Short-term and working memory difficulties

[Blueberry]

It's possible that the brain rerouting it's strength around the bruised areas, can go right through where traumatic memories are buried, and bring them to the surface.

That makes sense, thanks for the idea / explanation in laymen's terms.

[Andyman73]

It's possible that the brain rerouting it's strength around the bruised areas, can go right through where traumatic memories are buried, and bring them to the surface.

That makes sense, thanks for the idea / explanation in laymen's terms.

Don't ask me where I came up with that...cuz I have no idea. 

[JamesG]

funnily enough I am working on a book about the brain at the moment, design and illustration side, but... Trauma shrinks the hippocampus, the bit of your brain that distinguishes between past and present memories, this is is response to the brain's priority to it's needs. It's not brain damage, the analogy is more like a muscle builder only working one arm. The brain is flooded with specific threats so it prioritises. You will notice how you can talk at length about issues regarding trouble but not the names of writers or musicians. Two types of information and your brain has been partitioned to favour one over the other. One of the reasons the fatigue hits after the event is that this changing of emphasis back is hard work and you need peace and quiet to do it. So forget memory, go blank and trust your body knows what it is doing. Memory will return.

What was the question again?

[AphoticAtramentous]

funnily enough I am working on a book about the brain at the moment, design and illustration side, but... Trauma shrinks the hippocampus, the bit of your brain that distinguishes between past and present memories, this is is response to the brain's priority to it's needs. It's not brain damage, the analogy is more like a muscle builder only working one arm. The brain is flooded with specific threats so it prioritises. You will notice how you can talk at length about issues regarding trouble but not the names of writers or musicians. Two types of information and your brain has been partitioned to favour one over the other. One of the reasons the fatigue hits after the event is that this changing of emphasis back is hard work and you need peace and quiet to do it. So forget memory, go blank and trust your body knows what it is doing. Memory will return.

What was the question again?

That's really interesting, James.
"So forget memory, go blank and trust your body"
This reminds me... piano players (or at least me) can learn a song off-by-heart, or more 'scientifically', by muscle memory. You do this by playing a song over and over and over, the same way, each time. And I find that I play my songs more fluently when my mind is blank. If I try to focus on what is coming next or what I'm doing, I lose concentration and forget what to play.
It's like, when you're dealing with so much trauma, and it's the same thing over and over, you become accustomed to it. So when you meet similar experiences in your later years, by muscle memory, you react as you did as a child. You can think realistically and identify that the person you are currently with is NOT your abuser, that they're not a threat. But it doesn't help, because it's the 'muscle memory' that takes over. That's just my little theory and analogy.

[Boatsetsailrose]

This post is so helpful for me .. thank you
I'm learning to accept my challenges in this area, hold my hands up and say these are my limitations, this is what I need and there is a peace that is coming within that

[Andyman73]

So, I guess I've got 42 years of one armed workouts going on in my brain....except still with abusive wife, so...still doing the one armed brain workouts.

AA, muscle memory...yeah that sums it up alright.

[PeTe]

I've problems with both working memory, short, medium and long term memory. I don't think it's just dissociation. It definitely gets worse with stress. Before I had my first break-down, I had excellent memory - could rewind conversations I'd had, could flip the pages of books mentally and could synthesise knowledge. Now I'm forgetting way too much. The worst feeling has been forgetting whether old relatives are alive or dead, but the most hampering in daily life is at work and when dating.

[Andyman73]

I've problems with both working memory, short, medium and long term memory. I don't think it's just dissociation. It definitely gets worse with stress. Before I had my first break-down, I had excellent memory - could rewind conversations I'd had, could flip the pages of books mentally and could synthesise knowledge. Now I'm forgetting way too much. The worst feeling has been forgetting whether old relatives are alive or dead, but the most hampering in daily life is at work and when dating.

I could never do any of those things..rewinding conversations and that stuff. And I have a reasonably above average IQ. I forget today as soon as it becomes yesterday.

[AphoticAtramentous]

I forget today as soon as it becomes yesterday.

I like this sentence, hope you don't mind if I use it to refer to my own memory issues whenever someone asks. lol

[Andyman73]

I forget today as soon as it becomes yesterday.

I like this sentence, hope you don't mind if I use it to refer to my own memory issues whenever someone asks. lol

Sure thing, go right ahead. 

[Boatsetsailrose]

Thank u James that is really helpful