S is For Senior Processing Errors by Bob Jones

Has it happened to you?

 

You go into the kitchen to get the key to the mailbox, see the dishwasher needs emptying, and as you put the clean dishes away you realize you haven’t had your morning coffee but as you pour a cup you can’t remember why you came into the kitchen.

 

Stan Goldberg has written a lot about different types of senior moments. What they share in common is information processing errors. These moments are not necessarily early warning signs of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. They are normal experiences that can be helped with more sleep, a healthy diet, exercise, doing one thing at a time, using stress management techniques or reducing mental clutter by using lists, calendars or apps.

 

How many of the following have you experienced?

 

1.  Forgetting Names/Numbers

Have you been at a gathering, and a person approaches you whose name has inexplicably been stripped from your memory? What’s worse is when the person is a close relative. As the person approaches, your anxiety increases with each step. Or, you have called your spouse’s cell phone hundreds of times but when you need to use someone else’s phone to call, you can’t remember if the last four digits are 6502 or 6250.

 

2.  Repeating Stories

You meet a friend, and they begin telling a story about a trip. You groan inwardly because this is the second or third or fourth time you have heard it. You listen politely because you understand the story has more to do with the significance it has in your friend’s life.

 

3. Misplacing Objects/Forgetting Purpose

We all misplace objects. It is a daily occurrence for some people. Sometimes we misplace ourselves. You end up in a room in your house and can’t remember why you went there.

 

4. Substituting Words

When a man asked his wife if their dog, Silver, had been fed, he used a long-deceased pet’s name, followed by the name of another deceased dog, then a third, eventually retrieving “Silver.”

 

5. Sequencing Problems

Everyone has experienced problems with tasks that require a series of steps. Sometimes, if the sequence is interrupted, even briefly, I forget the reason for initiating the move.

 

6. Difficulty Completing Tasks

It is Saturday morning, and you look at a list of unfinished projects accumulating over the last six months. You are so overwhelmed that instead of starting any of the tasks, you curl up in your favourite chair with a coffee and begin reading a new novel.

 

7. Disorientation

You show up at a store you’ve been in hundreds of times before and know exactly where to go to get what you need because your legs know exactly where to take you. However, one day when you show up, you are at a loss on how to get to your destination.

 

How many have you experienced?

 

Oh, did I write that already?

 

Processing errors can be troubling, but most of the time they're just a result of the brain's normal aging process. It is important to make note of these experiences over time and ask others to tell you if they've noticed that the moments are becoming more frequent and if so seek out professional help.

 

One thing I am encouraged by as I age is that Bible memorization is a way to keep your brain, as well as your spirit, tuned up.

 

Thank you for reading. 

 

Bob (the above photo is from my 70th b-day after running 10km to raise $ for humanitarian work in Ukraine)