How to deal with forgetfulness: 8 tips

We all forget things from time to time. Psychologist Susan Cain is sure that this is not a reason to panic: we have a lot of difficulties in life, we are always busy, we are constantly distracted by something. But still, forgetfulness can be fought.

Do you often complain about the fact that your memory fails? Here are some tips that might help you.

1. Keep a to-do list

Do not turn up your nose at the word “list”. This is a very useful tool that constantly reminds you of current goals and objectives. By transferring them to paper, you will get rid of the need to constantly keep everything in your head. In addition, finding something in your notes is always much easier than digging into your memory.

2. Get enough sleep

Quality sleep is extremely important for clarity of thought and good memory, and lack of sleep is one of the main causes of forgetfulness. In addition, lack of sleep leads to irritability, bad mood and apathy. To prevent memory problems, it is important to take your sleep seriously: sleep at least 8 hours a day, try to maintain a stable sleep pattern, and not stay up late on weekdays, hoping to sleep off at the weekend.

3. Avoid alcohol and drugs

Even small portions of alcohol affect memory adversely, and drinking large amounts of it can cause memory lapses: the next morning you may not remember yesterday evening at all. With regular abuse of alcohol and drugs, long-term memory impairment will not be long in coming.

4. Practice not being distracted

It seems that it is very difficult, but we are quite capable of getting rid of many distractions. Often we create excuses for ourselves to distract ourselves from work: for example, constantly checking e-mail, or opening many windows or tabs in the Internet browser, or not being able to say a firm “no” to a colleague who interrupts us from work.

Being distracted, we not only knock down all our plans, but also begin to get confused in what is happening, which also affects the work of memory. To unleash the full potential of your brain, it is important to get rid of distractions.

5. Use reminders

Self-adhesive sticky notes are a brilliant invention. Stick them on the refrigerator, calendar, table to constantly remind yourself of the most important things: don’t forget to pick up your son from the basketball club, pay car tax, don’t miss the planning meeting.

You can also use special applications that remind you of important things, or ask someone to remind you of a task at the right time. All this is especially useful when you do not get enough sleep or are overloaded with business.

6. Do everything in order

No matter what they say about multitasking, trying to do two things at the same time, we end up doing each of them worse than we could. We cannot fully concentrate on the task, which means that we risk not coping with it at all and, moreover, subjecting memory to additional loads.

Breaking this habit will take some discipline. Set yourself up to move on to the next task only when you know you are completely done with the previous one. This will give clarity to your thoughts, and you will get a sense of satisfaction from the work done.

7. Meditate

Meditation can give us more than just inner peace, this practice also improves memory. People have been practicing meditation for centuries to achieve balance and harmony in life, as well as for its calming effect. The most important thing to remember is that during meditation you don’t need to suppress all your thoughts, you need to acknowledge their existence and let them go. This allows us to unravel the knots of our internal conflicts and rewire the brain.

8. Get some rest

Finding time to relax is not a luxury. Consider it an absolute must. Spending time with pleasure: immersing yourself in your hobby, having fun, playing sports, communicating with friends and family – you give the brain the opportunity to take a break from endless chores and worries.

When we start to forget elementary things, it can be a sign of an imbalance in life. By taking time for yourself and your needs, you can restore that balance and remind yourself of what really matters.

About the Developer

Susan Kane is a psychologist, journalist, screenwriter living in Los Angeles. Her broker.

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