Memory Testing

I had my memory tested several months back because I was concerned that I kept forgetting things so much.

This wasn't like me considering that my sister nicknamed me the "family historian" because I had an uncanny way of remember dates and names, among other details.

But the past couple of years I had noticed that I was forgetting things more. I chalked it up to depression from my boyfriend's 2005 death from cancer but I also knew I had had some head injuries in the past and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. So I wondered if some brain damage was involved or maybe all that drinking in college killed too many brain cells. Someone I interviewed once who was also bipolar told me that people who were manic had brain damage from manic episodes.

I asked my therapist about this later and she said that wasn't true.

Nevertheless, because of the reoccuring memory lapses last year I decided to make an appointment and get my memory tested. It was a two-day thing and involved some intense problem-solving items as well as some simple tasks. Some of the problems I'd done before in various tests during years past. Others were new to me. What I did notice this time around was that I wasn't able to do some of the tasks that were easy before. Other tasks I'd always had trouble with and that never changed.

I was worried about the results this time around. Turns out I was right to be concerned. They said my memory in and of itself was fine but I have spatial and visual problems because of my bipolar disorder. They told me my brain can only process one piece of information at a time and not a lot of things at once which was common in bipolar people. The doctor recommended I take Niacin, B Complex (which I was already taking), and Vitamin E. She also suggested I get in a sleep study to correct my resting problem, which I later did with no findings. Getting more sleep, exercising to rhythmic music which is known to drive brain waves, and eating protein in the mornings were other suggestions as well.