Have you ever felt like your memory isn’t as sharp as it used to be? This is a normal part of aging – or at least that’s what we tell ourselves to help us feel better. With all the different memory robbing diseases out there, the moment we feel our memory slip, we might get a bit nervous that we are experiencing early onset Alzheimer’s. That’s not necessarily the case. Keep reading for some “memorable” encouragement!
Experts say that we have four types of memory. Long term and short-term memory are the ones we are most familiar with. When we crammed for a test the night before, we tucked the information into the short-term memory in hopes we would recall it. However, once the exam was over, the information ejected from our minds. Our long term memory helps us remember our address or phone number from years ago, along with other life details.
Another form of memory is sensory memory. These are memories related to sight, sound, or touch. “If a sensory experience happens often and you associate other memories with it, that experience may shift to your short-term or long-term memory.”1
The final form is working memory. “Working memory is a type of memory that involves the immediate and small amount of information that a person actively uses as they perform cognitive tasks. While some view working memory as a fourth distinct type of memory, it can fall under the classification of short-term memory and, in many cases, is even used interchangeably.”2
Our brain is an incredible computer, processing in a lifetime upwards of 2.5 petabytes of information. One petabyte equals one million gigabytes. If you don’t know what all that computer jargon means, let me simplify it for you. It means an astronomical amount of information is stored in our brains over the years.3
To put our minds at ease, age-related forgetfulness doesn’t necessarily mean we are headed down Dementia Boulevard. Our brain peaked during our 20s. Stanford University reports that, “We know there’s a slight atrophy or shrinking of the brain with age, and that could include both a reduction in the volume and number of neurons as well as the insulation around neurons, called myelin. That loss of insulation also changes processing speed. And this is all normal — just like you wouldn’t expect to be as fast a runner at 80 as you were at 20.”4 That makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?
A Harvard study found seven reasons for memory loss that have nothing to do with disease. Some of those include:
- Transience: Forgetting information over time, especially if it is not frequently
recalled. This helps the brain clear unused memories. - Absentmindedness: Forgetting due to inattention, such as misplacing objects or forgetting appointments.
- Blocking: Temporary inability to retrieve a memory, like having a word “on the tip of your tongue.”
- Misattribution: Misattribution occurs when you remember something accurately in part, but misattribute some detail, like the time, place, or person involved.5
While it is distressing to forget a child’s birthday or where we put our wallet and keys, there is something that is forgotten by all ages that ought to cause us the greater concern. Israel received a powerful warning in Deuteronomy 8:11-14. “Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: (12) Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; (13) And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; (14) Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.”
Spiritual memory loss happens more than we like to think or admit. We are further warned not to forget His works (Psalm 78:7), His benefits (Psalm 103:2), His Word (Psalm 119:16), and His statutes, precepts, commandments, and law (Psalm 119:83, 93, 153, 176).
One of the best ways to retain a memory is to review, rehearse, and act out the things we must remember. That means we must constantly immerse ourselves in the things of the Lord and the specific things we are not to forget.
Let’s make a concerted effort to practice Psalms 105:4-5. “Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face evermore. (5) Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth.”
1https://www.verywellmind.com/different-types-of-memory-and-their-functions-5194859
2Ibid.
3https://interestingfacts.com/memory-facts/
4https://med.stanford.edu/news/insights/2024/03/memory-age-dementia-healthy-brain.html
5https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/forgetfulness-7-types-of-normal-memory-problems
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