Understanding Memory Changes: What’s Normal and What’s Not

Memory loss is one of the symptoms of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). This is when there are notable changes in your memory or other aspects of your cognition, like language. Your daily functioning remains the same, but there’s a noticeable difference. It can be one of the first signs of developing dementia or similar conditions, but it’s not a universal symptom of these diseases

Progressive memory loss that becomes more severe than MCI can take years before it becomes apparent. But some conditions involve an accelerated version of this, causing memory loss to happen over several months or a few years.

What does memory loss look like?

Again, it’s important to know that true memory loss isn’t just slowed recall. If you can remember things with enough time and without hints, it’s probably not memory loss.

Memory loss can often look like the following:

• Asking the same question multiple times.
• Trouble remembering recent conversations.
• Misplacing commonly used items.
• Missing appointments.
• Forgetting to pay bills or handle other responsibilities.

If these symptoms appear with any of the following, it’s a good idea to see a healthcare provider:

• Trouble saying or finding the right word (aphasia).
• Having difficulty with tasks you could do previously without issue (apraxia).
• Trouble recognizing things, such as faces or familiar items (agnosia).
• Trouble with impulse control, planning or concentrating attention (executive dysfunction).