Memory problems: its 3 types and the possible causes

March 29, 2024

The memory is probably one of the most relevant cognitive abilities when it comes to organizing our life.

The ability to remember our history and identity, to preserve our experiences and to keep in mind what we have just done or what we have to do are elements that are derived to a large extent from different types of memory, the deterioration of this capacity being cause of concern for most people.

The reason for this is, in many cases, the association of memory loss with the neurodegeneration characteristic of Alzheimer's and other dementias. But although deficits and memory alterations do appear in many of these diseases, Memory problems are not limited to neurodegenerative diseases .

In this article, we will analyze what we consider memory problems and some of the different contexts or situations in which they may appear.

Related article: "Types of memory: how memory stores the human brain?"

What is a memory problem and when can it appear?

When we say that someone or that we ourselves have a memory problem, we are generally referring to that we have lived some (usually several) situation in which there has been forgetting information that we have previously learned and / or we should remember or have remembered.

This lack of memories can be experienced in different ways , and in some cases they could be indicating the presence of some important difficulty. Specifically, the growing concern regarding dementias such as Alzheimer's often causes these failures to generate a high level of distress and visits to the doctor and the neuropsychologist.

Check the possible reasons for these failures is more than recommended and especially from certain ages but we must also bear in mind that there are many factors that can cause memory problems throughout life, many of them normal and not pathological per se. However, when memory problems are habitual and repetitive, it is highly recommended to go to a professional to assess the presence of serious difficulties.

Nor should we immediately identify memory problems with advanced age: Young people and adults can also suffer from different reasons for different reasons be in a timely manner as with a certain frequency.

Another important aspect to take into account is the fact that although the problem that usually worries us usually occurs in memory or evocation, in fact memory is a process that is not limited to that moment: that a memory becomes a memory that an information is first captured, encoded, processed, retained and finally recovered. Thus, a memory problem could actually occur in any of these moments, and it may also happen that some interference appears that hinders the subsequent recall.

Confusion with other psychological problems

Memory problems are often confused or identified with the presence of problems in other mental abilities and abilities. It is not a mistake that is strange, since the truth is that a lot of mental abilities are linked to memory .

Probably one of the most frequent confusions is between memory problems and attention problems.

And is that often problems of attention hinder or even prevent the information is recorded correctly, affecting the capture and processing of information to be memorized , what in subsequent recall tests could be interpreted as a memory problem. This occurs both in the presence of existing attention difficulties and in situations in which simultaneous attention to different stimuli is demanded.

Types of memory problems

There are many types of memory and many affectations that can appear in this capacity. By way of summary, we will mention some of the best known.

1. Amnesia

Amnesia is defined as the inability to remember past experiences in the case of retrograde amnesia or as the inability to encode and store in the memory new information in the case of anterograde, derived from the presence of a brain lesion (such as the syndrome amnesic) or for emotional or psychological reasons (in the case of dissociative amnesia).

Amnesia can be transient or permanent, depending on each case, and include or influence a longer or shorter period of time.

You may be interested: "The different types of amnesia (and their characteristics)"

2. Paramnesias and parapraxias

Paramnesias are understood as those memory problems characterized by the presence of distortions or incorporations of false elements in memory or associated with erroneous temporality. It is not that the subject does not remember, but that these memories are altered .

On the other hand, parapraxias are understood as errors of memory characteristic of healthy subjects and that are usually based on the forgetting of details or difficulties in the production of a memory that we know is present.

Within these groups we find memory problems such as confabulation (introduce elements to fill memories, unconsciously), the phenomenon of the tip of the tongue (when there is no word that we know we know), temporary gaps or loss of details due to the automation of known tasks.

As well you can see recognition problems like the well-known "deja vu" (live for the first time something although we have the sensation of having lived it before) and "jamais vu" (the opposite) or the cryptoamnesis (to believe that a memory is not such but something that happens now for the first time ).

3. Hypermnesias

We rarely identify the fact of remembering too much, but the truth is that for some people it can be so. It is what happens with the flashes experienced before the consumption of some drugs , in post-traumatic stress disorder or in psychopathological conditions such as paranoia or ecmnesia (in which you think you are living in the past.

Causes and situations in which they occur

There are many possible causes, contexts and situations that can be linked to the appearance of a memory problem. Among them we can find in a prominent way some that are in fact normative and others that are derived from some type of pathology or situation acquired .

1. Interferences in the memorization process

Our knowledge is influenced by the events and learning that we receive over time. One of the possible reasons why a memory problem may appear that does not have to involve pathology is the interference generated by what was learned before or after the event to be remembered.

This is easier to understand with an example: if I learn a phone number at a given time and a little before or a little later we have learned another, we are likely to forget any of the numbers or confuse them .

2. Lack of sleep and / or nutrition

Fatigue and fatigue are aspects that can severely impair our mental abilities. Sleep in general is associated with the recovery of the organism and the nervous system.

REM sleep is associated with the consolidation in memory of memories . Sleep deprivation generally harms higher mental processes, especially memory. In addition, also the attention and concentration necessary to detect, capture and process information will be impaired if we do not get enough sleep.

3. Stress and anxiety

Having to do many things at the same time, being agitated or nervous or having anxiety or burnout can also be other reasons for memory problems to appear.

Although they are especially evident in the case of prospective memory (towards the future, that is, remembering that something must be done), failures, blockages or forgetting of concrete experiences in the past may also appear. the difficulty of recording new information .

Many of these memory problems are linked to attentional problems, the subject being concentrated and submerged in anguish or stressful situation.

4. Health problems

Memory is also affected by different physical illnesses. For example, Respiratory problems can cause less blood to reach the brain , something that has a direct impact on its functioning and in certain areas can affect the ability to remember.

Also problems and diseases such as anemia, diabetes, excessive blood loss or lack of vitamins and other nutrients can cause memory problems. The same can be said about the presence of tumors that affect or press certain brain areas.

5. Drugs and side effects of some drugs

The consumption of alcohol and different drugs has also been associated with the appearance of memory problems, blockages and other diverse problems. In some cases, disorders such as Korsakoff's syndrome may appear, in which memory is severely affected.

Also, some drugs can also cause memory problems as a side effect, such as some psychoactive drugs (although other medications are also associated with it). In the event of memory deficits it may be possible to look for an analogous drug to avoid this effect , or assess the pros and cons of maintaining treatment.

6. Depression and other mood disorders

Depression can also cause memory problems, based among other factors on the mental slowness that can lead to rumination and concentration problems that may be associated with this diagnosis. It is not strange that blockages appear, evocative failures derived from lack of attention or bias towards the memory of negative events .

7. Regulatory aging

We all know that most people, over the years, lose faculties. We get slower, we have more mobility problems and we need more time to reason .

The same thing happens with memory: as a general rule (although not always), most of us lose the capacity to learn new things and it is easier for them to appear confused and forgetful. This is due to the aging of the neurons, being usual that regions of the brain such as the hippocampus is reduced or that the blood level in them is reduced.

All this means that we can say that some loss of memory is expected, although we must monitor the level of loss, if it generates dysfunctionalities or if an evident decrease is perceived with respect to previous moments.

Maybe you're interested: "The 4 psychological changes in old age (memory, attention, intelligence, creativity)"

8. Acquired brain damage: traumatic brain injury and cerebrovascular accidents

Traffic accidents or different types of blows to the head can also generate memory problems, in the form of amnesia either anterograde (record new information) or retrograde (of previous knowledge or experiences). This can happen at any age.

In the same way, cerebrovascular accidents (whether hemorrhagic or ischemic) can affect brain areas linked to memory, such as the hippocampus. In fact, in some cases Vascular dementia may arise derived from the presentation of cerebral infarctions, which depending on the affected areas can cause alterations in memory.

9. Processes of cognitive deterioration and dementia

While we have started this article by showing that not all memory problems involve dementia, we can not fail to mention this type of disorder together with mild cognitive impairment and deterioration that arises in other mental disorders as one of the causes of memory problems.

In the case of dementias, these memory problems they tend to tend in most cases to accentuate and worsen with the passage of time due to neurodegeneration.