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Post by random on Nov 4, 2009 9:38:10 GMT
yesterday I had a rather disastrous medical appointment (don't want to explain details at the moment). The Dr clearly had no knowledge of ADHD or similar conditions and was rather insistent in his questioning style that got me really stressed and confused.
One specific thing - I am taking some medication that I only take occasionally (GP told me to take only as needed). He asked me when I last took it and I said "I can't remember". Oh - you have some sort of memory problem. What I was trying to say was "it was a few weeks back and I am not sure of the exact time". Probably better if I had said "err, hmm, maybe 2 weeks ago. Is that close enough."
It seems to me that inability to recall not very important details is in the ball park for ADHD - has anyone else had this.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2009 11:00:07 GMT
Long term memory should be fine as long as you have the concentration to use it.
However...why would anyone want to remember piffling detail?
And most ADHDers have an 'attitude problem' when it comes to being dismissive about discardable facts.
I used to ask questions for a living - you have to ask the right one to get the right answer. Doctors should be expert in it and not jump to conclusions on unsupported evidence.
This forum seems to throw up a lot that don't.
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Post by forgetnotme on Nov 5, 2009 0:55:14 GMT
Hi random I'm in the process of dx. so far only seen by a psych who has an interest in ADHD but not a specialist.(see post in getting help-I've made the first step) He asked about my childhood and if it was good. I said I don't remember much. This was true at that moment in time. I have difficulty accessing my long term memory instantly but give me time and I can remember. How much should I remember from my past? anyway back to the story. Knowing my memory I had written down many past memories as I knew I would have difficulty recalling them. I seem to have no control over how and when memories come back,things just seem to pop into my head. when I say no control that isn't strictly true. After an incident I had witnessed the police questioned me and for days bits would come back to me randomly. i term my problem as things fall out of the back of my head. Psych is consequently sending me for cognitive testing. he wants to find out why I have memory problems. is bad memory part of ahdh? anyway whenever I go to the doc unless I can tie my onset of symptoms to a specific happening that I can attach a date to, then I'm lost as to how long or when. I always feel he must think I'm stupid I, only this week, put two and two together and realised this may be why I have difficulties with things like exams. It would seem I can't perform to order but only in my own time. don't know if this is the kind of thing you meant but it is quite frustrating sometimes. I also feel that my present psych is just using me to further his own interest in ADHD and that it may ultimately delaying my progress. but I suppose only time will tell. AH that all important word "time" i just don't do time very well
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 6:24:05 GMT
I am hoping I might be able to help you at least get a bit better understanding of what might be happening with your memory. In an educational psychology course I took at the university I learned that one of the most important aspects of memory is “attending.” At any given moment humans have a barrage of stimuli in their environment vying for their attention; however, humans are only able to “attend” to a minute amount of those stimuli. What any given human actually attends to at any given moment in time is what he/she values at that given moment in time. So, a person is going to have a better opportunity to put into memory something that is of great interest to them than they are of something that is of no or little interest to them. Notice that I said opportunity and not that it will automatically happen. There are a number of things that can interfere with a person’s ability to attend to stimuli in their environment.
There are two types of memory, short-term and long -term. In order for a person to store something into long¬-term memory, they must first have had experienced it as short-term memory. This makes sense because it is a simple fact that we cannot have memory of something we have never attended to. Short¬-term memory is something that happens rapidly. The process from short-term memory into long-term memory happens in seconds. It must because the brain’s ability to hold something in short-term memory is itself limited. Furthermore, once we do have something stored in long-term memory, we must have the ability to retrieve that memory. If not, it is of no use to us.
The bottom line is that being able to attend to the stimuli in one’s environment is vital to one’s ability to have either short-term or long-term memory. Given that inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity are the key behaviors of ADHD, it is no wonder that ADHDers have problems with not only their long-term memory but also their short-term memory?
Below I have listed ADHD symptoms that affect the ADHDer’s memory:
• easily distracted (predominately inattentive) • misses details (predominately inattentive) • frequently switch from one activity to another (predominately inattentive) • difficulty focusing on one thing (predominately inattentive) • becomes bored easily (predominately inattentive) • daydreaming (predominately inattentive) • fidgeting (predominately hyperactive) • nonstop talking (predominately hyperactive) • trouble sitting still (predominately hyperactive) • constantly in motion (predominately hyperactive) • very impatient (predominately impulsive)
All of the above symptoms affect the ADHDer’s ability to attend; hence, affecting both his/her short-term and long¬-term memory. Please note that it doesn’t matter which type of ADHD a person has (inattentive, hyperactive or impulsive); his/her memory is affected by ADHD especially if he/she is not receiving (or has never received) treatment for ADHD. It should also be noted that most ADHDers have a combined form of ADHD. That is, they have both inattentive and hyperactive symptoms. Below I have listed symptoms that indicate the ADHDer is suffering from some degree of short-term and/or long-term memory problems.
• forget things • trouble completing tasks (such as turning in homework assignments or meeting work deadlines) • difficulty organizing • difficulty learning something new • often loses things • becomes easily confused • difficulty processing information as quickly and accurately as others • struggles to follow instructions
I am not trying to suggest here that ADHD is caused by memory problems but rather, that problems with memory are the result of a person’s having ADHD.
How sever an ADHDer’s memory problems are depends upon many factors. These include but are not limited to:
• severity of symptoms • intelligence • comorbidities (such as anxiety, depression or having a learning disability) • treatment (such as medications, behavioral therapy, coping strategies) • stress • physical health • and even situational factors (such as home environment)
I personally believe that one of the most important things to remember is that although there is no cure for ADHD, there are ways in which those who have ADHD can learn to manage their symptoms. So, there is hope for us all. With that said, I will leave you with a simple way to improve your memory with respect to finding things (which is something I do a lot…lose things that is).
When you lay down or put away something that is important for you to remember where it is, say out loud where you are putting it. Example, when you set your keys down, say out loud “I am laying my keys down on the _________.” The important part is that you say it out loud. When you say it out loud, you are attending to (focusing on) the stimuli in your environment (in this case, on where you are leaving your keys), thereby, increasing your chance of successfully putting it into memory and then retrieving it from your long-term memory when you need to find it. Remember, the process from short-term to long-term memory is a quick one so simply making yourself focus briefly (in this case by talking out load) on the object to be remembered is enough to do that. Of course, the hard part is training yourself to say things out loud. Oh, and learning not to be embarrassed if someone hears you “talking to yourself”…LOL
I hope this helped.
PAZ
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Post by Skybird on Nov 5, 2009 9:35:06 GMT
yesterday I had a rather disastrous medical appointment (don't want to explain details at the moment). The Dr clearly had no knowledge of ADHD or similar conditions and was rather insistent in his questioning style that got me really stressed and confused. One specific thing - I am taking some medication that I only take occasionally (GP told me to take only as needed). He asked me when I last took it and I said "I can't remember". Oh - you have some sort of memory problem. What I was trying to say was "it was a few weeks back and I am not sure of the exact time". Probably better if I had said "err, hmm, maybe 2 weeks ago. Is that close enough." It seems to me that inability to recall not very important details is in the ball park for ADHD - has anyone else had this. I had a doctor do that to me once. I was not amused. First of all I was asked why I take this particular medication and I'm thinking 'It's on my records, if you'd bothered to look' but told the doctor why I was taking it anyway and then I was asked when was the last time I took it and I said I couldn't remember. The doctor then said 'Do you find you forget things a lot?'. I left feeling really upset and stupid and I refuse to see this doctor now.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 10:41:16 GMT
Your long term memory should be good but accessing it may be a problem.
I did all the usual questionnaires about my early history when I was diagnosed.
After two years I had to do it all over again - but this time I was medicated.
The difference wasn't just that I had done it before...details that previously eluded me were now easily accessable to me.
Some of this was probably down to me being more informed of what I was searching for - the rest must be down to having improved 'executive functioning' due to my treatment (medication plus self treatment and a generally better attitude)
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 17:20:51 GMT
This is why i can't stand gp's, i have to be dying before i'll set foot near one bloody arrogant numpty's..
Of course you have a bad short term mermory & the point is???!!!
Can you see a different person next time? Simone x
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 18:04:06 GMT
I got a letter in the door today. I forgot to go to my Psych appointment a week or so ago. In the letter it says (basically lol), "You have missed your appointment. If you do not contact us within 2 weeks then we will assume you no longer wish to see us".
Can you believe that? Im stunned but strangely I find myself laughing at it. How can these people be so badly trained and so unsympathetic to what people are trying to cope with. I would have thought I wasnt the first ADHDer to miss an appointment.
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Post by andy12345 on Nov 5, 2009 18:26:27 GMT
Upsydaisy, I thought that short term memory = working memory but it seems they are considered distinct by this wikipedia guide. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-term_memory#Relationship_with_working_memoryObviously, working memory should be considered an important aspect of the ADHD symptomology as well as Planetdave's mention of the infamous executive function area of the brain. You mentioned that one should say out loud where they put things down, so as to help in the aid of remembering. I remember a similar mention from bitesize on bbc2 lol. It stated that to learn something, it should be written, spoken/and heard, to ensure it stuck better. For some reason though, I always forget to do this......... o.O Madscot, I find it so disturbing when these people take zero account of one's diagnosis or why they don't even think about WHY someone is hoping to visit them..... weird bunch, are they not?
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 20:21:41 GMT
I got a letter in the door today. I forgot to go to my Psych appointment a week or so ago. In the letter it says (basically lol), "You have missed your appointment. If you do not contact us within 2 weeks then we will assume you no longer wish to see us". Madscot, I would forget all of my appointments as well if it were not for the fact that both my gp's office and my psych's office give me a courtesy call the day before. Could you request a courtesy call or suggest that they makeit a policy to give courtesy calls to all patients with “memory problems”? It couldn’t hurt to ask and you may start a much needed service for others that could use a courtesy call as well. If they don’t like the idea, remind them that it would benefit them as much as it would patients because they would have far fewer no shows if they provided courtesy calls.
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Post by andy12345 on Nov 5, 2009 20:48:54 GMT
They could create an auto dialling reminder system that just leaves messages etc, although I suppose that would require a quango to set up and cost 5x more money than actually treating ADHD.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2009 11:24:12 GMT
I get an automated phonecall for my daughters Hospital appointemets, which is helpful..Why cant us adults get one too!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2009 17:46:11 GMT
Thats a good idea. But what are the chances of that when I cant even see someone who knows about ADHD!!!! FFS!!!!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2009 17:46:47 GMT
That was directed at NHS SCotland btw
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2009 23:35:10 GMT
My psych's office and my gp's office simply have the person that sets up appointments set aside some time each day to make the reminder calls. And yes, they should provide this service for adults too, there is simply no good reason not to.
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Post by random on Nov 7, 2009 15:55:10 GMT
Thanks for the various replies. I away at the moment and will read them a bit more thoroughly on my return.
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