Mental Health Inproving longterm memory

[lars90]

Well I'm looking for a way to improve my memory since it seems a little pour at the moment. I think might me linked to being nervous allot.

So here's the thing I am a nervous person I chew my nails I stutter sometimes while speaking to new people and I get angry at my self for any mistakes I make or for any mistakes I make myself think I make.

Also with 15 i abused dxm a dissoiative and since then I have been dazing allot, my long term memory has decreased a bit which is probably also linked to being nervous and most what annoys me the most is that its very hard to create mental images for me.

I don't know if you can relate to this or have ever heard this but I'm going at it because I know someone who feels the same and has the same problem.
Picture yourself walking though a door and entering then next room, now this is a problem I have sways had. For the mayoralty of people I know it is no problem to picture the scenario. But for me for some reason it is really difficult. When ever I do so I walk though the door and I get pulled back and then I'm in front of the door again. Its like I can't walk though the door and stay in the other room. Its really weird.

So my questions are:
How do you improve your long term memory?
What techniques do you use?
Are there any substances you use to improve your memory over a long term period.

Thanks in advance for reading my thread. I apologies for any spelling or grammar error since writing is and has never really been easy for me.

 

[snax112]

I have a similar thing as what you're describing about mental imaging. I don't have any problems in the example you gave, but when I was a kid I would imagine wrestling matches a lot, and I was never able to get the referee to count to three in my head. Every time I'd try to picture his hand hitting the mat on 3, it always stops short. I could make him hit the mat, but just not three times in a row. It's still difficult for me today and I experience it with a couple other scenarios. Your description of getting "pulled back" into the other room reminded me of this. I'm not sure that it's that unusual, although I've never talked to anyone about it. If it only happens on certain scenarios you try to imagine, I wouldn't worry about it. Also I don't think it has anything to do with long-term memory.

As far as your questions go, I haven't made any attempts to improve my memory, but I would guess the best steps to take are healthy living. Exercise more, eat better. Meditation has also been shown to help this. For substances, the only thing I can think of is nootropics. Are you also interested in retrieving memories from long ago, or just remembering things that happen now better for the future? You could look into hypnosis or psychedelics for retrieving older memories. Research those options yourself though before jumping into them though. Another thing to consider is the possibility that there's really nothing wrong with your memory. It sounds like you assume that you did some damage to it from DXM, but it's possible that your memory just isn't as good as some others. Perhaps it's supposed to be that way for you.

 

[Barrenian]

Try memorizing the declaration of independence, every word of it. Try memorizing your favorite quotes. Glance at the words real fast and then try and remember, it will help improve your memory. At least it did me.

 

[tundradesert523]

I would suggest stopping all and any psychoactive substance use, start exercising (especially cardio), and reading books. Reading has helped me a lot with memory. The first book I read was rather foggy, then my reading pace started to improve, my conversations with friends and other people also improved, and my memory and focus improved.
Also stop smoking cigarettes if you do. They're horrible for long term memory.

Its funny that you mention that you got mad for making mistakes, any mistakes, because that's exactly how I felt. And it happened often because my memory was so bad. I almost knew that my brain wasn't functioning right and got mad at myself that I couldn't do simple tasks. That forced me to change my lifestyle completely from what it once was.

 

[persuasoria]

This might be a long post, but bear with me!

There are many herbal supplements you can take that will help with memory, and I can name some of them for you and tell you how/when they should be taken, but that isn't the most efficient way to go about this-- or the most economical (although it is the easiest because all you have to do is consume... :/).

If you really want to improve your memory and gain more control over your brain you are going to need to put in a decent amount of work. It starts with directing your thoughts and completing your thoughts. The best way to go about this is to keep a journal, and to usually have that journal on-hand-- so you'll want something small and flexible that can fit in a backpack or the armrest of your car, or even your pocket. You can start by writing down things that inspire you, like quotes or anything that you'd like. Just get in the habit of writing in it. Write your dreams, too, if you remember them. You can also put your schedule in here, phone numbers, drawings, whatever.

Eventually you should start using it to work out your thoughts. Maybe you come across an interesting article online but you can't focus on it, you keep forgetting what is going on or you look away and forget where in the article you are. Take out your notebook and jot down a few notes from the article as you're reading.

I see this question around a lot. It seems to be a common problem these days, what with the chemicals and the drugs and the television and the Starbucks bullshit. I suggest the notebook every time, but most people just... Forget about it. Ironic. It seems unimportant to them because it's just a notebook, but writing your thoughts down is the best way to go about it. In my experience, most people need to externalize their thoughts at this stage in order to analyze them. In a brain that got so whacked out on drugs, you can't always coherently form thoughts. Maybe you start a thought but quickly it's replaced by another and another, and you don't follow any of them to their logical conclusion so you get yourself stuck.

What you want to eventually be doing with that notebook is writing in it daily, working out what you need to do, sorting yourself out, and finishing every thought you write down. If you haven't heard of neuroplasticity I suggest you read this introduction http://www.znv.de/materials/kuo.pdf. Anybody can modify the way their brain behaves long-term-- and unfortunately, so can recreational drugs. This is why speed-reading works, this is why serotonin syndrome is a thing, and why environmental factors contribute to behavior as well as genetics.

Also, snax and tundra made some good suggestions. Nootropics are a great way to supplement any on-going changes you're trying to make to your brain, and reading is a very very good way to quicken your thought process. You don't need to read something large and complex. In fact, I've found fiction produces the most results in a more efficient manner than non-fiction because your brain doesn't have to digest as much information. You can use books as a kind of race track to practice dialogue, comprehension speed, processing speed, and of course memorization.

Like I said though, this will definitely take some work on your end. It won't be gruelling, but it will be frustrating at first. Definitely worth it--- it is your brain after all.

P.S. If you want to talk nootropics/herbs, let me know.

 

[SixBuckets]

There are some cognitive training exercise programs that claim to improve memory, but I'm sure how effective they are. I have a gamified version called Peak on my phone.

 

[dmtmixalis]

Good quality fish oil has helped my memory/learning cognition (at least 1g of epa/dha). Of course, it could be placebo, but even if it's the latter, it works for me. I've came on leaps and bounds with learning languages since I started dosing.