Weird memory lapse - forgot how to tell the time

[Smallyellowbird]

I had a slight 'turn' today when I just couldn't tell the time - i didn't understand what the hands and numbers on my analogue watch meant and I've wore an analogue watch for about 45 years. I was in a work meeting so put it out of my mind, and was able to read the time about an hour later.

I've had a very busy couple of days, hoping it was a lapse as I was tired, but a tiny bit of me is worried that it could be something serious.

Hoping someone can tell me this is totally normal for a 53 year old. I have arthritis and really don't have the energy to have anything else wrong with me.

Im afraid you need to go and see a doctor and talk it through. Its a sign of a few nasties and you need to get checked for any neurological deficits. When you were in the middle of it, did you notice anything else weird, in particular any numbness or tingling or weakness anywhere in your body, one side or both. Any headaches, vision changes, arm aches, lightheadedness or feeling like you just had to sit down etc. Have you hit your head or been in a car crash recently? Sorry to pepper you with questions, but its all answers you should take to your doctor

Thank you SeatoSky - very busy at work and just saw this now - so i'm not dead! But I did have a sharp sudden headache with my weird forgetting how to tell the time.

I will make a doctors appointment, I had more or less decided to wait and see, but I did get a bit worried about it last night and couldn't sleep.

You are very good to reply, I needed the push.

I agree you need to see a doctor. There are a number of things it could. Some serious and some not.

I get migraines which involve loss of the ability to read, so there's a chance it's something non-evil. But they were keen to check me out after the first one to make sure. Thankfully they don't happen that often!

DH had a migraine so bad a couple of years ago that he was rushed to hospital. When I got there, the doctor was holding up a pen and asking him what it was- he couldn’t tell them; slurrily trying to describe what you do with it was all he could manage.

They moved like lightning, I’ve never seen anything like it- brain scan, all kinds of tests. They thought he was having a stroke.

I would actually go to A&E with this- they will take it seriously, and hopefully rule out serious conditions.