Memory function, memory loss and changes after brain injury
Difficulties with organizing, starting things (initiating), putting things in the right order (sequencing), making plans and sorting out priorities are common cognitive outcomes of brain injury, particularly when the frontal lobe is damaged. I recently received a letter asking about strategies for organisation planning and problem solving. How can you organize your own life, and that of your family, when you have trouble with planning and organizing after brain injury. This question inspired this series of articles. Last week Brain Injury Difficulty Problem-Solving and Planning looked at what can happen after brain injury. Today tips and strategies for organisation planning and problem solving that might be useful after brain injury. These functions are what you might see termed as “Executive functions”. (brief explanation near the end in “What Does Cognitive Mean”) All this sounds sort of business talk and that is kind of what executive functions are really – the business end of the brain, figuring things out, making things happen. We…
Today in the final of a series about Memory - a list of memory strategies after brain injury. A whole lot of ideas that might help begin to address memory loss after brain injury. You will need to work out which ones are likely to help. What works will change from person to person depending on the areas of memory affected. I can make a big list of strategies look simple. I can make a big list look easy. The reality is hard work, patience and tweeking to make the strategy fit lifestyle and circumstances. The important thing is to find strategies that best address the particular areas of memory loss while using the least amount of energy. Think of it like a bank account with limited funds – you want to take care of the money (brain energy) that is available and use it for what you need most. The following memory strategies use the broad strategy headings from last…
Changes in Memory after Brain Injury.
Today a brief overview about memory after brain injury. What can happen and what can impact on memory. When something goes wrong, it is often helpful to know how it works normally. So it is with memory. Understanding changes to memory after brain injury can be easier to understand if you have some knowledge about how memory is supposed to work: what is normal memory what are the different stages and types of memory what parts of the brain are involved in memory strategies for memory loss Memory After Brain Injury The following are key points from previous articles on how memory works followed by what can happen when the brain is damaged: Memory function is our: Experience of the past. Adaptation to the present and planning for the future” (Rewriting the Script: Demonstrating Skills and Talents. (Workbook documentary video and teaching program). Adelaide: ISLD Flinders University. (1999). After brain injury our past, present or future memory can be altered:…
Memory 103 Memory and the Brain - a brief look at the parts of the brain involved in memory. Last week in Memory 102 we focussed on the differences between short term and long term memory. A brief look at what memory is and how it works was covered in the first of the series Memory 101. Why another anatomy and physiology lesson? Knowledge of memory and the brain helps expand understanding that: The part of the brain damaged will determine the physical and cognitive affects of brain injury. This includes memory. The parts of the brain thought to aid memory can help understand the kind of memory loss a person has after brain injury. Memory is not one thing. There is not one part of the brain labelled memory. Understanding a little of the anatomy can help to understand how memory functions and the complex and different types of memory. A bit of knowledge about memory and the brain along with…
Long Term Memory 1969 Man Lands on the Moon
What turns a short term memory to long term memory ? What makes memory work better? How come I remember where I was when man walked on the moon but I can’t remember the name of the person I met briefly yesterday? Today short term memory to long term memory follows on from the discussion in Memory 101 What is Memory about three main stages of memory - 1) We take in and form (or forget) memories. 2. We store memories. For a short term or a long term. 3. We recall memories. And that is as simple as I can make a process where billions of cells are all tripping over each other to remember stuff! I am using the term ‘Stuff’ here – this is my very own technical term to describe all the information, events, actions, tasks, senses and on and on – that our brain remembers. In the words of the song “Memories are made of this”.…
How do we remember the detail of our lives? What is memory? How do we know how to do stuff? How do we make memories? What happens to remembering after brain injury? Why can I remember some things and not others? So many questions and it all comes back to Memory. Difficulty with memory is one of the most common outcomes after brain injury. After brain injury the memory process can be interrupted in one or more places causing different kinds, and different levels, of memory loss. Understanding a bit about the mechanics of memory can help to understand the sometimes quirky forms of memory loss after brain injury. Understanding can help you not to personalise or lose patience. As I finally began to write more about What is Memory. One article turned into a suite! Today is the first of the series - Memory 101. Why Memory 101 you may ask? I have noticed important sounding topics are often called “Something…
Henry Meynell Rheam [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
For many of us there is a fascination, and often newsworthiness, about a person being in a state of perpetual sleep then waking sometime in the future. Think about the fairy-tale of ‘Sleeping Beauty’; the princess who sleeps for a hundred years, awakened by a kiss. Of course from a handsome prince. While the romance and mystery appeals to our imaginations, the reality is somewhat different. Quality life for a person living in an unconscious state can be less than optimal. Rather than living in a castle with all needs met, the person is likely to be in a hospital or care facility and may not be living a quality, meaningful life. Research is leading us to understand the state of unconsciousness better. As we gain a better understanding we hope it will improve the quality of life for people who are not able to explain their needs to us. Today a brief introduction. Looking at what it means to be…
Memory loss after brain injury is common. Some form of memory loss is likely, whatever the cause of the brain injury. You have probably already read, or seen this for yourself. You have probably also noticed that it’s an important aspect of brain injury that I have not yet tackled here. Why not? Well I found it a bit overwhelming. Where to start? How to do it right when it is such a complex, but vital subject. Today is the day. It’s time. I decided to make a start. How to make a start? “Chunking tasks” came to mind as a way to manage being overwhelmed by a topic. Breaking the topic down into smaller more manageable chunks. Here then is the first chunk; a brief overview of memory loss after brain injury. Memory, Me, and The Flight Safety Demo Let me begin by telling you about how I use some of what I learned about memory when I travel by plane.…
Some time ago I watched the movie 'The Vow'. It got me thinking about the portrayal of brain injury in movies; thinking about what movies have been made about brain injury; and whether we can learn about brain injury in movies that are primarily made to entertain. 'The Vow' Well, The Vow might be a bit schmaltzy, and it may gloss over the tough bits of living with a brain injury, but it does look at the impact on family and family relationships, it looks at the impact of memory loss, and it looks at developing strategies that work for the person. I discovered that the movie is based on the lives of a real couple Krickitt and Kim(called Paige and Leo in the movie) Carpenter, interviewed in the video clip here. There are moments that make you think about what it would be like. At one point Leo(Kim) (the husband) says “Life’s all about moments of impact and how they changes…
