Are You Forgetful? What It Means and How to Start Remembering Again

Forgetting things from time to time is normal, and it's also normal to become more forgetful as you continue to age. But where do you draw the line? How can you tell whether your memory lapses is all part of normal forgetfulness and within the scope of normal aging, or a symptom of something more serious? As we get older, we may experience subtle changes in memory, which is all part of the aging process. However, situations arise when we experience these changes sooner or faster than expected. At times, these changes go unnoticed, but other times it tends to interfere with our lives and those of others. Memory problems are caused by a number of things. It could be a side effect of medication, or due to an existing or developing health problem, such as anxiety, depression, heart disease, sleep-related problems, dehydration, or vitamin deficiency. If this seems to be the case, identifying and treating the condition can improve your memory immensely. Everyone forgets things at times. For example, how many times have you forgotten where you placed your keys, or the name of someone you only met recently? A lot of older adults worry about their memory and other thinking abilities. Some of the concerns they have may be about taking longer than before to learn something new, or they might forget to pay a bill once or twice. These changes are usually signs of mild forgetfulness, which is a normal part of aging, and not serious memory problems. So how does one distinguish between normal age-related memory loss and serious memory problems? Simple forgetfulness or delaying when recalling names, dates, and events are all part of normal aging process, but memory problems that start to interfere with normal daily life are not considered normal aging. When you forget where you placed your glasses, it's a simple sign of forgetfulness, disorganization, or normal aging. However, when you forget what your glasses are used for, or that they're worn on your face, then something's definitely wrong. Normal age-related memory loss doesn't usually keep you from living a full productive life. You might forget a person's name but recall it later in the day. You might misplace your glasses, or sometimes you need to make lists more often than before to remind you of tasks you need to do or appointments you have to go to. These changes in memory are generally manageable and don't interfere with your ability to work, maintain a social life, or live independently. Conditions like dementia and mild cognitive impairment, on the other hand, are very serious and will hugely affect your life. Dementia is a term used to describe a set of symptoms, including impairment in memory, judgment, reasoning, language, and other thinking skills. It usually starts gradually, becomes worse with time, and impairs your ability to work, interact socially, and how you handle relationships. One of the first or more recognizable signs of dementia is the kind of memory loss that disrupts your life. Other early signs might include repeatedly asking the same questions, forgetting common words when speaking, taking long to complete familiar tasks, misplacing items, getting lost while walking or driving in a familiar area, or having changes in your mood. Mild cognitive impairment is another condition that involves a decline in at least one area of one's thinking skills, such as memory. Having this condition doesn't really prevent you from engaging socially with others or performing your regular everyday tasks, as is the case for dementia. For a lot of people, the condition progresses to dementia due to Alzheimer's or any other disorder causing dementia, while for others, their memory loss doesn't progress much. More research is still being done on mild cognitive impairment, though. Memory loss or any other dementia-like symptoms can be caused by many medical problems, most of which can be treated. Some of the possible causes of reversible memory impairment include the use of medications, minor head injury or trauma, emotional disorders such as stress and anxiety, alcoholism, vitamin deficiency, or brain diseases. By getting into detail of these causes, you might get a better understanding of why you're forgetful. So, let's look into them. 1. You're stressed Stress often affects focus and attention rather than memory, but this can decrease your ability to recall new information. When you're stressed, your mind is usually distracted with other thoughts and concerns, and is focused on the issue, so it becomes very easy to forget. Although this might be a focus issue, when you're going through it, it feels more like a memory problem. If your mind is otherwise overwhelmed with stress while you're receiving new information, that information isn't really stored into memory and hence can't be recalled later on. 2. Multitasking Spreading your focus too thin isn't just bad for anyone trying to be productive, it's bad for your memory as well. Overextending yourself with too many tasks at the same time can cause stress, which can in turn cause you to become distracted and not store information properly. And all the frequent interruptions make it hard for your brain to form new memories. 3. Lack of sleep A lack of sleep can cause you to forget important events like birthdays and anniversaries. Not getting enough sleep can lead to stress and anxiety, which leads to forgetfulness, which can lead to more stress and more forgetfulness, and the cycle continues. 4. Depression and other mental health issues Depression messes with memory because one might have difficulty focusing, which prevents your brain from forming new memories. But depression isn't permanent, and neither are any other depression-related memory problems. Doctors strongly believe that our memories can return to normal once we've dealt with depression. 5. Certain medications can impact your memory If you're on medication to treat anything ranging from anxiety to Parkinson's, chances are they could be impacting your memory negatively. There are alternative medications that won't mess with your memory that much if you start noticing a decline in memory. At what point should you visit the doctor for memory loss? When memory loss keeps you from performing daily tasks, it becomes a health concern that needs to be evaluated further by healthcare professionals. If you have trouble remembering, thinking clearly, or remembering recent events, talk with a doctor. He or she might suggest a thorough checkup to see what may cause the symptoms. The doctor would likely perform a series of tests and assessments, which may include a brain scan, to help try and figure out the source of your memory problems. There are certain tests that can determine the degree of memory impairment and diagnose the cause. It would be great to have a family member or friend who can help answer any questions the doctor might ask. Some of these questions could be when the memory problems began, what medications you're taking, what tasks you find challenging, or what you've done to cope with memory problems. Whether you've been ill recently or whether you've been feeling depressed or anxious, they may even recommend you see a neurologist. If you're having memory problems, it's vital to talk to your doctor to get a diagnosis and appropriate care. It can be difficult coming to terms with the fact that you're suffering from memory loss and possibly dementia. Some people even try to hide that they have trouble remembering stuff. Getting an immediate diagnosis is important because by determining the reversible cause of memory impairment, you're able to get the appropriate treatment. At times, the problem could be treated, resulting in an improvement in cognition. Sometimes, the problems could be a brain disorder such as Alzheimer's disease, whose effects cannot be reversed. Finding the root cause of the problem is important to determine the best way to go. Once you know this, it becomes easier to make the right treatment plan. It's also advisable to make follow-up appointments to evaluate your memory every 6-12 months. There are a few things you could do that could help slow memory and thinking decline, and although there's no clear-cut link to doing them, they are good recommendations for maintaining good health. 1. Get a good night's sleep. Multiple stories from over the years support the fact that sleep is a crucial time when memories merge and get stored. Therefore, missing out on sleep or not getting high-quality sleep can negatively impact your ability to remember and recall. Getting between 7 and 9 hours of sleep every night is recommended by the National Sleep Foundation for optimal health and brain function. 2. Exercise regularly. The best thing you can do to maintain your brain health is to exercise a few days a week, according to the American Academy of Neurology's practice guidelines for patients with mild cognitive impairment. Exercise is good for a number of things. It's good for your heart, your mood, your sleep, and mind, especially the region involved in memory loss. One study in particular of middle-aged women with early signs of memory loss started a program of regular aerobic exercise and an increase in the size of the hippocampus, the part involved in memory storing, and improved verbal memory and learning was observed when the participants were tested. The American Academy of Neurology recommends regular exercise as one of the things people with mild memory problems should do to help stop those problems from worsening or progressing into serious neurological disorders. 4. Test yourself. Most people think that testing is only useful because it tells you what you know and what you don't. But the main power of testing is giving you the chance to practice retrieving information that you've learned before and establishing the connection in the brain. In a study that tested a group of students on new information they obtained a week earlier, students who were also tested on the new information immediately after learning it performed better than students who simply asked to study the information on the test they all took a week later. 5. Put the information in your memory palace. The idea here is that if you want to remember something, such as a passcode or a to-do list, you visualize those items or numbers in different rooms of your house. The memory palace approach has been studied to a great extent in psychology and research shows that it can be of more value in terms of remembering than having more intellectual capabilities in the first place and it can also be very effective for remembering than memorization and straightforward repetition. 6. Use a mnemonic device. It's easier to remember things that relate to knowledge we already have because we link it to what we've already stored in our memory. And that's why mnemonic devices work, they connect two pieces of information together. So when you want to call a certain memory, there are many possible paths to it. 7. Pay attention. This is quite obvious, but concentration is important if your aim is to learn something new. If you don't pay as much attention, chances are low that you encode the information in your long-term memory. How many Americans would be able to accurately draw the dollar bill even though they likely look at it all the time? 8. Make it relevant to your life. If you really want to remember something, your best bet is trying to connect it to another part of your life or a topic that you already know. Figure out some facet of your life where it's relevant and use it. It might be scary when you first realize you're having trouble remembering things, but by implementing some of the suggestions mentioned above and seeking professional help, you could quite easily manage it. But before you begin to worry, remember that it's normal to forget at times. We all do. Thank you guys so much for watching. If this is your first time here on Practical Wisdom, welcome and make sure you subscribe for more content like this. With that said, have a great day and I'll see you all in the next one.