Okay my memory/processing is complete CRAP. Is this normal?

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I've always believed I have some serious memory problems. Not so much with short-term/working memory, but rather with long-term semantic/episodic memory and procedural memory as well. According to ALL of the professionally-administered neuropsych memory tests i've taken though, I have a pretty good memory all-around EXCEPT when it comes to visual memory.

Now visual memory is often, though certainly not always, deficient in those with Asperger's/NVLD. Thus i'm hardly alone if indeed I do have problems with visual memory. I would be a pretty unusual person with AS/NVLD if I did have problems with long-term semantic/episodic memory though. I believe it is at least somewhat unusual that I have no problems (based both upon my own self-assessment and that of all the clinicians who've evaluated me with the common psychometric tests of memory like WMS) with short-term/working memory.

It seems to me that many folks with autism spectrum disorders (including AS/NVLD the debate as to whether NVLD is actually one and the same with AS and therefore, a defacto autism spectrum disorder, notwithstanding here) have at least average and often enough, excellent, long-term memories (in terms of semantic and episodic memory at the very least) while having deficiencies in short-term/working memory.

I believe that procedural memory is often impaired in people with ASD. There have been several studies that strongly suggest this and if so, these particular deficits are likely related to abnormalities in the cerebellum and/or the striatum/basal ganglia regions of brain. Such abnormalities MAY be fairly common in those with ASD and similar disorders. It is also believed that those with ASD who have problems with procedural memory often compensate for them with declarative (semantic and episodic) memory.

While I have no objective confirmation for the specific (and VERY disabling as far as i'm concerned at least) memory problems I believe I have, they seem very, very real to me. That is to say....it is difficult for me to believe that i've merely imagined or exaggerated (if I have....I certainly haven't done so deliberately) them for some god-awful reason/s. Furthermore....it is evidently possible for people to have severe problems with long-term memory which simply elude detection on the standard neuropsychological memory tests. Not only did the neuropsychologist who just evaluated me in June tell me this, but this excellent article from the Oxford Journal of Neurology essentially makes this claim as well. I've posted this countless times before on WrongPlanet, but i'll share again here for you as I think you may find it interesting. Also....I feel that it's illustrative of how complicated human memory is. According to this article, even many modern psychologists (and i'd add other professionals who deal with the human brain to one degree or another) have made "unwarranted assumptions" about memory, at least when it comes to long-term/"very long-term" memory.

http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/content/123/3/472.full


There are some other means available (including, perhaps, neuroimaging tools such as MRI/PET ) which would allow for more in-depth assessments of my memory, but much to my eternal dismay, they are beyond my financial means (at least my CURRENT financial means) and my health insurance certainly won't cover them. I've already tried to access such tests via some clincial research studies I wanted to participate in, but without going into details, none of that worked out either.

As far as your own problems with memory are concerned, providing you truly have any of course, i'm just honestly not qualified to tell you much about them. From what little I know about all this, it seems like you may have some deficits in attention/concentration and they may ACTING like deficits in memory.

Have you ever undergone any neuropsych testing? Most neuropsych evaluations include both memory tests and tests of attention/concentration. Also...you may, with or without any deficiencies in attention/concentration, have the very common deficits (common among those with AS/NVLD that is) in short-term/working memory. That is.....maybe your long-term memory is just fine and it simply takes awhile to consolidate the information you're reading into long-term memory.

Do you find the material you usually read interesting? Or is it just stuff for school, work, etc....that you have no interest in whatsoever, but must read in order to pass a class, complete a task at work, etc.....???



One's level of interest in what they read can make a big difference in terms of how much of the given material they remember you know.


This is often the case for NT's and I think it might be even more applicable to those with ASD. We often soar at subjects we have a passion while our brains seem to go into shut down mode when trying to learn things we couldn't care less about. For example...i'm basically a walking encyclopedia when it comes to many things related to WWII, coral reefs, rainforests, tropical plants, music, psychology/neuropsychology, etc......OTOH.....i'm essentially incapable of learning the slightest thing about fashion or cars because I have zero interest in either (except in strictly practical means-to-an-end terms when it comes to cars) and don't even waste a neuron thinking about those subjects.

Are you "chunking" when you read? That is.....are you reading a few pages of material at a time and perhaps going over parts (and maybe even highlighting as well) you're not clear on or detail-rich ones that are hard to remember.

That can make a big difference too. If you are trying to absorb an entire chapter or more of material at once, you might be disappointed in regards to how much of it you actually recall after completion. Some people might be able recall EVERYTHING, word for word, that they've read from a chapter or more of a book after only reading it once, but i'd say such people are pretty uncommon and have at least something darn close to an Eidetic ( what was once referred to as a "Photographic memory") memory.

Most of us aren't quite that lucky though and i've heard some people who at least CLAIM they have an eidetic memory state that it's not all it's cracked up to be and is actually a considerable burden for them.

Eh well....the grass is always greener on the other side I suppose *shrugs*



Alot of people with AS and other spectrum disorders often make this claim. Whether they truly possess a genuine eidetic memory, (which some psychologists don't even believe in....I disagree... but i'm certain it's rare at best), an exceptionally good memory, merely imagining all sorts of fantastic things about their memory, or simply bullshitting.....is impossible for me to determine of course.


At any rate....most people who don't possess an eidetic memory seem to remember info better when they break it down into little "chunks" rather than trying to absorb it all at once.

How is your diet? Are you getting enough fruits and veggies? Do you exercise on a fairly regular basis and are you getting a proper amount of sleep every night? A lack of any/all of these can have some negative effects on several aspects of cognition...not just memory. Are you exceptionally stressed-out lately? Stress hormones don't do any wonders for memory either. Are you depressed at all?.....clinically depressed people often complain of memory problems and not without valid neurochemically-based reason/s. How about medications?.....are you taking any and if so....which ones exactly? I'm not expecting you to give me answers to any of these questions.....you just might want to ask them all to yourself and if you deem it necessary, share your questions and concerns with a qualified professional. Again.... i'm certainly not one...at least not yet.

Processing speed is entirely different matter and IMO, a far less serious and debilitating issue than memory problems provided they are severe enough. Many of us with ASD and related disorders have deficits in processing speed. I actually DO have plenty of objective confirmations for this. I was tested by that neuropsychologist in June and I obtained a score of 86 on the Processing speed section of the WAIS-IV. This score is in the borderline range and while i've scored higher on it in past neuropsych evals, it's never been phenomenal.

While i'm a very fast reader myself....I tend to process visual info and conversations very slowly. I'm slow on tasks requiring non-verbal/visual actions (such as locating a particular tool/link on my computer screen at work) and I often don't comprehend what people are saying because most of them talk too fast for my brain to process the whirlwind of things they said. Therefore....I often have to ask people (at work and elsewhere) to repeat complicated info before I have the slightest idea of what they're talking about. I know I appear stupid to many people because of this....but i've mostly gotten over caring about what ignorant neurotypicals think of me.

I am also easily distracted and can't deal with alot of noise and chit-chat when i'm trying to learn stuff. Some people say music or TV helps them study and learn more efficiently.....I require almost total silence myself. According to one test of attention/concentration I took... my sustained attention is impaired.

Nonetheless....i've never been dx-ed with ADHD/ADD.

Anyway....good luck to you. It really doesn't sound like anything serious to me. Countless people, even many young people, ( both NT's and those with ASD/related disorders) have identical complaints about their memories and these issues usually have nothing to do with any serious neurological problems. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me and i'll answer (if I CAN answer them of course as many things in regards to the topic/s in question here are simply "beyond my pay grade" ) them ASAP. I am very busy these days though, so I can't promise any response at all within a matter of days.... if not weeks.

Last edited by Horus on 31 Jan 2011, 1:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Massive problems in this area for me - and maybe another point to consider in the subject. I find it hard to take things in. I learn so slowly and I always mess things up that are easy for others.
I really hate emotions. I hate everything about them. I seem to notice a pattern that my abilities to pick things up, remember and understand is worse when coupled with negative emotional responses. When my trainer is pressuring me, asking me why the hell am I a woman incapable of multi-tasking, or I'm trying to read university work and I'm miserable about life in general, and I can't focus because I'm in complete denial.