Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I no longer have an excellent memory. Before age 30, I often would remember people who had no recollection of me.

This is what I was going to say. It has made for some awkward moments socially. Definitely a plus academically.

Anonymous wrote:The awkwardness thing is huge!

NP here.

I remember people easily, including small conversations we may have had in passing. I often feel awkward when speaking to an acquaintance and I know all about them but they barely even remember that we once spoke. I spend a lot of time thinking about what is the 'normal' amount of remembering to try and avoid looking rude (acting like I am meeting them for the first time) and wayyy to invested (because I remember all this random sh*t about them).

I also used to get bent out of shape when I was younger and used to remember everything about others, but they didn't remember everything about me. I wondered if I didn't 'matter' to them. It took a while to realize that *I* was the odd one...

Like others have said, though, it definitely was a major advantage in school. It actually let me excel in an academic environment despite my ADHD.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I no longer have an excellent memory. Before age 30, I often would remember people who had no recollection of me.

This is what I was going to say. It has made for some awkward moments socially. Definitely a plus academically.

Anonymous wrote:I no longer have an excellent memory. Before age 30, I often would remember people who had no recollection of me.

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I used to have the kind of excellent memory that made it very easy to excel on tests and do great in school. I rarely had to review anything. Listening during class or reading was enough. I passed two different bar exams without ever having done a bar review course. I could visualize the page on which I had read a piece of information that would provide the answer to an exam question. It also allowed me, as a dancer, to learn combinations and choreography almost instantly. The only con about my once very good memory is how obvious and distressing it is to notice it slipping away during peri- and menopause. There’s a stark difference between my memory then and now and it freaks me out. Even though to some people and in some contexts I still seem to have a good memory I’m keenly aware of how much less agile my brain is now.

Anonymous wrote:I have an excellent long-term memory. Advantages; I am an outstanding speller and fast reader. Majored in English. I can see an unusual name and commit it to memory. I do paralegal work and can spot errors and mistakes easily.

Disadvantages include having to have extensive therapy to deal with a traumatic, chaotic childhood. I'd replay conversations, events and feelings from decades prior on a regular basis. I found EMDR therapy (you identify specific, significant events and discuss with therapist) to be highly effective and nearly curative. My EMDR therapist told me that my vivid memory helped me progress through and make great strides.

Maybe a blessing and a curse. For fun, my childhood friends ask me to tell THEM stories about themselves and I can always fill in details.

Oddly, math and formulas and numbers evaporate in my head, for lack of a better description. I struggle with graphs, maps, charts, figures. Show me a sales chart or a map and...I'll play along and pretend to understand.