Each stroke leaves its marks, and often memory loss is one of them. Depending on the area of the brain affected by stroke and the extent of damage, impaired memory impacts daily living in various ways. On the bright side, we know that new memories can be constructed using specific strategies.
Kathryn J. Tomlin, M.S., CCC-SLP writes about the three primary systems we use to store information including visual, auditory and kinesthetics/feelings. We can use all three, but typically one avenue proves stronger. Learning visually means the individual "pictures" information. Auditory means learning through words, narratives, or conversations. Kinesthetic information stores via hands-on experiences.
Associate Information With Something You Already Know
Barbara Van Dyne, M.A., CCC-SLP suggests using verbal association this way: recall dates by tagging it to another easy recall date. For example, if the date comes a month before your birthday or a week after a holiday, associate those pairs. Van Dyne notes that visual associations for physical details can help remember names. For example if your co-worker, Sandy has sandy-colored hair, you have a match.
Organizing information into categories allows the brain to associate items that belong together. When preparing a grocery list, write the produce items, canned goods or meats together.
Location association: To remember medicine, for example, put it next to the cat food. Fluffy will not let you forget to feed her and you'll see your pill box when you get the food.
Mnemonics also associate ideas with rhymes, stories or pictures. For spelling, many of us still use the phrase "i before e, except after c." Make up your own associations to remember names, places, medications or doctor's names. Tomlin writes that for associations to be strong enough, you must sometimes exaggerate. For example, remember to buy soap by picturing a giraffe selecting a bar of soap from the top of a tree.
Visualize: Imagine It
Visualizing an object or an event conjures up images in the mind. When you recall past events, something similar to a video plays out in your head. To create new memories, direct your own movie. For example, go to the supermarket, pick up each item you need, go to the cashier and then put the groceries in the car--all in your head before you leave home.
Van Dyne says, make it a 100 gallon carton of milk that you must push to the car, to make it a strong image.
Rehearse and Repeat
Say it over and over again to yourself, just as you did when you studied for a test in school. Over learning can help, Van Dyne writes.
Chunking bits of connected information together helps with storage, according to Angela O'Donnell and her co-authors. For example, arrange phone numbers in groups of three numbers, then four numbers (555-551-5151). Short lists lend themselves to the same thing; milk, bread, eggs--tomatoes, lettuce. You can group items together that belong together, such as dairy items or produce. Then add rhythm to the rehearsal. Tap out the words or numbers with pauses at the dashes as you rehearse.
Create Tools
Today tools abound to help all of us manage and improve memory. Write it on a calendar or sticky note, record it, set an alarm or set a task on the computer. Carry a small notebook in your purse or car. Use those aids as an exercise to feed your visual or auditory memory. Organize your notes in categories or acronyms. Look at the notes or listen to the recording repeatedly, until you recall the details you need.
"Memory is the diary that we all carry about with us." --Oscar Wilde"
References
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association: Preferred Practice Patterns for the Profession of Speech-Language Pathology
- Advance for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists; When Memory Fails; Jess Dancer, EdD
- American Stroke Association: Simple Techniques Can Help Memory; Barbara Van Dyne, MA, CCC-SLP
- "Educational Psychology:Reflection for Action, Canadian Edition"; Angela O'Donnell, et.al; 2008
