Learn Russian: Когда у меня болит голова, мне плохо думается и не работается. - When my head hurts, I can't think well and can't work.

Using the dative pronoun (мне) with an imperfective reflexive verb (думается, работается) describes an involuntary state. It implies that you lack the mental energy, mood, or focus to do it, despite your efforts. Saying я не могу работать sounds more like a literal inability (like your computer is broken), while мне не работается means 'I just can't get myself to work' or 'work just isn't going well for me.'

Do I need to repeat мне before не работается?

No. Because мне is already established at the start of the clause for мне плохо думается, it naturally carries over to the second verb after the conjunction и (and).

Why use the adverb плохо here instead of just making the verb negative?

You absolutely could say мне не думается ('I can't think at all'), but this grammar structure frequently uses adverbs like плохо (poorly), хорошо (well), or легко (easily) to describe exactly how an involuntary process feels to you. Мне плохо думается captures the feeling of 'I am having a hard time thinking' or 'my thoughts are sluggish.'

Why is the word order болит голова instead of голова болит?