Cognitive Decline and how to deal with it - advice??

[bobbyw8469]

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

Get a complete physical including blood work, could be a health problem. Many thing can cause memory problems. For me it was diabetes. Now that I am treating it life is WAY better and my memory slowly came back.

[swarmee]

How tidy is your house? Is it possible these items are hidden in plain sight (like fell behind a desk, slipped into a drawer, etc)? Rearrange your workspaces and move your furniture around. Have a "clean desk" policy where everything is put away daily.

Aside from physical ailments, consider going to a counselor to check for stress. If you're trying to do too many things at once, you might be overextending yourself. Also a neurological exam may be valuable.

[36GoudeyMan]

I'm 62. When I turned 40, I told people that I wish I had the memory I had when I was 30; when I turned 50, I told people I wish I had the memory I had when I was 40, and when I turned 60, I told people I wish I had the memory I had when I was 50. It happens to everyone. Your hard disk fills up; your vision declines even a little bit, making it harder to see things, especially in the darker areas. I'm also diabetic, and have other health issues.

One trick that works for me (it took discipline and practice) was to designate very specific areas for things to go: everything has its place. Eventually, muscle memory and routine will remind you to put today's incoming cards in the pile by the sock drawer next to computer, and to put the outgoing mail on the table in the foyer. Creating designated spaces for things, pretty much anything, can help avoid losing things, as your mind associated thing with places pretty quickly. It then becomes habit, which depends less on cognitive skill levels that mere repetition. You may still misplace things, but I think it will be less and less often. Good luck!!!

[nsaddict]

Bobby,
I think it could be a little of everything mentioned. I don’t think it’s abnormal. I agree with another poster, you’re putting too much stress on yourself. Now if you would have posted, “what overdue October group sub are you guys talking about” Then I’d be concerned!

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by nsaddict

Bobby,
I think it could be a little of everything mentioned. I don’t think it’s abnormal. I agree with another poster, you’re putting too much stress on yourself. Now if you would have posted, “what overdue October group sub are you guys talking about” Then I’d be concerned!

LOL...I'm not that bad yet.....but I am very concerned with the sheer number in just a short amount of time when I had gone years without a hiccup. It's like these items are simply vanishing into thin air. And that's the scary part.

[MooseDog]

Robert,

When my 50th birthday came long, I stressed to no end. I was pretty down and honestly I don't think I've fully recovered from it. My filing system was piles, and I knew which pile and where everything was. I prided myself on what a great memory I had. I don't have that power any more.

I turned 60 last year while I have come to grips with the aging, I still walk into a room and forget exactly what I went in there for. I have to put my keys and glasses in the same place all the time when I put them down or I'll never find them. Some forgetfulness is what happens when we age. I played a lot of sports and have had my share of concussions over the years so I am a little paranoid that might affect me.

During this lockdown period, I've been going through a LOT of old stuff, and have been finding things that I FORGOT I had. See there's that "F" word. It's been quite an eye-opener on my own brain. I've even found things I thought lost long ago.

Agree with the previous posters, if you are really worried, make sure you are having annual physicals and let your Dr know your concerns. If you can, find out about any family history you may or may not have in terms of any congnitive issues. Get all the normal blood work and at least that should let you know if anything might be health related. If anything is suspected you'll get a date with a neurologist for some more tests.

If you turn up healthy, and if your health plan allows it or if you're down with it, have a couple of sessions with a psychologist, call it a sanity check or brain check up. Some hospitals and plans will even let you do sessions by phone or teleconference. You don't have to commit to anything long term but they'll at least "ease your mind", so to speak, and give you some tips on keeping your brain active and healthy.

From a personal standpoint, if you are the type that has to be doing something all time, have several things going on at once, just stop it. It's been proven that multi-tasking is a myth and I think the ability to divide one's attention gets less as you get over 50. Slow down, work on one thing at a time and give it your full attention. This takes a lot of work. I'm more easily distracted now then when I was a pup but I have found if I just do one thing at a time things go a lot better. I also make a lot of lists, but I have done that most of my life (and still never get most of the stuff checked off!)

Some suggestions:

- Take walks. Doesn't have to be long, around the block, up and down the street, whatever. And just walk, preferably by yourself. You're brain is going to start telling you stuff you need to do, tell it to shut up until the walk is one. Don't listen to music, don't discuss stress-inducing subjects with your walking partner if you have one.

- Watch less TV. I found my brain turning to mush the more hours I watched and cut back quite a bit. I'm pretty much down to sports and very few TV shows and movies. I limit news to about an hour.

- Exercise your brain...it should be something you actually enjoy or it won't do much good...reading (anything, fiction, non-fiction, medical journals, whatever floats your boat)...puzzles (word search, crosswords, jigsaw puzzles, sukoku, trivia - lots of apps for these). Playing or learning a musical instrument.

- Relax your brain...mindfulness meditation (no religion involved, you just sit and breath, try and turn your mind off...just be there in the moment). Personally I've found zen meditation very helpful, my brain just wouldn't shut up and I found the "empty mind" philosophy worked for me. Just remember as I told a buddy of mine it's "empty mind" not "empty brain"!

- Declutter. Marie Kondo gets a lot of s**t but she is onto something. We have too much stuff. Get rid of that which you don't really care about any more.

- Laughter really is the best medicine.

Your brain is like the rest of your body, it needs exercise, and it needs rest. When it gets overtaxed it's going to keep working but it will send you signs you need to take a break.

I kinda went on a ramble here but I hope something here is helpful.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by bnorth

Get a complete physical including blood work, could be a health problem. Many thing can cause memory problems. For me it was diabetes. Now that I am treating it life is WAY better and my memory slowly came back.

I'd second that, lots of potential causes, and knowing for sure if it's something fixable or just getting old makes a difference.

I have ADD, and if there's one thing I'm an expert on it's losing stuff. I've lost multiple pens in under an hour without leaving my chair. I KNOW it can't be more than arms reach away, but it's just gone.

As I've gotten older, so many small details just vanish, I used to be able to pick a card out of a box full of random stuff after years, and tell where I got it and usually about how much I paid. Now there are more things I find and ask "When the heck did I get that, and (often) why?"

[ibuysportsephemera]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

I don't know anyone that hasn't been under some type of stress recently. Stress can be the cause of your recent forgetfulness. Also, if you are obsessing about the "problem" you can be making it much worse than it really is. As Ben said, go to your GP and get a full physical.

Good luck,


Jeff

[Jcfowler6]

Take some time to refresh. Get a Doctor visit scheduled. Walk some and eat right. Drink lots of water. Just don’t make a rash decision. Hope all improves for you. God bless!


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[Sean1125]

Bobby,

I know you're a great guy, this is tough to deal with. I'm in my late 20's and recently got into a bad car wreck and got a TBI. I've had several instances of "put something down and lose it 5 seconds later". I had some medical paperwork I placed on a bookshelf that took me 20 minutes to find. I've taken boxes to FedEx and had instances of "wait, did I miss a box, what happened". Wax boxes going missing in my office. I know how tough this is to deal with and I feel for you.

There is no easy answer. There is both qEEG neurofeedback and biofeedback that can help, but they are not cheap. The qEEG can show you where your brain is in decline and what disconnections there are and help deal with that.

Maybe spend some more time on cleanliness and organization (I'm preaching, because I only spend a minor amount of time on it). Have sticky notes and specific labels, double-audit things, etc.

Best of luck my friend.

Kindly,

Sean

[Seven]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

Sorry to hear that your going through this. I can't offer medical advice, I defintely think this pandemic is playing a part in it though. The lack of social interaction plus with constantly being limited in what we can and can't do has been messing with my head and I'm only 26! I'm losing track of days, where I put things, bills that I have paid. It's very scary. I'm sure there are doctors that you can be referred to with this situation occurring. Best to think positive though and try not to dwell on it.

[hcv123]

3 avenues to explore -

1) Mental - Find something to do to do some "mental health exercise" - and I'm talking more about how your thinking about what you're thinking than what you're thinking. - see a counselor, start a new exercise program, eat better, other self care actions

2) Emotional - be gentle with yourself - we are often our own worst critics - we are human beings and not perfect (despite often times existing and acting as if we are) - you too are imperfect and that's okay! Connect with a friend or a loved one that can be supportive emotionally.

3) Practical - As previously mentioned - set up a "routine" if for example group subs always go into a particular box - even though you might not remember having any particular sub in your hand, you will likely remember that you have a "sub box" and you should have ut it there.

[conor912]

MooseDog brings up some excellent points. I have found nutrition and exercise to be key, for both mind and body. While the brain is not technically a muscle, it should be exercised as such. That said, there is no doubt a “brain fog” that goes with the lockdown. I just turned 40 and am finding it useful to simplify the material things in my life. I’ve been taking strides to shrink the volume but increase the quality, my collection included.

[BeanTown]

All great post and something we all may deal with sooner than later. One thing that has worked for me, other than trying to eat right and excercise, is to incorporate cinnamon and honey in my morning coffee.

[Leon]

Quit doing group submissions.

.

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by Leon

Quit doing group submissions.

.

I think that will help out alot.....at least maybe not so huge and not so many in the chamber at once.

[mintacular]

I think you are being way too hard on yourself, cut out group submissions and get your card workload back to a normal stress free level because you are supposed to enjoy the hobby!

Losing cards from time to time is just part of collecting and yes it does suck. I recently developed a box with some dividers that helped me organize a bit better so fine-tune a system that can help you keep things the way you can remember / verify cards as they come in and then leave

[todeen]

I agree completely with the advice to see a doctor. But I also have another suggestion. Exercise.

I have memory loss (just a little bit) because of medications I'm taking. I once was coming up to an intersection I needed to turn left at. I knew I had a doctor's visit in 15 minutes, I was thinking of the appointment. But for some reason, in the space of 30 seconds, i realized I was tired and my home was just around the corner and it would be a great opportunity for a nap. And that's how I missed my dr appointment! I'm 34 y.o.

But, one of the best things my doctor recommended was getting exercise every day. I had to adjust my schedule, but I try to go walking every day for at least 30 minutes. If I have more time, I will walk 4 miles in just over an hour. I am a teacher, and to do this during the school year I must wake up at 4:45 AM. But it has completely improved my life. I gained energy, I lost weight, I reduced stress, i was happier, and I noticed my memory improved.

Starting in April, I was in the hospital for 20 days in a 30 day period, I had 5 feet of small intestine removed because of Crohn's Disease. I had a perforated small intestine that might have led to sepsis. It's supposed to be extremely painful. My doctor said whatever I was doing before this health scare had affected me positively. She had never seen such a positive patient like me in the condition I was in. I was smiling, I was laughing, I even walked 30 minutes around the hospital 2 hours before surgery. I wasn't showing symptoms of such a dangerous health scare. She was completely shocked. But she also said I would have a faster recovery than others because of it. I was back to walking 30 minutes+ two days after surgery. In the hospital i was walking 90 minutes a day (cuz there was nothing else to do).

I credit everything to the medicine of exercise. It will work for everyone!

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[Fuddjcal]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

you're taking on a lot of unnecessary crap, IMHO. Putting together group PSA submissions will stress the sh** out of anyone. That's 1 cluster f you can start with. You don't need to save the world. Just save yourself. Submit on your own and I promise you'll make less or no mistake. Enjoy it more or possibly give it a little rest for a while and don't collect so much garbage that "needs grading"? I guarantee you won't lose cards.

Key's are another story. I have 5 cars and I find it's easy to find them on a hanger in the laundry room. If I lose them now, it's because they fell out of my pocket in the car. Every time.

I have an issue like this from time to time @ 59 I find that I get mad at myself when I misplace something and can't find it...within an hour. I learned to never to be too hard on myself, which can be hard but it works. You're gonna lose shit. Don't try super sneaky hiding spots that you can't find... or write it down.

More sleep and exercise helps me. I also agree with Ben's assessment.
Good Luck, youth is still on your side. You'll be fine

[drcy]

As a colletor who used to run email auctions (back when that was done), I would lose things back even in my twenties. I had two signed photos and I have no idea whatever happened to them. When you have an auction of 800 lots, it's almost impossible to misplace something, but something in the wrong pile or whatever. It had nothing to do with my cognition or memory.

It likely happens to many other people, including big auction houses. It's just not something they are going to come out and tell the hobby.

If you are handling many things, and submissions, etc, losing something and missing something is likely to be expected, and very well may have zero to do with cognitive decline.

A neurologist said that if you are doing more things, multitasking, thinking about more thing, you're going to forget more things. It's a matter of percentages, not lesser brain capacity or cognition.

It's like passwords/usernames and forgetting them. The human brained wasn't evolved to remember lots of passwords and usernames. Forgetting them is perfectly natural. All these passwords and usernames to remember is an artificial product of modern society. But that's why people write them down somewhere or otherwise keep them on record.

Just work on a system to help fix it. "One trick that works for me (it took discipline and practice) was to designate very specific areas for things to go: everything has its place." This is good advice.

[PowderedH2O]

Right with you Bobby. I'm 55 in two months and I can't remember anything recent. I can tell you card numbers from old sets and batting averages of players from my childhood, but I sometimes get stumped on remembering names of students that I taught last semester or even current athletes. I got stumped on remembering Mookie Betts name a few weeks ago, and I am a Red Sox fan. Everyone here says organization is key, and during this break we have worked hard in my home to organize things. Last week I found a 1940 Hank Greenberg that I lost in 2014. Fortunately, my wife still remembers everything, so she guides me to a lot of stuff.

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by PowderedH2O

Right with you Bobby. I'm 55 in two months and I can't remember anything recent. I can tell you card numbers from old sets and batting averages of players from my childhood, but I sometimes get stumped on remembering names of students that I taught last semester or even current athletes. I got stumped on remembering Mookie Betts name a few weeks ago, and I am a Red Sox fan. Everyone here says organization is key, and during this break we have worked hard in my home to organize things. Last week I found a 1940 Hank Greenberg that I lost in 2014. Fortunately, my wife still remembers everything, so she guides me to a lot of stuff.

That's awesome Sam. I found those Topps Canadian cards a few weeks ago that I bought over 15 years ago that I had no idea I had. I guess memory swings works both ways. Finding things and then losing them. That's great that your wife can help you like that. My girlfriend and I don't live together, or I'm sure she would be of good help.

[drcy]

Also, as noted, some cognitive issues can be temporary-- caused by stress or lack of sleep or some medical issue or whatever.

50 is too early for it to be Alzheimer's.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by PowderedH2O

Right with you Bobby. I'm 55 in two months and I can't remember anything recent. I can tell you card numbers from old sets and batting averages of players from my childhood, but I sometimes get stumped on remembering names of students that I taught last semester or even current athletes. I got stumped on remembering Mookie Betts name a few weeks ago, and I am a Red Sox fan. Everyone here says organization is key, and during this break we have worked hard in my home to organize things. Last week I found a 1940 Hank Greenberg that I lost in 2014. Fortunately, my wife still remembers everything, so she guides me to a lot of stuff.

Wives always remember. Mine has husband-related hyperthymesia: she can remember in vivid detail every mistake I have ever made. Give her a date and she will tell you exactly what I did wrong that day.

[MikeGarcia]

"..I've had a lovely time, but this wasn't it--Groucho ..."

" Look , it wasn't my worst Wednesday night.." Kate McKinnon in the alien abduction skit..

..

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Wives always remember. Mine has husband-related hyperthymesia: she can remember in vivid detail every mistake I have ever made. Give her a date and she will tell you exactly what I did wrong that day.

Ha!

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[Santo10Fan]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

This is one of the hardest posts I have had to write. I recently turned 50 last August. I have recently had my THIRD issue of "lost items" within the past month. One was with a members submission on the group sub. Another was a couple raw commons I sold on Ebay. The third is an American Caramel Bill Bailey I planned to get graded during the most current vintage sub.

I won't get into the details on each item, but I am alarmed. I am disturbed to no end. I guess I want advice on how to deal with losing things, just wanted to see if I was alone in misplacing cards, and should I just get out while I still have some normalcy before it gets worse.

No reason to get out. You should be able to speak with your doctor about this over virtual visit and they can get you started on the right treatment. It's that simple.