My memory has always been like that and I've only recently suffered from
seizures and hence AEDs. Some people have good long term memory, some don't.
It doesn't have to be anything to do with the AEDs.

Memory loss goes the meds & seizures.  I can't remember getting married.  I
look at the pictures & 'sort of' remember.  At high school reunions I smile
a lot & ask a friend about others.  It's great with movies...I can go see
them over & over again & it's like the first time!  Same thing with reading
a book.  There ARE certain things I remember though...like that there wasn't
a huge hole in my door before I left 2 days prior (my son tried, "Mom, how
do you know it wasn't there?  You can't remember anything.")

There was a very good article about memory in the September 2002 edition
of Epilepsy Action the magazine of Epilepsy Action (the working name of
the British Epilepsy Association). Their web address is
www.epilepsy.org.uk

It includes several hints on how to help your memory. The article was
written by a neuropsychologist who said 'I normally spend time assuring
people that they are not suffering from dementia nor that they will lose
their memory altogether'.

I'm 56 and my epilepsy started 32 years ago and my memory has deteriorated
ever since my use of it has diminished. 25 yrs ago I was working p/t as a
university physics teaching lab assistant and doing Open University
courses. Some of them were in psychology but all I can remember now is
that there's a definite difference between 'free recall' and 'recognition'.

My 'free recall' is awful, sometimes I have to say out loud again and
again what I intend to do next or I'm distracted and do something else.

I've worked out that the reason why old people remember things from their
early days better than recent ones is because the early ones have been
repeated many times and so they know them off by heart. Whereas they find
it difficult to record newer things and don't think of them enough to
create firm memories.

I've realised that to get something in my memory I really have to
concentrate and establish a sort of mental photograph of it. Or they have
to be repeated enough soon enough and then at reasonable intervals
afterwards. I order things by mail order and forget I've done it if they
don't come within a couple of weeks.

I realised about 18mths ago that if I didn't cook a meal again within a
few weeks - ie ones I'd been doing for years - then I'd completely forget
how to do it.

My recognition is pretty bad too. I used to recognise things when they
arrived but the last time I'd completely forgotten.

My husband gets annoyed that I forget what we've agreed and finds it
difficult to accept that I'm finding it difficult to learn things and
being told 'all you've got to do is ...' only adds to the stress which
makes the memory worse.

But if you can put the suggestions in the article into practice then they
will help.

Chris L

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