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Jan 10, 2024 · Forgetfulness can be a normal part of aging, but some worry that it is the first sign of dementia. However, not all people with memory problems have dementia. How can you tell the difference between mild forgetfulness and serious memory problems like Alzheimer's disease?
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Learn the difference between normal age-related forgetfulness and signs of a memory problem, such as mild cognitive impairment or dementia, and about other factors that can affect memory and may be treatable.
Apr 3, 2024 · Everyone forgets things at times. Perhaps you misplace your car keys or forget the name of a person you just met. Some degree of memory loss, as well as a modest decline in other thinking skills, is a fairly common part of aging.
- Transience
- Absentmindedness
- Blocking
- Misattribution
- Suggestibility
- Bias
- Persistence
This is the tendency to forget facts or events over time. You are most likely to forget information soon after you learn it. However, memory has a use-it-or-lose-it quality: memories that are called up and used frequently are least likely to be forgotten. Although transience might seem like a sign of memory weakness, brain scientists regard it as b...
This type of forgetting occurs when you don't pay close enough attention. You forget where you just put your pen because you didn't focus on where you put it in the first place. You were thinking of something else (or, perhaps, nothing in particular), so your brain didn't encode the information securely. Absentmindedness also involves forgetting to...
Someone asks you a question and the answer is right on the tip of your tongue — you know that you know it, but you just can't think of it. This is perhaps the most familiar example of blocking, the temporary inability to retrieve a memory. In many cases, the barrier is a memory similar to the one you're looking for, and you retrieve the wrong one. ...
Misattribution occurs when you remember something accurately in part, but misattribute some detail, like the time, place, or person involved. Another kind of misattribution occurs when you believe a thought you had was totally original when, in fact, it came from something you had previously read or heard but had forgotten about. This sort of misat...
Suggestibility is the vulnerability of your memory to the power of suggestion — information that you learn about an occurrence after the fact becomes incorporated into your memory of the incident, even though you did not experience these details. Although little is known about exactly how suggestibility works in the brain, the suggestion fools your...
Even the sharpest memory isn't a flawless snapshot of reality. In your memory, your perceptions are filtered by your personal biases — experiences, beliefs, prior knowledge, and even your mood at the moment. Your biases affect your perceptions and experiences when they're being encoded in your brain. And when you retrieve a memory, your mood and ot...
Most people worry about forgetting things. But in some cases people are tormented by memories they wish they could forget, but can't. The persistence of memories of traumatic events, negative feelings, and ongoing fears is another form of memory problem. Some of these memories accurately reflect horrifying events, while others may be negative disto...
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May 15, 2024 · What's Normal (and What's Not) as You Age. Is your forgetfulness just a part of aging, or is it something else? Learn more about what to expect and what you should tell your doctor...
Apr 3, 2020 · Worried about memory loss? Some forgetfulness can be normal as you age, while others signs should trigger a healthcare provider's visit. Here's the difference.
Sep 19, 2016 · Brain Health. Forgetfulness: What’s Normal, What’s Not. Originally published September 19, 2016. Last updated April 26, 2024. Reading Time: 3 minutes. expand_more. How well do you remember what you did last week? Memory loss is not always a sign of aging. Learn about when you need to be concerned. Misplace your car keys? Forget someone’s name?
