Common Causes of Memory Loss and Effective Ways to Prevent It

Memory loss isn’t just an affliction of the elderly – young people can suffer from memory loss as well. Memory is an interesting thing, because it isn’t a tangible part of our neurology. While the memory was created in the physical world, it quickly gets stores into a virtual one – like an overlapping hologram. This happens in an area of the brain called the hippocampus, but we also have another section of the brain that is responsible for turning short-term memories into long-term memories. This is the part where most people have trouble – not remembering names, numbers and even basic math can be frustrating. Here are some common causes of memory loss and effective ways to prevent it.

One surprising cause of memory loss is stress. Stress is an evolutionary response to outside threats. All animals suffer from stress at one time at another – humans aren’t the only ones. However, humans differ from the birds and bees because we can suffer from chronic stress – usually as a result of work issues, money issues, family issues and so on. This can cause the neurons for creating new memories to stop working as efficiently. One of the best ways to reduce stress-related memory loss is to find ways to relax – meditate, do yoga, breathe – anything that can calm you down.

Another common cause of memory loss is due to side effects from a certain medication. All medications alter pathways in the brain, but sometimes they can crosswire the pathways needed for memory. If you are finding yourself unable to memorize things, or if you are having trouble with word retrieval, it could be because you are taking a new medication or you are having an adverse reaction. While you shouldn’t abruptly stop taking the medication – that could make the issue worse – you should speak to your doctor about the memory loss. There is a good chance that you need to be on a lighter dose or another medication altogether.

Next, you may be experiencing memory loss as a result of exhaustion. Whether you suffer from some kind of sleeping disorder, like insomnia or sleep apnea, or if you just can’t seem to fit in those eight hours of sleep you need per night, fatigue and exhaustion can play a huge role in your not having the best memory. This is because exhaustion affects your cognitive thinking, which is essential in the creation of short term and long term memory. So, you may want to think about getting more sleep or nailing down an answer to your sleep disorder. There are many treatments for all sorts of different sleep disorders.

?In the end, memory loss can get you in a lot of trouble. If you can’t remember the simple things, like words and people’s names, it can really affect your ability to have functioning interpersonal relationships. If you are looking for ways to improve your memory and word retrieval, you may want to speak with a doctor or neurologist – just search “Karen Bontia, Neurology” online – that can help you strengthen your memory. In the end, if your memory serves you well, your life will be much better for it.