armchair psychologists of resetera, am i fucked?

[neon/drifter]

Hi there, I'm 33 yrs old and just the other day, I forgot my home address and zip code. I could not recall them AT ALL until my wife reminded me.

It was that moment that finally made me start to panic. You see, I've actually got a couple of problems with dodgy memory. For example, I can't remember the order of any of the months past March. I don't know all the names of santas reindeer. I just don't remember numbers in general. I have to write everything down at my job or I am fucked. Sometimes I forget my own phone number.

But I'm scared to be honest. Forgetting my home address? I don't normally have a problem with that. One of my greatest fears is growing old and having alzheimers or dementia and here I am feeling like I'm certainly bound for it. I'm frightened.

 

[SilentPanda]

Talk to real doctor and get test to see if problem exist

 

[oakenhild]

Talk to real doctor and get test to see if problem exist

Click to shrink...

This is definitely a 'talk to a real doctor' situation. No need to panic, but we're not the right place for this type of advice.

 

[Porygon]

That is not something for a psychologist, go see a damn doctor

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

If being bad with numbers and not knowing the names of Santa's reindeer is an early sign of dementia, I'm in a lot of trouble.

 

[Spawnsniper]

Sleep deprivation can cause dodgy memory, trouble sleeping? are you dyslexic?

 

[blame space]

my memory is completely broken but it's probably because i abused alcohol every day for like a decade.

i can't help but sometimes it feels good to know you're not alone.

 

[Yoshimitsu126]

Not a doc. Starting a journal might not be a bad idea. Might be a good exercise for the brain. Again not a doc though and I don't keep a journal myself except writing plans at work.

 

[onpoint]

Set a reminder in your phone for tomorrow during business hours so you don't forget this advice, make an appointment with a professional and get some scans done or something. Catch it early and correct whatever it is.

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

I'll be honest, I couldn't always get all the months right until I worked jobs that required me to know them for planning/payment purposes. It just wasn't that important otherwise, so I tended to kinda ... mix a few up. Never thought anything of it. Still don't.

I don't know all of Santa's reindeer.

Which is to say: you could be totally fine! But you should absolutely go see a doctor.

 

[Zomba13]

Talk to a doctor but it could just be exhaustion or dehydration.

 

[Billfisto]

I can't remember the order of any of the months past March

Click to shrink...

Is this something people can commonly do? I have to sing the song in my head each time.

Like others have said, I'd go see a professional, though. Losing your memory is nothing to sneeze at, and they may have advice on things you can do to retain it longer.

 

[Human Resources]

you might have just had a lot on your mind. i forget people's names all the time, even good friends.

 

[Dead Man Typing]

I wouldn't panic over this. I had a similar freaked out feeling when I was around 30 and I completely forgot my pin number for my bank card.

Like, I just couldn't think of a 4 digit number that I had used thousands of times over the years. I ended up locking my card with 3 failed attempts. When I finally did remember it, I felt like a complete idiot but it was just a one-off really weird mental block and nothing quite like that has happened since.

So consult a doctor if it will make you feel better and just to be sure, but it's probably nothing.

 

[IDreamOfHime]

I forget my post code all the time.

 

[oakenhild]

Is this something people can commonly do? I have to sing the song in my head each time.

Click to shrink...

Yea, this isn't exactly challenging, to be honest.

I live in a state where each month is quite different, to be honest. If I lived in San Diego, it may be a different story.

 

[neon/drifter]

Is this something people can commonly do? I have to sing the song in my head each time.

Like others have said, I'd go see a professional, though. Losing your memory is nothing to sneeze at, and they may have advice on things you can do to retain it longer.

Click to shrink...

I can't remember the mnemonic/song to do that unfortunately. I knew it when i was a kid.

 

[Messofanego]

Get a cognitive assessment done through your doctor.

 

[SilentPanda]

Is this something people can commonly do? I have to sing the song in my head each time.

Like others have said, I'd go see a professional, though. Losing your memory is nothing to sneeze at, and they may have advice on things you can do to retain it longer.

Click to shrink...

That's because in English it's a name for month.

But in Chinese and Japanese it's

Number and month, so translate literal is 1st month, 2nd month. Although day of the week is different, chinese is still day and number, Japanese is base on the element, day of fire, day of wood etc

 

[El Bombastico]

I've had some bad brain farts in my life but never so bad as to actually forget my address or the months of the year.

Go see a neurologist, OP.

 

[aerts1js]

Hi there, I'm 33 yrs old and just the other day, I forgot my home address and zip code. I could not recall them AT ALL until my wife reminded me.

It was that moment that finally made me start to panic. You see, I've actually got a couple of problems with dodgy memory. For example, I can't remember the order of any of the months past March. I don't know all the names of santas reindeer. I just don't remember numbers in general. I have to write everything down at my job or I am fucked. Sometimes I forget my own phone number.

But I'm scared to be honest. Forgetting my home address? I don't normally have a problem with that. One of my greatest fears is growing old and having alzheimers or dementia and here I am feeling like I'm certainly bound for it. I'm frightened.

Click to shrink...

You need to get checked out. Not remembering the order of the months past March definitely would've been the red flag to me.

 

[Deleted member 4212]

One time when I was younger I forgot the door code to my apartment, and I seriously could not pull it for anything. I sat in the hallway for about 30 minutes until I could remember (no door keys, just a code). It was scary.

 

[blame space]

i told the pharmacist the wrong birthday when i went to get my vaccine. i was taking my mom and she looked at me like, "did my son just not know his own birthday?" classic.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I literally forget what I'm saying mid sentence (or thinking mid thought) like dozens of times a day :omg:

RIP

 

[Annubis]

Forgetting that many things is cause for concern. I'd consult.
It could still be many things which are treatable so I wouldn't feel doomed for now.

 

[Bigg]

This is the sort of thing that could be relatively minor or it could be possibly a serious issue and unfortunately there is really no way to know unless you see a doctor about it

 

[LifeLine]

Yeah go see a doc.

Ask your wife to do a MMSE on you.

 

[Toth]

As a psychologist who actually does assessments for a living, you probably want to look around for a neuropsychological assessment AND a neurological exam. Neurologists look for brain damage / issues while we (the psychologists) can ascertain whether your memory problems are of a verbal, visual, short term, or long term nature. That information helps us make informed recommendations. I see plenty of people who have terrible memory and its best to go for a deep dive to see where the problems are strongest. Many times it can be undiagnosed ADHD, visual spatial processing issues, audio processing disorders (happens a lot with numbers), psychological (anxiety can do a number here), or a neurodevelopmental condition. For psychologists closest to you, use the good old google. Some (like the practice I work for) also take insurance.

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

i told the pharmacist the wrong birthday when i went to get my vaccine. i was taking my mom and she looked at me like, "did my son just not know his own birthday?" classic.

Click to shrink...

A couple of years back I spent a few days writing 2014 on all my paperwork at work. I have no fucking clue why, I just got it in my head that that was the year even though it was 2019 or whatever. Someone from corporate shot my boss an email after a few days telling her that we really need to check our dates on shit.

 

[Lightus]

Idk, depends on how often it happens. I occasionally get so fixated on what I'm thinking on that I have a hard time recalling things unrelated to what I was thinking about. I've definitely forgotten my address, date of birth, year I bought my car, social security number, good friends names etc. I'll remember it later the same day but I just can't pull the information on demand in that moment due to being super focused on something else.

It generally doesn't intefer with anything so I see it as a non-issue. If it's causing problems I'd definitely get it checked out.

 

[FinFunnels]

I dunno, I pretty much never remember my zip code. I just let Google autocomplete it for me.

I'm don't even know my exact age, tbh.

 

[BranCrackr]

Do you have carbon monoxide detectors in your house?

 

[fontguy]

You need to see a neurologist.

 

[TheMadTitan]

Forgetting some things is common -- I forgot my favorite number for literally three years before it spontaneously came back to me one day -- but this, yeah, you probably need several MRI's.

 

[16bitnova]

Just go to a doctor, friend. They're the only ones that can give proper diagnosis. Could be nothing major. But why not just go check to be sure? We're an internet gaming focused forum. Not the right place.

 

[blame space]

i wish you could just get your brain scanned whenever you want. there's no way a doctor is going to order an MRI or CT scan for me.

 

[McScroggz]

What does psychology have to do with what sounds like a neurological issue? Consult a real doctor.

 

[Toth]

What does psychology have to do with what sounds like a neurological issue? Consult a real doctor.

Click to shrink...

Psychologists do actual memory tests and go deeper in what parts of memory the issues are most present. Neurologists tend to look at surface level brain scans. Both are needed to tell a more accurate tale.

P.S We are real doctors. The amount of neurobiological information doctors of psychology have is extensive. We just can't read scans though XD

 

[PrepaidPostage]

OP, you made a post about this last week, don't you remember?

 

[McScroggz]

Psychologists do actual memory tests and go deeper in what parts of memory the issues are most present. Neurologists tend to look at surface level brain scans. Both are needed to tell a more accurate tale.

P.S We are real doctors. The amount of neurobiological information doctors of psychology have is extensive. We just can't read scans though XD

Click to shrink...

Sorry when I said real doctor, that was as opposed to consulting era members.

 

[Toth]

Sorry when I said real doctor, that was as opposed to consulting era members.

Click to shrink...

Gotcha XD

 

[Fiction]

This is a 100% regular doctor thing, not a psychological thing. Go see your GP asap.

 

[Akainu]

Yes you keep forgetting the thousand dollars you owe me.

 

[TheOMan]

Do you have carbon monoxide detectors in your house?

Click to shrink...

Actually - this is a good point.

 

[echoshifting]

I think if it just happened once it's probably not a big deal. I mean, get checked out but don't sweat it too much. All kinds of things can fuck with your memory. My memory is a mess and it's largely down to ptsd and stress. Not trying to put you on the spot but you sounded like you were in a pretty bad place just a couple of days ago so I imagine you are under a fair amount of stress.

 

[Prax]

That is not something for a psychologist, go see a damn doctor

Click to shrink...

Psychologists and occupational therapists are able to do assessments for memory. General practitioner doctors don't normally have access to these assessment tools.

Occupational therapists in particular are often trained to provide tools and workarounds for memory deficits, as many of them work with such clients after injury, decline due to aging, or children with cognitive impairments.

I would say to go get assessed, but the general workaround is to just have all the information on your smart device (phone) or wallet just in case of emergencies. If your memory has always been a bit dodgy or attention-deficity, this new digital age doesn't help with you retaining amd recalling it, as we are taught more and more to offload that information/data onto smart devices.

For example, I used to be able to remember loads of telephone numbers. Now though? I store them all in my cellphone and am lucky I can remember even my husband's sometimes! lol

 

[hateradio]

What does psychology have to do with what sounds like a neurological issue? Consult a real doctor.

Click to shrink...

Maybe OP thinks it's a mental illness of some kind, but it definitely sounds like dementia.

 

[Truly Gargantuan]

I forget everyday shit all the time. I forgot my debit cards pin number and had to log into my banking app to change it. I've forgotten my punch in number for work even tho I use it damn near everyday. I've forgotten my phone number. I can't remember street names for the life of me. I have to sing the calendar song to remember the order of months and I still get Sept, Oct, & Nov confused. Sometimes I forget co-workers names.

 

[Xavillin]

I don't know the names of all of Santa's Reindeers either. There's of course Rudolph, can't miss that. Then there's Dasher… Prancer or Prasher? Is that a word? I don't know the rest. I don't even know how many there are.

Anyways, go check a real doctor, OP. Hopefully everything will turn out fine!

 

[blame space]

it's me, prasher.