How do you know if your memory concerns are expected for your age or not?
All of your different types of memory (yes, there are several) will need to be measured and compared to your same-age peers. A neuropsychologist (a Ph.D. or Psy.D. with specialized training in testing brain functions with standard tests) will assess your memory (and other thinking skills such as attention and language) through several hours of testing. The tests are not painful and involve things such as answering questions, copying drawings, or putting together designs with blocks. Memory tests are used to measure short and long term memory for words and pictures with all kinds of variations in between. As for the tests, it is important to know that no one gets everything right (otherwise the tests wouldn’t tell us anything). The verdict is in once the scores are collected and compared with the “norms” (your peers’ scores). The neuropsychologist then writes a report with the results of the testing as well as information obtained from your medical records and the history that you provide during an interview. Based on all of this, the neuropsychologist can determine what may be the source of any problems that are found.