Somewhere In My Memory

“If you don’t use it you lose it” is a saying that is often applied to physical condition or skills, but it applies equally to your mind as well. Just as a person who doesn’t do physical activity of any kind will get out of shape, so too a person who doesn’t do any sort of mental exercises will let their mind get out of shape. And if you let your mind decline too much, the chance of dementia occurring in later life significantly increases.

While there are many things you can do work your brain, crossword puzzles are an easily available form of mental aerobics (ie: a task or exercise that requires mental effort). Heck, if you (or someone else in your family) already get the daily newspaper, chances are you already have a large supply of them available.

If you’re not already a crossword fan, you need to know that the difficulty level of the puzzles is related to the day of the week - as it gets closer to the weekend, the puzzles steadily become more and more challenging.

Like all forms of exercise that work on our mental fitness, the goal of is to “shake up” the usual mental assumptions we hold in our mind and force us to think of novel solutions. In addition, a successful brainteaser, puzzle or other problem solving exercise often gives us a moment of pleasure and satisfaction when we finally realize what the solution is - that moment when it seems like a “light bulb” of understanding or insight suddenly turns on in our brain. Some experts believe this process correlates with the actual “stretching and toning” workout we are trying to give our brain cells.

There are many memory tools you can use to keep yourself organized, but if there is one tool above all that you should be using - the most basic tool if you like - it is a scheduler. Schedulers come in many different forms - appointment books, calendars, electronic scheduling devices and software you can run on your computer. They are one of the best tools available to organize your information so you can get things done on time. A good scheduler (and not all schedulers are the same) will allow you to keep a track of the things you need to remember - appointments, contact details, to do lists, and other important information.

But once you have one, what can you do to maximize your use of a scheduler? Here are a few tried-and-true tips:

1. Make sure the scheduling aid you get fits your lifestyle. If you are already using a scheduler look at it closely to make sure that it meets your needs, especially if you are getting ready to buy a new one. Rather than just buying the same scheduler again, compare it with the others on the market. Your circumstances and requirements may have changed, a more suitable scheduler may have come onto the market, or you just may not have been able to get the most suitable one when you bought your current one. And if you are looking to buy one for the first time, make sure you have a look at all the options available and try to imagine using each of them.

As an aside - you may get a “free” scheduler of some kind each year from somewhere (perhaps your work or a bank). While it can be tempting to just use that (after all, you didn’t pay for it), ask yourself if it really does what you need it to. Free items can sometimes end up costing us a lot!

2. A scheduler is only useful if you use it. This comes down to two things - having the right scheduler that fits your lifestyle (see tip 1), and getting into the habit of using it. As soon as you have something to write down (an appointment, an address or important note you need to remember) make sure you put it into your scheduler. Don’t fall into the habit of saying “oh, I’ll write it in later”. Nine times out of time you’ll have completely forgotten about the information later!

If, no matter what, you do keep finding that you aren’t using your scheduler that is a sure sign that you have the wrong one for you. It’s human nature to not use things that don’t suit us. If you aren’t using your scheduler, keep looking for one that you will use.

3. Size does matter - at least with schedulers. You need to make sure that your scheduler has enough room for you to write down all your appointments and information clearly. Exactly what classifies as “enough room” is up to you, but make sure that when you write down your information that you don’t have to squeeze it in, or put arrows to a continuation on another page. The only thing worse than not writing down information in your scheduler is writing it down then not being able to decipher it later on!

This is an odd piece of news that’s just come out. US researchers have discovered that people over 60 who undergo elective surgery may have a higher risk of lasting memory problems.

An exerpt from the article:

Three months after surgery, cognitive deficits occurred in 12.7 percent of elderly patients, compared with just 5.7 percent of those in the young group or 5.6 percent in the middle-aged group.

The study suggests that overall, some 30 to 41 percent of adult patients undergoing major non-cardiac surgery have some form of memory or processing problem when they are discharged, but most people recover after three months.

But those 60 and older were more than twice as likely to still have problems three months after surgery. And those that had problems were more likely to die within the first year after surgery.

You can read the full article here.

While there are many causes of forgetting important information, distractions are a big reason why we forget things. This applies whether it was something we have been told, have seen, or have read. If we are not focused at the time we see or hear the information, more often than not we won’t remember the information when we need it later on. Our parents might have said that the information went in one ear and out the other, but in cognitive theory terms the information hasn’t made it from our working memory to longer-term memory.

The effects of distractions on memory are especially common these days where most of us are busy and trying to do several things at once. We might be trying to study the paper while listening to the radio or watching a TV show - in extreme cases we might be also trying to have a conversation or cook a meal as well! Even in the car, driving somewhere can be enough of a distraction that we don’t remember something we have been told or heard on the radio - especially if something outside the vehicle has also caught our attention.

If you find yourself forgetting things because of this, you need to try and condition yourself to eliminate the problem. Make the time to focus on just one task (like reading the paper, or having the conversation) and remove the other distractions in your environment. If you are talking with someone, turn off (or mute) the radio or TV. If you are cooking dinner, don’t try to study that important document you need to read. Try to focus on just one task at a time, and you’ll find that it does wonders for your memory!