By Jacqueline Simoneau
There are all kinds of ways to work your memory and anchor your memories. Here are a few.
1. DO ACTIVE READING
Read a magazine article or a chapter of a book, and then take a few minutes to remember the details before you resume reading. If you prefer TV shows, try to recall events from the last episode.
2. MEMORIZE
Try to memorize things like song lyrics, phone numbers, birthdays, or items on a grocery list. It helps to create associations by grouping things by colour, size, or category or by linking them to significant events.
3. MAKE UP A MNEMONIC
To do so, you can use the first letter in each word. For example, to remember the names of the Great Lakes, use the word HOMES: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior.
4. PLAY
Try to recall a series of random words such as train, chair, stone, apple, can, brochure, shoe, and bag.
Signs to Take Seriously
As we age, we may occasionally have trouble remembering something, such as an appointment at the hair salon, a password, or the name of a former colleague, but that’s nothing to worry about.
However, if details of a recent event are foggy, you can’t remember the name of a family member, you put something you use often in an unusual place, or bills aren’t being paid on time, you can’t ignore this. Likewise, it’s not normal to keep asking the same questions, have to pause regularly to find your words, or have memory lapses increase to a point at which they affect your usual activities.
If a friend, your partner, or a loved one says they’ve noticed these changes, it’s best to take it seriously and see your doctor.
