally drops.

Remember you’re not any less intelligent, your brain just has to work harder to get there. It’s like the tunnel in the Alps being closed and you have to climb all over the mountains to get there. It takes a lot longer and it’s a lot more tiring. But be patient and keep trying. The brain behaves like a muscle and by practising and training you can give it the chance to relearn how to do it.

Try doing something you have never done before, and start training your brain in something new.

I don’t mean you have to go learn to play the violin. But try simple things like brushing your teeth with the opposite hand. It will feel really awkward at first and you’ll be tempted to switch back, but try to persevere. In time the brain will start to learn that this is something it needs to work on, and that hand will get better at it. So it’s something that you can see for yourself how you’re doing.

If you are also interested in what virtual training you can do to support your recovery, go to Game training that helped me.