Adjusting to an MCI diagnosis can trigger a wide range of emotions, including fear, worry, sadness, anger, and grief.
Adjusting to Your Diagnosis
“These reactions are a normal part of the adjustment process,” says Lucille Carriere, PhD, a neuropsychologist at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. “People are trying to make sense of what this diagnosis means for them now and in the future.”
Emotional responses may change over time. After the initial diagnosis, people may notice shifts in how they feel as they adapt to changes in thinking, adjust daily routines, or rethink their roles at work, at home, or in relationships, Dr. Carriere says.
“How someone copes, the support they have available, and whether they are able to stay engaged in meaningful activities all shape emotional well-being,” she says.
Despite how common these reactions are, they are frequently underrecognized.
“Emotional symptoms may fluctuate, feel less urgent than memory changes, or be overshadowed by stigma around mental health,” says Carriere.
Uncertainty About the Future Drives Anxiety
One of the most powerful sources of anxiety in MCI is uncertainty.
“Even when day-to-day symptoms are mild, people are often carrying fear about what comes next,” Carriere says. Those fears may center on losing independence, stepping away from meaningful roles, or becoming a burden to family members.
“Not knowing your personal trajectory — especially if you’ve been told you have biomarkers linked to Alzheimer’s disease — can be incredibly stressful,” says Shada.
Hypervigilance Can Make Symptoms Feel Worse
After a diagnosis with MCI, many people begin closely monitoring their memory, replaying every misplaced object or scrutinizing every memory lapse. While understandable, this constant self-checking can increase anxiety and make cognitive symptoms feel worse.
“Heightened focus on thinking changes can increase distress and self-doubt,” says Carriere. “It also taxes attention and concentration, leading to mental fatigue.”
Thoughts like ‘I keep forgetting; this must be the beginning of the end’ can trigger physical stress responses such as a racing heart or elevated blood pressure, she says.
“That stress response pulls attention away from the task at hand, which can actually worsen focus and memory, creating a negative feedback loop,” says Shada.
Brain Changes Can Affect Mood Directly
Mood changes in MCI are not always just emotional reactions to the diagnosis. “These can also be influenced by the underlying disease process,” says Carriere.
Depending on the cause of MCI, changes in brain regions involved in emotional processing, along with disruptions in neurotransmitters that regulate mood, can increase vulnerability to anxiety or depression.
These brain changes are also part of why people “can’t simply will themselves out of feeling anxious or sad,” says Shada.