I have severe memory impairment

K

Kir7

Member
Location
New York
Hello everyone. I don't know what to do now. After suffering from Covid in 2020, my memory has drastically and severely impaired. I had Covid easily, without pneumonia, but my sense of smell is badly affected: I can't tolerate many perfumes, toilet waters and odors, I can't even smell bananas now. The smell of bananas reminds me of manure.But that's nothing. The main thing that worries me a lot is a strong memory impairment, also I became very emotionally unstable, irascible. I consulted with docs and they just tried to prescribe tranquilizers - I am strongly against it.

Maybe someone has encountered a problem like mine? Are there any solutions?
 

I have read a lot about people with long Covid. They no longer have Covid but are somehow suffering from some illness that the doctors don't have a diagnosis for. It is phenomenal what has happened because of Covid. There are support groups that are very helpful. The Mayo Clinic forum is a good place to get info on your specific problems. I hope this helps.
 
I had a severe case of COVID at its outset and was ultra sick. I survived, but while my memory wasn't affected, my personality has changed a bit. I am more impatient, quick tempered and totally frustrated due to the fact that my sense of smell and taste never returned fully. While I quickly get over the negatives just mentioned, they are more frequent as I age, so I figure that also plays into my attitudes.

I guess that these phases are either permanent and I'll have to adjust accordingly, or become a recluse. So far, all is well for the nonce.

Worry not, changes make us more aware of ourselves, and we can deal with it on a more adult level.
 

Sorry for what you're going through, Kir; a friend of my husband's is in a similar situation due to COVID. One thing I will say about tranquilizers is that although they're not for everyone, there are some people who have been helped. I know that if I'm ever prescribed them, I'm going to try it; I figure I'm old enough that I don't have to worry about becoming addicted; if I do get addicted, so what; I'm not going to be around that much longer anyway.
 
Lewkat said:
I had a severe case of COVID at its outset and was ultra sick. I survived, but while my memory wasn't affected, my personality has changed a bit. I am more impatient, quick tempered and totally frustrated due to the fact that my sense of smell and taste never returned fully. While I quickly get over the negatives just mentioned, they are more frequent as I age, so I figure that also plays into my attitudes.

I guess that these phases are either permanent and I'll have to adjust accordingly, or become a recluse. So far, all is well for the nonce.

Worry not, changes make us more aware of ourselves, and we can deal with it on a more adult level.
Click to expand...
I read and wondered how similar our symptoms are. I realized that I am not alone with this set of postcovid problems. I want to give you a lot of respect, for your strength and wisdom, with which you endure it all.
Yes, we will have to adjust. I'm not giving up hope. For example, in 2021, I perceived the smell of all edible mushrooms as the smell of acetone. But, in 2023 I found that normal perception of the smell and taste of almost all mushrooms began to return. But I'm still concerned about short-term memory, whether there will be any worsening.
 
officerripley said:
Sorry for what you're going through, Kir; a friend of my husband's is in a similar situation due to COVID. One thing I will say about tranquilizers is that although they're not for everyone, there are some people who have been helped. I know that if I'm ever prescribed them, I'm going to try it; I figure I'm old enough that I don't have to worry about becoming addicted; if I do get addicted, so what; I'm not going to be around that much longer anyway.
Click to expand...


I'm familiar with tranquilizers. To be honest, I'm afraid of addiction to them. Withdrawal syndrome and its effect on the brain also worries me. I even limit myself and have become very careful with my favorite wine, although maybe for nothing. Maybe to hell with all these restrictions
 
Kir7 said:
Hello everyone. I don't know what to do now. After suffering from Covid in 2020, my memory has drastically and severely impaired.
Click to expand...
Covid aside, memory loss is commonplace in old age. There's an analogy that I've heard that might give you an insight. A computer tends to run slow the older it gets, that's because it has to search more and more of it's memory. That's exactly what our brains do when we want to recall something.

The fact that you know, and are aware, is a very good plus. Like you, my memory has seriously diminished and following advice, I have kept a diary come notebook in order to give the brain a prompt. Actually it works so well that I have been complimented for memory recall when the truth is, without that diary, I haven't a clue. So there you are, you are not alone.
 
Kir7 said:
I'm familiar with tranquilizers. To be honest, I'm afraid of addiction to them. Withdrawal syndrome and its effect on the brain also worries me. I even limit myself and have become very careful with my favorite wine, although maybe for nothing. Maybe to hell with all these restrictions
Click to expand...
As I said, I'm not afraid of addiction since there isn't enough time left for it to be a problem. And even before I got this old, I never have seen addiction to anything as a moral failing; I've just tried not to get addicted since, as you pointed out, withdrawal is awful and I've never wanted to become addicted to pain killers thereby building up a tolerance and not having enough pain relief if/when I needed it. So I've never seen addiction as a sin or even a moral failing; it's a health issue.
 
Kir7 said:
I'm familiar with tranquilizers. To be honest, I'm afraid of addiction to them. Withdrawal syndrome and its effect on the brain also worries me. I even limit myself and have become very careful with my favorite wine, although maybe for nothing. Maybe to hell with all these restrictions
Click to expand...

Tranquilizers suggest you suffer extreme anxiety over your issues. They're not a cure, they're a way of helping you to cope better. As such, if I were you, I'd try them. Of course it's your choice. Addiction issues can be addressed through your medical professional, and you're daily suffering anyway.

I'm not aware of a cure for long Covid. Last I read about it, they didn't entirely understand it, but I'm woefully out of date.

If you have to put your trust in someone, trust your medical professionals. Tranquilizers may help give you some settled time to work on an improved you.
 
Kir7 said:
I read and wondered how similar our symptoms are. I realized that I am not alone with this set of postcovid problems. I want to give you a lot of respect, for your strength and wisdom, with which you endure it all.
Yes, we will have to adjust. I'm not giving up hope. For example, in 2021, I perceived the smell of all edible mushrooms as the smell of acetone. But, in 2023 I found that normal perception of the smell and taste of almost all mushrooms began to return. But I'm still concerned about short-term memory, whether there will be any worsening.
Click to expand...
There are games I play on the computer to keep my memory from fading too much. Lots of word and trivia games are what works for me, and since I am an avid reader, every time I cannot remember where a place is or the topic is really about, I hit the computer to stir my memory.
 
horseless carriage said:
Covid aside, memory loss is commonplace in old age. There's an analogy that I've heard that might give you an insight. A computer tends to run slow the older it gets, that's because it has to search more and more of it's memory. That's exactly what our brains do when we want to recall something.

The fact that you know, and are aware, is a very good plus. Like you, my memory has seriously diminished and following advice, I have kept a diary come notebook in order to give the brain a prompt. Actually it works so well that I have been complimented for memory recall when the truth is, without that diary, I haven't a clue. So there you are, you are not alone.
Click to expand...
Keeping notes, a diary is a good idea. I may very well try it, or more likely I'll have to do it too.
 
C50 said:
I'm surprised tranquilizers were suggested, wouldn't that just cause additional mental impairment?
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That's the problem. There's no doubt that they will help alleviate my mental problems, or maybe even exacerbate them, but once meds're gone, the problems will only increase. I've seen this before, both with myself and with others.
 
VaughanJB said:
Tranquilizers suggest you suffer extreme anxiety over your issues. They're not a cure, they're a way of helping you to cope better. As such, if I were you, I'd try them. Of course it's your choice. Addiction issues can be addressed through your medical professional, and you're daily suffering anyway.

I'm not aware of a cure for long Covid. Last I read about it, they didn't entirely understand it, but I'm woefully out of date.

If you have to put your trust in someone, trust your medical professionals. Tranquilizers may help give you some settled time to work on an improved you.
Click to expand...
I was prescribed tranquilizers to normalize my emotions, but that won't solve all the problems. I am well aware of the side effects of these medications. Yes, they calm you down, but you get drowsy and apathetic.
After these medications, I fear to forget the way to the fridge and the toilet afterwards.
 
Lewkat said:
There are games I play on the computer to keep my memory from fading too much. Lots of word and trivia games are what works for me, and since I am an avid reader, every time I cannot remember where a place is or the topic is really about, I hit the computer to stir my memory.
Click to expand...
That's a great idea. I'll tell my grandson to look and find me some games to play.
 
Kir7 said:
I was prescribed tranquilizers to normalize my emotions, but that won't solve all the problems. I am well aware of the side effects of these medications. Yes, they calm you down, but you get drowsy and apathetic.
After these medications, I fear to forget the way to the fridge and the toilet afterwards.
Click to expand...

I think they're meant to give you space to get straight, rather than being a life long solution. It will only, at best, mask symptoms. For a cure, you need to get to the root cause.
 
Can you get a second opinion? Otherwise, I would go with what your doctor has prescribed. I did not have covid but at one point I was nauseous 24/7and was losing weight (10 lbs) as I could not eat anything. I was literally living on Ensure and soup, sometimes toast and cheese. After seeing a psychiatrist ,a gastroenterologist who could not figure out what was wrong with me, they recommended a neurologist.

She prescribed quetiapine (usually for schizophrenia) and it worked!!!! Apparently, Quetiapine, sold under the brand name Seroquel among others, is an atypical antipsychotic medication used for the treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder. The neurologist said I suffered from something called "silent migraines" . I know this is about your memory loss, but I just wanted to tell you I certainly did not want to take something for schizophrenia, but it worked. I was off work for 3 months by the way.
 
LoveTulips said:
Can you get a second opinion? Otherwise, I would go with what your doctor has prescribed. I did not have covid but at one point I was nauseous 24/7and was losing weight (10 lbs) as I could not eat anything. I was literally living on Ensure and soup, sometimes toast and cheese. After seeing a psychiatrist ,a gastroenterologist who could not figure out what was wrong with me, they recommended a neurologist.

She prescribed quetiapine (usually for schizophrenia) and it worked!!!! Apparently, Quetiapine, sold under the brand name Seroquel among others, is an atypical antipsychotic medication used for the treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder. The neurologist said I suffered from something called "silent migraines" . I know this is about your memory loss, but I just wanted to tell you I certainly did not want to take something for schizophrenia, but it worked. I was off work for 3 months by the way.
Click to expand...
Happy for you that the doctor's recommendation was correct and the drug worked for you. You may have met a competent doctor and that is very good. He was very accurate in identifying your problem and finding a solution to it. I hope everything will be fine for you in the future after the medication is discontinued.

I am avoiding medications for now. I think that for the time being I will try to train my memory by frequent reading, computer games and communication with you, dear friends - I am very happy about it. A huge thanks to this forum, there are many great people here.
 
Kir7 said:
Happy for you that the doctor's recommendation was correct and the drug worked for you. You may have met a competent doctor and that is very good. He was very accurate in identifying your problem and finding a solution to it. I hope everything will be fine for you in the future after the medication is discontinued.

I am avoiding medications for now. I think that for the time being I will try to train my memory by frequent reading, computer games and communication with you, dear friends - I am very happy about it. A huge thanks to this forum, there are many great people here.
Click to expand...
Sounds like an excellent plan.
 
It might also help to make sure you're eating good, clean food (organic and natural) and taking a balanced set of vitamins. I've read that that can help.

Added: the idea is to give your mind and body nutrients to fight back and heal.
 
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Up until recently, I was taking online courses but since I stopped taking them, I noticed my memory has deteriorated rapidly. I also think I contracted long Covid after being in the office of a dentist who attended the well-known super spreader event in North Vancouver in 2020. In addition, I became dependent on Lorazepam following a heart failure event in 2022. The drug dependency seems to have affected my sense of smell. I was so concerned about my failing memory that I decided to take a brief dementia test online. Fortunately, my responses of "no" to each of the questions, revealed, that at least for now, I do not have dementia. I hope the brief test will turn out as well for others. You can find it at: Do I Have Dementia? 3 Minute Dementia Quiz
 
I think after a certain age, we have so many facts and memories in our brains that trying to find the correct memory is like trying to run through molasses with concrete blocks strapped to our feet. We're pushing aside that memory and the other memory and all those other thangs that we don't need to remember trying to get to what we do need to remember.

Anyway, that's my theory and I'm sticking to it!
 
chameleonic said:
Up until recently, I was taking online courses but since I stopped taking them, I noticed my memory has deteriorated rapidly. I also think I contracted long Covid after being in the office of a dentist who attended the well-known super spreader event in North Vancouver in 2020. In addition, I became dependent on Lorazepam following a heart failure event in 2022. The drug dependency seems to have affected my sense of smell. I was so concerned about my failing memory that I decided to take a brief dementia test online. Fortunately, my responses of "no" to each of the questions, revealed, that at least for now, I do not have dementia. I hope the brief test will turn out as well for others. You can find it at: Do I Have Dementia? 3 Minute Dementia Quiz
Click to expand...
You should be somewhat concerned. Thereā€™s been studies done that show that taking benzodiazepines can help quicken dementia.
In other words, if your memory is failing taking benzodiazepines will make it worse. Having been prescribed these drugs ; dementia IS a concern for me also.
 
Luckily there are plenty of things you can do to help your cognitive thinking. Crossword puzzle, picture puzzles, reading, writing, creative poetry, playing a musical instrument etc..

Journal writing is doubly beneficial. It helps keep you organized and also helps you be your best self without the anxiousness.
 
PeppermintPatty said:
You should be somewhat concerned. Thereā€™s been studies done that show that taking benzodiazepines can help quicken dementia.
In other words, if your memory is failing taking benzodiazepines will make it worse. Having been prescribed these drugs ; dementia IS a concern for me also.
Click to expand...
I appreciate the suggestions and your concern. Until the heart failure incident, I only took the smallest amount (0.5 mg) occasionally for a good night sleep, specifically because if I took it consistently for more than a week or so, I would notice that my memory would suffer. If it hadn't been for the heart incident, I'd still be taking the 0.5 mg only occasionally. The hospital I stayed in for 5 days after the heart failure incident didn't help by giving me 1.0 mg of Lorazepam every night in order to sleep well. Now, when I don't take it (every 3rd day), like last night, I struggle terribly to get a decent night sleep. I've tried other medications in order to sleep better but I suffer even worse during the off day.
 

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