I FORGOT THE FOURTH OF JULY

[CR]

I feel like I am getting worse remembering even the simpliest things but my husband said to me today that it is just that I am getting older. "I suppose it could be but do you forget the fourth of July". I love holiday's. Growing up my father put quite an emphisus on holiday's. Dad would show me movies that he took of my family on holliday's when we were small.

[Daniel]

Hi Cr, memory has been a major issue for yourself as for, I dare say, everyone on this forum so I can certainly say I've had a small taste of memory loss, like yourself, though not for as long - may I ask how bad it is for you? For me, initially at least, I first woke up post infection in 2005 and think it was 2004 (I guess as at that point that was the most recent memory I had), then after a few months I'd gotten used to it being 2005 but kept forgetting the day and month (for instance it was sunny outside so I thought it was maybe November (warm here then) and it felt like a Wednesday so I'd convince myself of that but in fact it was an August Thursday). Finally, it was only the time of day that was an issue and though now, 3 years on, I still have lapses of knowing when it is things are generally okay with only the exagerrated loss of time that most feel (like someone who says it feels like a Friday when it's only Thursday - I get that but it's no longer a surprise to be wrong).
Have you given consideration to, and I'll assume not for now (apologies if wrong), finding a subject you enjoy and trying to learn it? I ask about this as I was studying Chinese when I fell ill while in China and when I woke up again I felt as though my skills had digressed to the point where my grasp of the language was very close to being gone - i.e extremely rusty. To that end I tried to regain all I felt at the time had been lost and initially it was most distressing as I'd worked hard at it since 2003. I got a whiteboard and began translating childrens songs, thoughts I had, television commercial jingles and so forth and in time I found that by doing this repeatedly my brain adjusted to the demands of factual retention and, maybe half a year or so post discharge from hospital, I had regained all I used to know and slowly began to learn new vocabulary and now have added several hundred more with memory of how to write the words (Chinese is not an alphabetical language like English if you're unfamiliar).
Essentially and in my experience with memory, the memory is like a muscle : if you exercise it then it will in time adapt to being able to recall things, much like a muscle can lift heavier weights with training. As my ability in this language improved I found that the days were less hazy, events like birthdays or, closer to yourself, public holidays were less of a surprise and were recalled.
Also, I carry a daily diary (a small notebook with a calendar inside it) and noted events on any given day and it is now at the point where I virtually do not need it but have it anyway out of habit.
I think the key to improving memory is challenging it over time. Initially it may be distressing as some things don't appear to stick in the mind, but if you get into a routine of trying something like, for example, leaving a note for yourself beside your bed then when you awaken the next day seeing if you can recall it, in time your memory should adjust to this if it is stuck with. So, you may try first thing in the morning waking to this note and seeing if you recall it - even recalling that you have a note at all can be a sign of progress as your memory relearns the expectation from you of being required to remember something upon waking. Then you might try getting into the habit of watching a show like the morning news on television and your memory will learn to expect to do that, in the afternoon you might try reading something - a story or learning a skill and again you'll adjust.
I couldn't possibly know how it must be for yourself with this issue but I do know my own memory crisis and I do know it is no fun to constantly forget - all it takes is a little perseverance in a routine and it'll improve I'm sure.

Hope this helps and best of luck

[CR]

OH MY GOSH,this is so nice having a stranger asking bought the terrible E.
Daniel.where do I start. I have a terrible time with balance,although time has improved this some. I did walk long distances alot.but have stopped this because of my balance.Just not seeing a rock in the road or the side walk ending or a rut in the walkway is treacherous for me. I have found that trough time I have more or less become house bound because of this.My husband bought me a really nice treadmill, which I don't use . I am afraid that I will fall off. I have also found myself becoming less sure of myself when it comes to talking to others because of how they see me. I feel that I am a real baby being so afraid. I do see that I need to overcome this being afraid. I can see it overtaking my life if I don't.

[Daniel]

Please don't think of me as a knowitall but if your balance is related to the circulation of blood flow to your brain resulting in dizziness, tendency to veer off in an undesired direction while trying to walk straight, or even the ability to focus your vision on something as you move, then being more physically fit will help this immensely.
I'm certainly not suggesting you begin to train like an olympian but when I began to exercise about 3 years ago I couldn't hold my hand in front of my face without there being two of them (of the same hand, I mean) - I'd go for a walk and would have to wait for people coming the other way to pass by in order to not walk into them (some people thought I wanted to talk to them which was embarrassing cause I sounded *terrible* then) - I was in a very depressing and dark place and each day felt like posing the question "why bother?"
Cliched as it may be, I began to investigate why this imbalance and speech impediment occured and I discovered that the way blood flows from the heart to the brain is greatly influenced by emotion and cardiovascular fitness.
In other words, the reason I always became unsteady and uncoordinated while crossing roads and not while on the footpath was for two reasons :

1 - my fitness and ability to tolerate heightened breath at a time of stress was
terrible
2 - the knowledge that I might have a problem crossing the road made me
terrified and breathe faster, raising the problems chances of occuring

As I gained more fitness and discovered that it helped to exhale as I stepped onto the road, the chances of having a dizzy spell at that time began to decrease and initially I had a 300% chance (average 3 episodes guaranteed, which was not pleasant). Now, 3 years on, I have only a 28% chance of one attack occuring and this is constantly improving.
The trick is to regain as much confidence as you possibly can and adapt while you improve to not feeling dizzy. If there's a road, for example, which you find hard to cross then find a road which isn't as hard and practice there, or do so while accompanied by someone else who can help you feel safer about trying.
In time the easier part will become manageable and you can begin to try something new and more challenging - but feeling confident is the difference between success and failure, and I believe that begins with feeling better about yourself - for me, it's being in better shape and knowing that my blood circulation and fitness is as good as it can possibly be at that moment.
The treadmill you have may help you - start slow and do low resistance for only a couple of minutes at a time, then raise it by a minute and so on. I only suggest you do not make the same mistake I did and reward yourself with treat food at the end - it doesn't help.

Hope this helps.

[tobecome]

daniel,
thanks for sharing your story of hope...
take care,
tish

[Daniel]

Well, I appreciate that but I've learned that feeling hopeful is mighty close to getting hopes up. I had a run of 14 days without presyncopal lightheadedness at the beginning of this year and by the 10th day I was beginning to become hopeful that it was finally over for that symptom. When it occurred on the 14th day, when in our summer in January the sun is brightest and hottest and the glare *can* make it sometimes worse - I crossed a notoriously bad road, though quiet, bad nonetheless, and my high sense of hope went down the toilet and flushed itself and I went on to have a bad week following that as I found that convincing myself of something being over without tangeable supporting evidence is false hope.
Subsequently, ontop of noting the slowly diminishing frequency of this symptom (it still happens now and then today), I began to note what triggered each occurance. One may ask 'why on earth do you bother to keep count of attacks?', and justifyably so, but I can tell you that knowing at the same month of August last year I suffered between 40-50 attacks of presyncopal lightheadedness, and this year it was less than 10 for the same month means that there is not only proof of it going away but reason also to plow ahead and do everything necessary to ensure it goes for good : it's a confidence installing measure and one thing I know about the symptom is that it tends to present most frequently when underconfident.

Memory, I find, works the same way : if I feel confident of recalling an event yesterday or last week then this reflects upon the ability to also physically function in the same manner. This is why I still study what I do 2-3 hours a day because knowing that I can remember my studies the next day helps maintain confidence in improvement, and if I improve with this then there's nothing to suggest that there shouldn't be improvement with my lightheadedness also - both problems come from the brain (we see with our brain through our eyes) - therefore it stands to reason that if the understanding of knowledge and retention is improved then the brain itself should become more healthy and lo and behold my chance of suffering an attack of lightheadedness, helped by physical fitness, has decreased to 28% from 300% last year (was guaranteed 3 attacks/day)

Memory is important and I think it's like a treadmill for the brain - exercise that and brain function improves and physical ability is raised (my opinion)

[tobecome]

i'm on the treadmill each day re: memory and it is true..use it or lose..
imho...
take care,
tish

[CR]

Daniel said:

Hi Cr, memory has been a major issue for yourself as for, I dare say, everyone on this forum so I can certainly say I've had a small taste of memory loss, like yourself, though not for as long - may I ask how bad it is for you? For me, initially at least, I first woke up post infection in 2005 and think it was 2004 (I guess as at that point that was the most recent memory I had), then after a few months I'd gotten used to it being 2005 but kept forgetting the day and month (for instance it was sunny outside so I thought it was maybe November (warm here then) and it felt like a Wednesday so I'd convince myself of that but in fact it was an August Thursday). Finally, it was only the time of day that was an issue and though now, 3 years on, I still have lapses of knowing when it is things are generally okay with only the exagerrated loss of time that most feel (like someone who says it feels like a Friday when it's only Thursday - I get that but it's no longer a surprise to be wrong).
Have you given consideration to, and I'll assume not for now (apologies if wrong), finding a subject you enjoy and trying to learn it? I ask about this as I was studying Chinese when I fell ill while in China and when I woke up again I felt as though my skills had digressed to the point where my grasp of the language was very close to being gone - i.e extremely rusty. To that end I tried to regain all I felt at the time had been lost and initially it was most distressing as I'd worked hard at it since 2003. I got a whiteboard and began translating childrens songs, thoughts I had, television commercial jingles and so forth and in time I found that by doing this repeatedly my brain adjusted to the demands of factual retention and, maybe half a year or so post discharge from hospital, I had regained all I used to know and slowly began to learn new vocabulary and now have added several hundred more with memory of how to write the words (Chinese is not an alphabetical language like English if you're unfamiliar).
Essentially and in my experience with memory, the memory is like a muscle : if you exercise it then it will in time adapt to being able to recall things, much like a muscle can lift heavier weights with training. As my ability in this language improved I found that the days were less hazy, events like birthdays or, closer to yourself, public holidays were less of a surprise and were recalled.
Also, I carry a daily diary (a small notebook with a calendar inside it) and noted events on any given day and it is now at the point where I virtually do not need it but have it anyway out of habit.
I think the key to improving memory is challenging it over time. Initially it may be distressing as some things don't appear to stick in the mind, but if you get into a routine of trying something like, for example, leaving a note for yourself beside your bed then when you awaken the next day seeing if you can recall it, in time your memory should adjust to this if it is stuck with. So, you may try first thing in the morning waking to this note and seeing if you recall it - even recalling that you have a note at all can be a sign of progress as your memory relearns the expectation from you of being required to remember something upon waking. Then you might try getting into the habit of watching a show like the morning news on television and your memory will learn to expect to do that, in the afternoon you might try reading something - a story or learning a skill and again you'll adjust.
I couldn't possibly know how it must be for yourself with this issue but I do know my own memory crisis and I do know it is no fun to constantly forget - all it takes is a little perseverance in a routine and it'll improve I'm sure.

Hope this helps and best of luck

[tobecome]

i second the issues presented by daniel...and if we can help..maybe a continued thread of current events, book club, sudoko sites, etc...let us know..
tish

CR said:

Daniel said:

Hi Cr, memory has been a major issue for yourself as for, I dare say, everyone on this forum so I can certainly say I've had a small taste of memory loss, like yourself, though not for as long - may I ask how bad it is for you? For me, initially at least, I first woke up post infection in 2005 and think it was 2004 (I guess as at that point that was the most recent memory I had), then after a few months I'd gotten used to it being 2005 but kept forgetting the day and month (for instance it was sunny outside so I thought it was maybe November (warm here then) and it felt like a Wednesday so I'd convince myself of that but in fact it was an August Thursday). Finally, it was only the time of day that was an issue and though now, 3 years on, I still have lapses of knowing when it is things are generally okay with only the exagerrated loss of time that most feel (like someone who says it feels like a Friday when it's only Thursday - I get that but it's no longer a surprise to be wrong).
Have you given consideration to, and I'll assume not for now (apologies if wrong), finding a subject you enjoy and trying to learn it? I ask about this as I was studying Chinese when I fell ill while in China and when I woke up again I felt as though my skills had digressed to the point where my grasp of the language was very close to being gone - i.e extremely rusty. To that end I tried to regain all I felt at the time had been lost and initially it was most distressing as I'd worked hard at it since 2003. I got a whiteboard and began translating childrens songs, thoughts I had, television commercial jingles and so forth and in time I found that by doing this repeatedly my brain adjusted to the demands of factual retention and, maybe half a year or so post discharge from hospital, I had regained all I used to know and slowly began to learn new vocabulary and now have added several hundred more with memory of how to write the words (Chinese is not an alphabetical language like English if you're unfamiliar).
Essentially and in my experience with memory, the memory is like a muscle : if you exercise it then it will in time adapt to being able to recall things, much like a muscle can lift heavier weights with training. As my ability in this language improved I found that the days were less hazy, events like birthdays or, closer to yourself, public holidays were less of a surprise and were recalled.
Also, I carry a daily diary (a small notebook with a calendar inside it) and noted events on any given day and it is now at the point where I virtually do not need it but have it anyway out of habit.
I think the key to improving memory is challenging it over time. Initially it may be distressing as some things don't appear to stick in the mind, but if you get into a routine of trying something like, for example, leaving a note for yourself beside your bed then when you awaken the next day seeing if you can recall it, in time your memory should adjust to this if it is stuck with. So, you may try first thing in the morning waking to this note and seeing if you recall it - even recalling that you have a note at all can be a sign of progress as your memory relearns the expectation from you of being required to remember something upon waking. Then you might try getting into the habit of watching a show like the morning news on television and your memory will learn to expect to do that, in the afternoon you might try reading something - a story or learning a skill and again you'll adjust.
I couldn't possibly know how it must be for yourself with this issue but I do know my own memory crisis and I do know it is no fun to constantly forget - all it takes is a little perseverance in a routine and it'll improve I'm sure.

Hope this helps and best of luck