Memory problems!!!!!!!

[Cetacean]

While struggling to handle my electronic engineering degree I went to the student counseling department and did all sorts of memory tests. It helped me out a lot. My strengths and weaknesses became crystal clear. When I discovered my weaknesses I got really confident and tried to find ways around them. I've written a blog to share my discoveries (can't post a hyperlink yet)

If anyone wants the details just ask.

Details please?

I'm especially interested in what tests turned up what results. What 'strengths' and 'weaknesses' can such tests turn up? What is the theory behind them? Do you know? I am eager to map out my hazards. That sounds helpful.

Did you make it through the EE degree?

Wishing you the best,

op:

 

[gigi]

coming of age

Speaking of which. The internet has brought so much out from the cobwebs of my brain. It has caused me to examine my epilepsy, and my past. As I am 52 now, and had my diagnosis at age 11. Like so many individuals on this site, some memories have come the surface from my childhood, that may or may not explain this condition. Therein lies a certain amount of grieving, wondering what could have been, and the hope of what the future will hold. I have asked my parents about things from my childhood, that they do not remember about me or do not want to talk about. I am not sure which. They are up in years, so I do not bring up the subject anymore. I had the german measles at 7 with a high fever, one of which caused me to hallucinate. Also around that time period, I had trouble with my back to where I could not sit up w/o help. (my parents do not recall this now or earlier). Teachers said I had "spacial" problems. I always did poorly in school, and socially I was withdrawn at times, had lots of real or imagined fears. Anxiety was my friend at a very early age, going as far back as age 4. Mind you I was raised in a upper middle class Norman Rockwell setting.
Sorry to ramble, just sharing some thoughts. Hope everyone has something or someone to be thankful for this Christmas. I am not P.C., so Merry Christmas!

 

[boolscott]

Hi again

Forgot to mention I had the tip of my left temporal lobe removed 3 years ago. This was after 1 year of university, only passed half of the subjects. Went back to university and still struggled with certain subjects. People didn't understand how I got 97% for a test of a complex subject, and 20% for the test of a "simple" subject. It was obvious to me though. All I had to do in the complex subject was understand the work. The simple one involved nothing but memorizing facts which takes SO much time for me.

The tests I did with the students counseling were the Bender Gestalt, WAIS III and WMS III tests. I had strengths way above average and weaknesses way below average. I'll upload the entire report onto my blog if I can get the digital document.

I discovered much more than I can squeeze here so here's the url to my blog:
http://boolscottsbrain.blogspot.com/


Hope you find it interesting.

I'm now doing a diploma instead of a degree to be safe. Certain pointless subjects drive me insane.

 

[epileric]

. Man now I can't even remember to do things in my sleep.:roflmao:

Maybe but you remember your dreams which is quite rare for me.

 

[roo]

I just woke up from a nap and I dreamed that I was grilling for my family and everything was ready when I opened the grill well I had forgotten to put the burgers on and I ran sobbing cause no one could understand why I was so sure I had cooked them but never did. Man now I can't even remember to do things in my sleep.:roflmao:

DRAT!! I was looking forward to sampling those burgers too! Gotta get your dreams together, flinnigan:roflmao:

 

[Mike]

My memory is very sharp, when I try to remember telephone numbers, I can see the numbers with my minds eye! Im sure without a doubt that Nerofeedback has made my memory so good. Before the Nerofeedback my memory wasnt as good. Ive been recieving nerofeedback treatments for 11years almost and plan to continue. People are buying their own systems around and giving treatments to their friends. Its the best!

 

[catso]

My favorite is the Neurologists who ask 'What happens during amnesia?' This is second to those who say ' I know what you mean, the same thing happens to me.' They have no idea what it is like to completely lose memory. You search your personal CPU and there is nothing there. I did not seek medical help for seizures but for memory problems. The first Neurologist figured that since I was a middle aged female, I needed a trank so he put me on Wellbutrin which can cause amnesia. Finally, I remembered having to look at the newspaper to see where I lived. Now this was a memory problem that I could define. A nurse friend asked if I ever felt different and that is how I got a diagnosis.
After years of dealing with memory problems, I find that I am a liar. If you ask me what I had for lunch, I will say a sandwich just to have an answer when maybe I had soup. I have told friends that if they need a 'real answer' to sneak up on me and avoid direct questions. I think that there is some psychology term for this, dissociation??
Helpful folks who suggest notes don't know that it is hard to figure out what the note is for. They use them in a normal fashion and don't have a clue. My notes are more like-- don't go out--posted on the door.
You are right, I think that the memory issue is the least understood. Everyone usually thinks that they can prompt us and we will remember. This can't happen as the memory is gone for good. Sometimes this is a good thing and some things don't need to be remembered. Maybe you can try to forget rude behaviour.
It seems that everyone expects us to drool, stare,space out,twitch, etc but be normal cheery self in the interim. People don't get it at all.
I don't think that I said anything helpful here, thanks for letting me vent,too.

 

[Cetacean]

Hi again

Forgot to mention I had the tip of my left temporal lobe removed 3 years ago. ...

The tests I did with the students counseling were the Bender Gestalt, WAIS III and WMS III tests. I had strengths way above average and weaknesses way below average. I'll upload the entire report onto my blog if I can get the digital document.

I discovered much more than I can squeeze here so here's the url to my blog:
http://boolscottsbrain.blogspot.com/


Hope you find it interesting.

I'm now doing a diploma instead of a degree to be safe. Certain pointless subjects drive me insane.

Your blog is very interesting. Inspiring too.

The cunning, tenacity, and diligence with which you have approached the challenges of your epilepsy is truly impressive.
:clap:

Such traits are more important than passing exams for getting by in life beyond school. I can't help but think you'll do well once you find (or invent) an occupation that suits you. Perhaps you might consider that school is itself an occupation that doesn't suit you. The school phase of life will pass quickly, but please take advantage of the chance to make valuable lifetime friendships and connections if you can. What you got going for you will outlast your need to attend school.

I'm also impressed with the clever method you used for telling your story. The rollover graphic time lines made it easy to both apprehend and remember a detail-rich narrative. I imagine you took some time making them. Well done.

I used to work in a big Japanese corporation and produced its first Web site and I know they could use that sort of presentation on their Web sites. That was too many moons ago to count and so my connections don't count anymore, but this is to say I have some clue whereof I speak. You got game my friend.

BTW I know of a new Web technology called AIML (Artificial Intelligence Markup Language) for creating life like artificial personalities that serve as life-like automatic chat partners. It's easy to learn and there are a lot of potential applications, for instance, corporate Web sit public relations bots, greeting card bots, etc. Maybe an epilepsy expert bot. Think "interactive FAQs". And now you can just feed a bunch of text into the bot you make and it will learn to chat about that. It's cool. Might suit you. Maybe you want to check it out at http://pandorabots.com/botmaster/en/home (A friend invented it and has since received three Loebner prizes for it, as being the most human-like artificial intelligence technology in the world.)

Thank you for sharing. I am much encouraged. I hope you will be too.

Hey y'all, boolscott's blog is great!:twocents:

op:

 

[boolscott]

Thanks Cetacean

Nice to hear that it inspires you. Discovering that only specific parts of my memory were weak really helped me out. I feel much stronger than I used to.

The time line app was SO easy to make. Search for timetoast if you need to make one. It generates all the code for you, you just have to paste it on your blog. I get away with understanding about onder: 1% of it's code.

Talking about programming... :comp: My memory isn't an issue. There is no way I can remember a programming language's syntax, so I make docs to copy and paste. Most of the time I have to figure out stuff from square 1, which means a weak memory doesn't really matter.

That AI robot is AMAZING. She knows tons of geek stuff. If I ask her "what is epilepsy?" she replies " I have never been asked that before. " I guess she is in her teens and needs to be taught more.

 

[seizingbeauty]

As I've mentioned, I have major issues with personal memories. Without reminders I offen forget events or details.
However when it comes to inane information my friends have nicknamed me "The Encyclopedia of Useless Knowledge" I often have no idea where I picked up the tid bits of useless info, i often check to make sure they are accurate, to make sure I'm not making them up of the top of my head. The bf and I were talking the other day and wondering why I can retain all the bullcrap that doesn't matter and not remember the stuff that is important. Any clues?

 

[Chris515]

I'm the same way seizingbeauty. I forget everything important but I know so many random things about WW2, sports facts, etc.

I can remember what people ate at a dinner party years ago but I can't remember what I had for dinner on Saturday night.

I have no idea why...

 

[Mike]

Its the pills, its poison. our human bodies are not ment to dijest them. there not natural.Do some research to find out which of them cause memory loss, talk it over your M.D and make adujustments

 

[Cetacean]

Its the pills, its poison. our human bodies are not ment to dijest them. there not natural.Do some research to find out which of them cause memory loss, talk it over your M.D and make adujustments

:twocents:I don't think it's just the pills. I had this disease since I was five, and likewise memory problems. I didn't get diagnosed and get anti-seizure meds until age forty-five. The memory probs were getting worse all on their own. Then the pills definitely made things worse memory-wise, but save me so much suffering from nocturnal seizures they are worth it anyway. It's a cup half-full situation.

onder:Good water left in this cup.

Seems to me the worst offenders causing memory probs in my experience are Klonapin and Tegretol.

op:

 

[Cetacean]

Thanks Cetacean

...
Talking about programming... :comp: My memory isn't an issue. There is no way I can remember a programming language's syntax, so I make docs to copy and paste. Most of the time I have to figure out stuff from square 1, which means a weak memory doesn't really matter.

That AI robot is AMAZING. She knows tons of geek stuff. If I ask her "what is epilepsy?" she replies " I have never been asked that before. " I guess she is in her teens and needs to be taught more.

AIML* bot personalities are really easy to program. (*Artificial Intelligence Markup Language. It's like HTML - Hyper Text Markup Languge - for robots.)

All you have to understand is that each response by the AIML bot is generated from each input by a "category". In the category, there is a "template" and a "pattern". The template corresponds to one (set of) potential input(s) from the bot's conversation partner, and the pattern is the pre-programmed (set of) output(s) for that input. There are a few more details to it but that's basically how AIML works.

The AIML personality is simply a loooong list of categories alphabetized by the first letters of the template (input) each of which specifies one or more outputs for that input. There are software tools to compose AIML bot personalities, like you have word processors to compose textual documents.

Basically, you set up a basic set of categories for the personality, more for any specific applications, and voila, you've got an artificial personality with knowledge in a specific field. You can add as much as you want.

The process of composing the tens of thousands of responses to needed to give a robustly lifelike personality is greatly eased by (a) using the default category sets available for free, and (b) using the automated tools that will compose new responses from textual input, especially of conversations. Of course the best quality responses come from reviewing prior bot conversation transcripts, finding inputs to which the bot did not respond well - like " I have never been asked that before. " -, and teaching it a new response by simply typing it in.

AIML makes strategic use of the fact that human communication is tremendously redundant; that 95% of all conversations are about 5% of all subjects. So composing a basic personality is easy and has been done already for you, and the rest is filling in with detail work with texture and color, and extending the bots range of responsiveness into that last 5% of potential conversations. It's a wonderful mixture of art with programming.

Making this falling-down easy to learn was a priority of the inventor.

I'd probably be working with AIML, making and selling specialized bots, but this illness wants that time. (And I've a prior commitment to developing my own invention - now patent pending thank you.)

op:

 

[Mike]

Ill say it again, Nerofeedback and memory! It made its mark with ADHD children. Its fairly inexpencive compared to the other treatments and it wont hurt your body.

 

[Cetacean]

Ill say it again, Nerofeedback and memory! It made its mark with ADHD children. Its fairly inexpencive compared to the other treatments and it wont hurt your body.

I'd be doing it right now if EEG Neurofeedback was more affordable or covered by my insurance.

My doctor won't prescribe it (argue with the insurance company) because, as he finally said after - at his insistence - I put him in touch with Dr. John Walker, an allopath practicing EN in Texas, EN "does not conform to the standards of practice at this institution". So I go on eating a tablespoonful of mind-bending meds every day. And one develops tolerance, so it seems every half-year I have to increase dosage or find an additional med

I was quoted about $900 for the testing (best to come while having seizure symptoms), and according to some post here, I should expect it to run about $5000.

EN is also said to actually stop your seizures permanently after treatment. Allopathic treatment with pharmaceuticals simply suppresses them until you run out of drugs.

Ooooh I WANT it.

op:

 

[RobinN]

Questions To Ask Your Insurance Company About Neurofeedback Coverage

Do you cover biofeedback?
If yes, is it under Medical or Psychological Services?

Will you cover biofeedback for (your symptom)?

What rate do you pay?
(e.g. 80% of usual and customary vs. 80% of billed amount)

If it is covered under Medical Services, do I need a prescription or letter from my MD to say it is medically necessary?
Do I need to send the letter before I see the biofeedback therapist or can it go in with the first bill?

How many sessions of biofeedback will you cover?
Per year?
Before I see the doctor again?

Is there a limit of total amount paid out? (e.g., pay for biofeedback only to $1500 in one year or 6 months)

Do you pay an out-of-network provider?
If so, do I need to see my primary care physician to make a referral to a biofeedback provider?

What is the licensing requirement of the provider?

Would it be helpful to have the biofeedback code?
If so, it is 90901 (biofeedback).

http://eeginstitute.com

 

[RobinN]

Our neurofeedback experience cost about $2000. Not cheap, however much more has been spent by the insurance company in one trip to the ER.

 

[Mike]

EEG Nerofeedback is not Biofeedback,lets get it right. We have to keep all the facts straight not just some of them.Doctors and drug companys dont want us to care,Were less likley to take the drugs if we really pay attention

 

[Cetacean]

Questions To Ask Your Insurance Company About Neurofeedback Coverage

Do you cover biofeedback?
If yes, is it under Medical or Psychological Services?

...

http://eeginstitute.com

Thank you Robin.

"Do you cover biofeedback?" (EEG Neurotherapy, as the nearest providers prefer to call it, but they say it is more recognizable to say EEG biofeedback.)

I got that far - over the course of a couple years.

I asked the people at my health insurer. She was very sympathetic but the answer came back weeks later: No. I checked again a couple months later. No.

I talked to my PCP and she said maybe if your neurologist signs a letter your insurance company will cover it so I talked to my neurologist and he says no, so I say what would it take to persuade you and he says let me talk to a practicing MD currently doing this therapy and so I chase down Dr. John Walker in Texas who would supervise the PhD doctors who'd actually do the therapy in sort of nearby Walnut Creek. After many moons ... I put it to my neurologist and he says yes I talked to Dr. Walker and I say well?... and my neurologist says "It is not within the standards of practice at this institution."

Which amounted to another pretty solid no.

I'll get to yes. Or maybe the gods are laughing too hard.

With a little help and hope from all of you my friends, I hope to get to yes.

:woot:

I suppose I should ask, did I miss a stitch?:roflmao:

op: