Is a sudden short term memory problem something to worry about?

[Ikeepforgettingit]

I’ve always had an excellent memory. In the past month I’ve very suddenly developed some quite severe memory problems.

I will walk out of a room to get something and totally forget , go to say something and forget what it was, start to cook dinner and forget what I need or the next step, go to order something and forget what it was etc etc . It’s everything 😞

The thing that’s bothering me more is the feeling when I’m trying to remember - it’s like my brain is almost hurting ? It’s a feeling like I have the first and last word of a sentence and none of the words in between to make it make sense ? It almost makes me feel a bit agitated and it’s a very unpleasant feeling?

Im 40 so I wouldn’t expect any memory issues this age ? It was a very sudden onset too literally overnight ? should I worry ? Is it worth seeing the gp or will I be wasting their time ?

Have you banged your head at all?

Any dizziness/faint spells?

Double vision/headaches?

Are you generally stressed/eating/sleeping/exercising well?

Could it be peri-menopause?

Brain fog. Start of peri maybe (i forgot how to change gear a couple of times before hrt)..unless you have a lot of stress with no let up

hey op, I don’t think this is anything to ‘worry’ about in the absence of any other concerning symptoms. It sounds like peri to me

I’m 40 so I suppose it could be peri ? I don’t have any other symptoms though periods are still regular and the same as they’ve always been but I can’t think of anything else . No head bumps or anything. The only other symptom has been very occasional nausea but only when I get too hot (eg in the bath or if exercising and I have to stop)

I would see your GP. I think blood tests to check for any deficiencies (B12?) could be a reasonable first step. Have you had a lot of stress lately? Depression? Any physical symptoms?

Do you spend a lot of your day using screens?

Doom scrolling has proven to massively decrease memory.

Try minimising your phone use for a few days and see if that helps.

not really but I could cut down more and see if it helps

Factors to consider, stress and anxiety not sleeping
if your b12 iorn levels are off it makes a huge difference, if all the above in order
go to the gp

You’re not pregnant are you??