Have you ever been in the middle of a conversation with someone and blanked on a person’s name or the name of a place or thing? Any type of noun? It seems to be a common occurrence among older adults.
For example, I recently heard a story about a lady who had just received an annual delivery of salmon fillets. She was relieved to see that each fish was intact, as the prior year’s shipment had some fillets with chunks cut out due to sea lions attacking and biting the salmon in the nets.
While telling a friend how happy she was to get the fish in such good condition this year, her friend asked what had happened to them the year before. As she began to reply, she blanked on the word ‘sea lions’. So instead she said, “They were bitten by ground squirrels.
I can relate.
Normal, age-related forgetfulness, including nouns
The significant difference between normal lapses – such as forgetting someone’s name and worrisome memory loss is determined by the impact it has on your ability to function—your ability to do the things you want to do.
According to Alzheimer Society of Canada, there are differences between normal aging and dementia.
There is something called ‘Age-associated memory impairment’,
If you are experiencing difficulties with memory, but:
- They are not noticeably disrupting your daily life,
- They are not affecting your ability to complete tasks as you usually would,
- You have no difficulty learning and remembering new things and
- There’s no underlying medical condition that is causing your memory problems
(They note that information on their page should not be used as a diagnostic tool, and is not a substitute for informed medical advice)
Knight Neurology explains Normal Age-Related Memory Changes
As we get older, the brain, like the rest of the body, undergoes changes. This can result in slower recall or occasional forgetfulness. Examples include:
- Misplacing items now and then
- Forgetting the name of an acquaintance, but remembering it later
- Occasionally struggling to find the right word
- Sometimes needing reminders for appointments or tasks
These types of memory lapses are common and usually don’t interfere with daily life or independence.
It’s never too late to improve our cognitive skills
On a good note, it turns out that our brains seem to be capable of producing new cells at any age, so just as physical exercise helps strengthen muscles, there are a variety of ways to strengthen our brains to improve cognitive skills as well as prevent memory loss.
My sister and I have developed our own test for determining whether or not a lapse indicates normal forgetfulness or impending dementia. (Although we don’t remember ever forgetting anything.) “It’s okay to forget where your keys are, it’s not okay to forget what your keys do.”
So remember, although frustrating, most age-related memory lapses are not the same as dementia. I’ve decided that the next time I can’t remember what to call a particular noun, I believe I will call it a ‘ground squirrel’.
Has your world been touched by dementia?
My book, “Finishing Well: Finding the Joy in Dementia“, is a collection of stories and tips about doing life with my Mama. May it encourage and inspire you to find joy on your own, unique journey.
1 thought on “Tips for help remembering nouns”