Memory Problems!
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August 14, 2011 at 12:56 am
Hi everyone, my wife is currently in the hospital (3 months now) Her recovery has been painfully slow but now that she has been able to talk some for the last few weeks we are noticing that she has some rather sever memory problems with her short term memory. She doesn’t remember her visitors 5 minutes after seeing them and also asks a lot of really weird questions that are very disturbing. Her neuro is doing an MRI (with contrast ie. iodine) in the morning. I am very scared about all this. She was asking the same kind of questions about things she knew when she became hospitalized a few days before she began to have respiratory failure.
Can these memory problems be related to GBS? I have read others stories that have some small degree of memory issues but hers seems to be rather sever. I welcome all the info anyone can provide. -
August 14, 2011 at 8:24 am
Oh yes, the memory is affected but whether it’s the GBS or the medication I don’t know. I think it’s the GBS. I got it 8 years ago and recognise the poor memory with hindsight. It affects the concentration too, I believe. My short term memory even now isn’t great. Affected by age? At 42? Is your Dr having a joke? Alright, many GPs don’t know that much about GBS. It’s fairly rare and research is going on now. (The Conference Reports are well worth reading).
I’ve heard of other GBS’ers who reported memory problems also. It’s only a few months since you got GBS. It does take time to heal. Be kind to yourself won’t you?
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August 14, 2011 at 4:43 pm
Dave, keep us posted on your wife’s condition; I know you are worried and afraid because of everything that is happening. This short-term memory loss is typical, (I call it ‘Homer Simpson Syndrome’), it comes along with the GBS.
And sometimes the mind is telling us what we want to say, but it comes out differently once it gets past the lips. During onset I often sounded just like a stoke patient; my brain was confused as I tried to think, talk, read and write, and my verbal & bodily reflexes were in chaos. I couldn’t remember people’s names, or what I had done or wanted to do from one minute to the next.Happy to report that though words still fail me now, I can at times recall difficult words (& remember what they mean)–words which would have eluded me 2 years ago, so I think the brain keeps on healing and restoring its memory systems. I had a big problem leaving things burning on the stove for the first couple of years, but my memory improved after that, and I’ve been learning to expect the problems, so I compensate for them. There’s a lot of work ahead, but just take it one day at a time.
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August 14, 2011 at 9:19 pm
Her MRI results came back negative! A nurse told us… so now I know this is most likely just from the GBS. I will keep you posted as we go forward.
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August 24, 2011 at 2:01 pm
Dave – As I get older (53) and when I get neurologically exhausted I have a horrible memory and problems with saying multi-syllable words. I’m sure menopause is playing a role now too… walking into a room not remembering why I was going there is something I’ve gotten used to. Sometimes I do remember but sometimes I don’t.
Please do keep up posted!
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October 2, 2011 at 6:12 am
I still have this problem to date. I know the word but can’t spit it out! There is a medical term for it called Aphasia. Mine got better over time and with the decrease in types and doses of medications. Certain meds that we take for this disorder seemed to make it worse for me. I do brain exercises like crossword puzzles and math brainteasers to help me out. It is a catch 22 because it will get better as you heal but worse as you age!!
Angela
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October 2, 2011 at 7:55 pm
Dave I am 17 months into my healing. Short term memory issues are one of my biggest challenges. But it does get better.
I will be praying for you both.Wayne
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