poor memory

[songwriter]

Who has good advice for / can relate to POOR MEMORY?
My wife told me her work schedule 3 times and I still couldnt remember what she told me.
Or I can get off the phone with someone and almost instantly forget things that were said.
I feel so defective- so worthless and useless.

I don't want or need hugs but some practical advice might be good. Or maybe you could just shoot me instead.

[Linda]

I am not going to shoot you ;D but you are still getting a hug The only time my memory gets like that is when I am under stress...then it is all over...but usually I do have recall.

No advice for you here but I am sure others have some good strategys.

[mothercat]

There is nothing defective ,worthless, or useless about lack of memory..people like us are so busy , have so many thoughts, that our subconcious just occasionally says no room at the inn. Throw in stress, work, kids, and day to day hassels then we have caos. Just this morning I found the check and envelope with Marches housepayment on the console in my car.OOOPPs..
( when I forget ..I tend to forget big) If God wanted me to do all that I do, be responsible for all that I have to be, AND remember every little thing..then he should give me two heads. You are not alone..

I Am GONNA BUY LOTS OF STICKY NOTE PADS ! (in bright cheerful colors! ;D )

[AnneM]

Paul ... a pad and paper can work wonders !! ... A diary AND a pad and paper work even better wonders ... My advice is to WRITE IT DOWN .. whether it be your wife's work schedule or the main points of a phone call with a friend ... capture it with pen and paper ... !! Just a little notepad could make a BIG difference to you .. I promise!! ... because it sure does to me!!

[milesofsmiles]

I do the note pad thing all the time. When I first started my wife would get mad at me for interrupting her by getting up and getting my pad. I would just reply, would you be more angry if I forgot?? Now I usually keep it pretty close by. As far as phone calls go, I keep a pad right in front of me. I found it great to be able to corner some people with dates and times they called, then THEY are the ones that wish they had better memory.

Hang in there, give it a try.

Miles

[savvymom1]

Lot's of good advice here! My 71 yr old next door neighbor is in the early stages of Alzheimers. He keeps a memo pad in his shirt pocket and writes EVERYTHING down. Smart man.

We were talking on the phone recently. I needed him to pass some info along to some other neighbors and I could tell he had already forgotten what I said. I could hear him flipping pages so I assumed he had gotten his notepad out. I repeated the request again as I was ending our call, confident he was jotting it down. Luckily all the neighbors recieved their call from him!

I hope I will be so organized when i get older!

[SKay]

The others beat me to it. Write everything down. As I get older, I find more and more that I can't trust my memory. One word of caution, though. Try to have only ONE pad of paper and keep it with you all the time. In my haste to quickly find something to write on before I forget what I need to make note of, I often end up with papers all over the place and sometimes can't find the information I need.

[TexasMom]

I try to remember the number of things I have to remember. If I have to pick up specific items at the store, I rememeber that I have 3 things that I must pick up. That helps.

[Allanque]

An ADD couple was watching T.V. one evening. Ethel said, "Henry, get a piece of paper, I want to tell you a few things I want from the store."

Henry asked, "How many things do you want?" (E) "Three." (H) "I can remember that!" (E) "Yeah, sure, just get a piece of paper willya?" (H) "Just tell me what you want or I ain't goin'." (E) "O.K., I want vanilla ice cream". (H) Geez, anyone could remember that!" (E) "I'd feel better if you'd write it down." (H) "Will you stop already?! You're such a nag! What else do you want?" (E) "I want some chocolate syrup." (H) "So what's the problem - the chocolate syrup goes on the ice cream, . . any idiot could remember that." (E) "Yes, but if you would just jot it down..." (H) "You're driving me crazy! What's the third thing?" (E) "I want cherries." (H) Come on, the cherries go on the syrup that goes on the ice cream . . a 3 year old could remember this!"

Henry leaves, is gone for three hours, and returns with nothing but a ham sandwich. Ethel unwraps the sandwich, looks at Henry in total disbelief and says, "Now just look at this; YOU FORGOT THE MUSTARD!"

[Blue Oreo]

I use Ginko Bioloba(sp) for memory on my DD>. it helps out alot.. plus add in some sublingual B12 for energy.. its awesome and most docs like it too.

here is a hug anyway.. they are freebies
and use a notepad to write down things that are of dire need. I have lil notes all over my house.. ask your wife to write her schedule down for you from now on, then no mistakes to make you feel down in the dumps. Any lil thing will help recall for you.

[kstquilter]

i can certainly relate to this! i agree with everyone, write it down!
one dr. for dd had us buy a white board and put it near a place you pass by alot, like on your way out the door. we put tons of stuff on that thing. it's near the calendar which has all the normal appts, etc on it.
so we use the white board for things like "don't forget your dr. appt today" or pick up milk at store. at least it might help you remember to put it on a list and in your pocket! we use it for phone messages or something unusual coming up during the week.
can you use a calendar reminder on your computer? my husband now has a pda and he uses that to put reminders in for meetings and appts.
i also saw on tv this morning that zinc might be helpful in retaining short term memory. it was on good morning america this morning. be careful you don't take too much tho as it can be harmful. it's a new study so they don't really know if it makes a difference but might be worth a try.
karen