GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — Have you ever walked into a room and were like, “What did I come in here for?” Or, forgotten a completely normal word while you’re talking to someone? And have you ever wondered if your memory lapses are something worse? If you said yes to any or all these questions, keep on reading.
Dana Nelson started a new job a few years ago. It was right about the same time she also noticed she seemed a bit more forgetful.
"There'll be times when I have to call my girlfriend, 'did I clock out from work?' Because I'm like, I don't remember if I just did that, and I literally just left work like three minutes ago,” she said.
But to be fair, like most of us, she's got a lot going on.
“I’m juggling balls at work, on top of trying to remember orthodontics appointments, doctor appointments, football practice, is my kid taking cold lunch today, do I have to drive kids to work because they don't have licenses, that kind of thing. So, it's not just my schedule, it's three kids on top of it and a husband.”
It's not just moms, it’s men too. We're just at that age. Not any age specifically, but as we get older, we just have more in our lives. Dealing with kids and aging parents and likely at a higher level at our jobs.
“Life just gets busier and that hits people. And people think busy is loss of memory and it's like, you know, if you're trying to remember 100 things and you remember 90 things, you're probably doing pretty good. 10 years ago, you were only trying to remember 20 things,” said Dr. Sarah Benish, a neurologist with M Health Fairview and the U of M Medical School. She’s also on the board of directors at the American Academy of Neurology.
Dr. Benish says she hears these kinds of fears all the time.
“I tell you the one thing that's going to make your memory even worse is if you're stressed or worried about it,” Dr. Benish said.
Super. So, how do we stop worrying about it? She says remove the stress and your memory will likely bounce back. We know, easier said than done. But there are some other very normal things that can affect your memory: lack of sleep, too much alcohol and hormone changes during perimenopause.
“Estrogen changes can change women's cognitive functioning. They can feel like they're having a hard time keeping focused with their remembering things, word finding,” said Dr. Benish.
Some prescription drugs can also have an affect on memory, like those to treat seizures or migraines. Even some over-the-counter drugs have an impact like cold medicines and sleep aids.
“If something is treating pain, if something is relaxing a muscle, it most likely has the risk of potentially making a person sedated, or drowsy or have memory issues,” said Dr. Benish.
What about all the technology we use? Is it affecting our memory too? Dr. Ronald Petersen, the director of the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer's Disease Research Center and Mayo Clinic study of Aging says, for many reasons, limiting screen time is a good idea. And while there is no current science proving our personal tech is worsening our memory, it is for sure rewiring our brains.
“It’s quite likely that the younger generations who are growing up with personal devices will have their brain networks develop in a different fashion then say older persons. What the impact of that is going to be for aging, cognitive changes, memory loss really is unknown at this time,” said Dr. Petersen.
What is known? Screen time, be it on your phone or in front of a tv, is sedentary. And being sedentary is linked to a higher risk of dementia. If after learning all of this and you're still concerned, here's what you need to know.
“I think what you're looking for is a pattern. If it's just here or there that's nothing to panic about, that's normal aging, if it starts to have bigger consequences and it keeps happening again and again, that's when we need to take a step back and take a look at it,” said Dr. Benish.
There's no standard baseline because we're all so different, and have different things going on in our lives, including family history. So it's important to know what's normal for you.
“If you notice you're changing, and somebody who knows you well notices you're changing, then that may involve further investigation,” said Dr. Petersen.
First stop; your primary care doctor who can evaluate and determine if more testing is needed. But again, don’t stress, most of what you are experiencing is completely normal.
“I think having a brighter outlook on aging, keeping a sense of humor, can all be beneficial for enhancing your quality of life as you age,” said Dr. Petersen.
Dana's already following that advice, laughing it off as just part of life.
“There should be a pill it's not fair, how come we don't have something to help us?" she joked.
But there are things you can do right now that could boost, or at the very least, maintain brain function. And it doesn’t mean you suddenly have to be a crossword puzzle guru. Most of what our doctor’s suggested are lifestyle changes. That includes exercise.
“Exercise rather vigorously for 150 minutes a week. Thirty minutes five times a week or 50 minutes times," said Dr. Petersen.
Stay engaged.
Dr. Benish says “People who keep their brains engaged and challenged tend to maintain their memory, cognitive function, more than people who kind of unplug and don’t really challenge their brains to be active.”
She suggests writing a poem, painting a picture, taking a cooking class, and learning a new recipe. Just something that is challenging for your brain to learn something new and think about things differently.
Stay connected to friends and family.
Dr. Petersen says, “Try to remain involved in what's going on in current affairs, reading, going to plays, discussing current events. Those kinds of activities are usually beneficial."
Dr. Petersen also suggests the Mediterranean diet, getting good sleep, avoiding smoking, limit alcohol and maintain a healthy weight. Here’s more information from Mayo Clinic.
The Alzheimer's Association also has some suggestions along with Harvard Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If you read them all, you will notice that most of these credible organizations have very similar things to say.
Dr. Benish also had some interesting insights on ADD and anxiety as it relates to memory, especially for women.
“The statistics show that women got diagnosed with attention deficit disorder less than men, and the reason for that is women are more prone to this inattentive attention deficit disorder, where they would kind of be in classroom, and zone out, and not pay attention, but they weren’t hyperactive. They weren’t the kids who have the hyperactivity that come to the teacher’s attention,” she said.
She also says those who suffer from anxiety may notice it affects their memory too.
“Anxiety is kind of like having someone yelling at you in the corner of the room when you are trying to get a task done. It is very distracting, right? And you’re not going to perform as well on whatever task you are doing because of someone yelling at you in the corner. So, I think a lot of people who have anxiety tend to think their memory is poor."
What about COVID and memory loss? Both Dr. Benish and Dr. Petersen say that many people did experience memory loss while they were infected. For most people it went away after the virus, for others it lasted longer, and for some with long-haul COVID, it persists. However, both doctors say there’s not enough science yet to make more assumptions about COVID and memory loss.
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