Maybe I’m not losing the ability to retrieve things from my mind; maybe I’m gaining awareness that memory can be highly selective. Maybe I always forgot things like names and dates and where I left the car keys. Maybe my peers of half a century and more and myself now have the time to notice and remark on our remembering to forget. Something to ponder………
What I would like very much acknowledged is that memory issues can be worrisome, perhaps at any age, and lead to strategies for avoiding situations, conversations, and even thoughts where forgetfulness may occur.
Loss of hearing and the detrimental effects of hiding it are known about; advertisements for the aids to hearing are numerous and ubiquitous.
There is a parallel to loss of memory in the potential to avoid, to withdraw from the issue and there is not the awareness of this. Awareness would lead to acceptance and seeking a solution if necessary. Lead to a problem shared, a problem lessened.
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One response to “REMEMBERING FORGETTING”
I belong to a women’s group that has been meeting for four years. The one thing we have in common is that we are all between 55 and 65.
Being able to run concerns by each other has been immensely helpful, as – so far – we see that what we are experiencing is common. Memory and forgetfulness is a frequent topic, and not one of us doesn’t have plenty of stories to tell, including those of us who have long prided ourselves on our “steel trap” memories.
Though it’s distressing to see such changes, it is reassuring to know that it doesn’t “mean” anything, and is perfectly normal.