[Ellie_jo]

Does anyone have issues with memory during episodes? Is that a typical thing to happen?

[Daonnachd]

During hypomania (I'm BPII) my memory seems better. It's depression that whacks my cognitive functions. Mixed episodes are bad, but not as bad as depression.

[st0psign]

depression kills my memory. rumination destroys the ability to recollect details

[BipolaRNurse]

I get blackouts during full-blown manic episodes. I have to rely on others to tell me what I did and how I behaved, which usually isn't good news. Sometimes I think they're exaggerating or making things up.

[Wild Coyote]

Hi,

I find I have memory issues when I am having a mixed episode.

Sometimes with hypomania I have some short-term memory deficit; however, other times my memory is exquisite. I recall so much information, much more (previously encoded) info. than I know what to do with.

Are you having memory issues?

WC

[Ellie_jo]

I guess what i mean is more if you have issues remembering things that happened during those times. I was trying to describe that span of time to my t and I realized that I couldn't remember a lot of things. Mostly the connecting bits. Like I remember doing one thing then something else but I don't know what happened between the two.it just seems fuzzy and separate,

[Ellie_jo]

Originally Posted by vertigo

During hypomania (I'm BPII) my memory seems better. It's depression that whacks my cognitive functions. Mixed episodes are bad, but not as bad as depression.

What do you mean by bad?

[Wild Coyote]

Originally Posted by Ellie_jo

I guess what i mean is more if you have issues remembering things that happened during those times. I was trying to describe that span of time to my t and I realized that I couldn't remember a lot of things. Mostly the connecting bits. Like I remember doing one thing then something else but I don't know what happened between the two.it just seems fuzzy and separate,

Hi Ellie_jo,

I like your name, by the way.

During hypomania, I have some difficulties like: I might go to water the plants and find they were freshly watered. I then find out I had just watered them. I might go to take meds and I need to check my daily med record, because I may have taken the med 5 minutes ago and I cannot recall. (In my case, this is more of an "attention" issue, which looks like a "memory" issue. I fail to encode the fact that I have already done these things. Since I have not entered that info into my brain's processor, it cannot be recalled.)

I also have more difficulty remembering what I did all day and relating that to anyone, including a therapist. At other times in my life, I have detailed sequential recall of the events of the day, not so much with hypomania.

I do recall previously learned info at an alarming rate, however.

My best to you,
WC

Originally Posted by Ellie_jo

Does anyone have issues with memory during episodes? Is that a typical thing to happen?

I don't remember most of my fully blown manias, especially if I am psychotic. Same with mixed episodes.

My boyfriend has the same dx and is the same way.

I feel like I remember every minute of major depression.

[UpDownMiddleGround]

I have bad problems with memory during mania and depression. Short term memory fails and afterwards I can only vaguely remember certain things that occurred. I have to rely heavily on notes.

Sent from my XT1030 using Tapatalk

People tell me I said, did, or acted a certain way during mania and I don't recall things going down the same way they are explained. Like BipolarNurse, I often feel people exaggerate, but I guess I don't really know. During depression, my cognition is dwindled to nothing sometimes. At times my memory is better than average, and at time is worse. I'm consistently inconsistent.

[franz kafka]

I have memory loss with manic episodes, yes. It's a well known phenomenon.

[bizi]

I remembered everything about my first psychotic episode/ break down mainc episode and first diagnosis.
EVERYTHING>
then year after year with antipsychotics I remember less and less until finally I hardly remember any of it.
bizi

[Wander]

I forget a lot of what happens while mixed but it could be due to the high doses of meds I am put on during those phases.

[Ellie_jo]

Interesting perspectives, guys. Sounds like it's different for everyone.

[Theresa1991]

I just feel like every few weeks I have to Piece my life back together. As soon as my mood changes my Memory of the past Episode is basically wiped out. I cling to my diaries to remember that life has not always been like this. I mainly Forget what it was that i have been doing for the past weeks. I mainly feel like it has always been like this and then I remember, reading something or trying to recall something that I had different Feelings just a week ago. That is why for years I have been dividing my life in phases or saying it was a different life. I also have a very bad short term Memory when I am hypo. I Forget if I have taken a medication, withdrawn Money, asked a question, Forget what I was about to do, Forget almost everything and feel the urge to write things down so I wont loose my head.

[bizi]

theresa, write things down!
do what ever you have to do to make things work.
I have a routine to taking my meds.
I take them twice a day.
I have a pill box that I set up the night before, a round little box that fits neatly into my uniform. It lies in a bowl with my watch and earrings so it is a visual reminder to put my pill box into my pocket. I don't eat breakfast so I take them after lunch away from home. I can feel the pill box in my pocket as a reminder to take them.
At night before bed I take all of meds, some of them are by my tooth brush.
It is easy to remember to take them because there are so many and I must fill up tomorrows box. At night when I take them out of the bottles I put them on a white cloth and look at them as a visual reminder that I have taken them that night.
The visuals help sink things into my memory.
This has work for many years.
only occasionally will I forget my pill box for some odd reason then I run home and get it/take them.
sigh...to be human...
bizi

Originally Posted by Ellie_jo

I guess what i mean is more if you have issues remembering things that happened during those times. I was trying to describe that span of time to my t and I realized that I couldn't remember a lot of things. Mostly the connecting bits. Like I remember doing one thing then something else but I don't know what happened between the two.it just seems fuzzy and separate,

Originally Posted by bizi

theresa, write things down!
do what ever you have to do to make things work.

Exactly. If I don't write things down, I can't remember. I have a HORRIBLE sense of time, and even if I were to remember what, putting it in a timeframe... yikes.

Writing wouldn't have to be extensive, Ellie_jo -- just jot down a few notes about each day. It would really only need to be enough to prompt your memory for your appointments.

(It's possible you might still have some gaps, but it should help at least make fewer of them I think.)

[Coconutzo]

Originally Posted by BipolaRNurse

I get blackouts during full-blown manic episodes. I have to rely on others to tell me what I did and how I behaved, which usually isn't good news. Sometimes I think they're exaggerating or making things up.

Story of my life.

[franz kafka]

I forget things about my manic episodes. It's almost a blessing...

[Moose72]

I'd like to think I remember my manic episodes. How would I even know if I didn't? Happen to see Pdoc one of those days?

[fairydustgirl]

Originally Posted by Ellie_jo

I guess what i mean is more if you have issues remembering things that happened during those times. I was trying to describe that span of time to my t and I realized that I couldn't remember a lot of things. Mostly the connecting bits. Like I remember doing one thing then something else but I don't know what happened between the two.it just seems fuzzy and separate,

This is interesting as today I had this conversation with my therapist. I have been diagnosed for 10 years now, the first 8 were pretty horrific, I was having episodes twice a year that lasted around 3-4 months before I was able to come back to stability (spike to mania, come down to mixed, crash into depression). At any rate, I feel like I lost time, that there are whole periods of time during those years that I just don't remember. Some of it might have been a medicine affect, seroquel had me rather zombie-ized for quite some time.

I think it's probably something that does happen to a lot of us. There's also a cognitive element to having bipolar, where even between episodes, our brains don't process the same as a neurotypical person. We might be stable but we still have bipolar illness. This is something I have tried to research and is what brought me to PC initially, to ask this question of other members.

[Nate7907]

I just am not very self aware. I have to be told I am manic usually before I know I alway think I am Hypo.

[xRavenx]

I have difficulties remembering things I've said and done during mixed/mania. Sometimes it is difficult, because others will tell me things I've either said to them or done, and it can be embarrassing. These behaviors aren't necessarily hurtful to others....they are more so humiliating. Or sometimes it just confuses someone into thinking that's how I am typically since not everyone knows I'm Bipolar and that the behavior is out of character for me.

[HALLIEBETH87]

After mania I often don't recall everything and it seems like it never happened