If you suffer with memory issues, you are not alone. Memory loss is extremely common for people struggling with trauma, especially Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD can impact many facets of your life- emotionally, cognitively, and physically.
One lesser-well known PTSD symptom that people do not often talk about is memory loss. This can include both short-term and long-term memory. There is a direct link between PTSD and memory loss. Lifestyle changes and working with a trauma therapist can help. Keep reading for more information!
Anchor Therapy is a counseling center in Hoboken, NJ with mental health therapists specialized in helping children, teens, adults, couples, and families with anxiety, depression, relationship issues, trauma, life transitions, and more. Anchor Therapy is accepting new clients and is now providing in-person sessions and teletherapy sessions to residents of New Jersey, New York, and Florida.
What You Need to Know About PTSD
PTSD is a mental health condition that is typically triggered by a terrifying event. This can be an event that you experienced first-hand or witnessed. You may experience uncomfortable thoughts about the event, including flashbacks and severe anxiety.
If you have gone through a traumatic event, you may have a hard time adjusting to new life transitions and coping in general. However, with good self-care, you can get back in control of your life. For more guidance, check out our blog “The 8 Forms of Self-Care and How You Can Practice Them.”
If your PTSD symptoms persist for months or years and/or get worse, it is highly suggested that you seek out professional mental health support in the form of trauma therapy. If symptoms are also interfering with your day-to-day life responsibilities, you may have PTSD.
Identifying if you have PTSD requires a trauma counselor, but you can start by asking yourself the following questions to see if you showcase common PTSD symptoms:
Do you experience regular, distressing memories or flashbacks of a traumatic event?
Do you experience nightmares related to the traumatic event? (For help, check out our blog by our psychotherapist Rebecca Bischoff, LCSW “Unlocking the Secrets of Quality Sleep: A Therapist’s Perspective on Sleep Hygiene and Insomnia.”)
Do you avoid places, people, or activities that trigger a memory of the traumatic event?
Do you feel detached from friends and family?
Do you have less interest in activities that you once enjoyed?
Do you feel irritable and have outbursts of anger? (If you struggle with this, read our blog “The Most Important Things You Need to Know About Anger Management.”)
Have your symptoms lasted for more than one month?
Do your symptoms interfere with your social, work, or other important areas of functioning?
Do you find it challenging to maintain relationships due to your PTSD symptoms?
Are your PTSD symptoms impacting work or school performance?
What are the common symptoms of PTSD?
PTSD symptoms typically occur within one month of experiencing the traumatic event(s). In some cases, symptoms may not arise until years after the event’s occurrence. Typically, PTSD symptoms negatively impact school, work, and personal relationships if they are not managed. It can interfere with completing your normal daily tasks, such as going to the grocery store or picking your children up from school.
PTSD symptoms occur within four categories:
Intrusive memories
Here are symptoms regarding PTSD intrusive memories:
Distressing dreams or nightmares about the traumatic experience
Reoccurring, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event
Having flashbacks or reliving traumatic events as if they were happening again in the current moment
Serious emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of your trauma
2. Avoidance
Avoidance symptoms occur:
Avoiding people, places, or activities that remind you of your traumatic experience
Trying to actively avoid thinking or discussing the traumatic event
3. Negative alterations in thinking and/or mood
Symptoms of negative thought patterns and mood changes encompass the following:
Feeling emotionally numb
Memory problems (e.g., not remembering important components of your traumatic event)
Negative thoughts about yourself and the world around you (If you are struggling with this, check out our blog “Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Negative Self-Talk.”)
Feelings of hopelessness about the future (Feeling suicidal? Help is only a phone call away at the free National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 988)
Hard time maintaining close relationships
Feeling detached from friends and family members
Lack of interest in previously-enjoyable activities
Hard time experiencing positive feelings
4. Alterations in physical and emotional reactions
The following are arousal symptoms:
Trouble sleeping (Read our blog “How CBT Can Help With Your Insomnia.”)
Difficulty concentrating
Self-destructive behavior (e.g., misusing alcohol or drugs)
Irritability
Overwhelming guilt or shame
Always on guard for danger
Being easily frightened
Symptoms can vary over time. The kind of symptoms one experiences can also vary from person-to-person.
Children often showcase different symptoms of PTSD, such as:
Regressing to ‘childlike’ behaviors (e.g., returning to bed-wetting)
Frightening dreams which may or may not include aspects of the traumatic event
Re-enacting the traumatic event through play (For more information on the importance of play therapy, check out our blog “5 Different Types of Play Therapy and How They Can Help Your Child.”)
The intensity of symptoms can vary over time. For example, when you are stressed, you may experience more intense PTSD symptoms. Certain triggers can also cause a flare-up of your symptoms. Perhaps a story on the news of a sexual assault reminds you of your own assault. For support, read “Everything You Need to Know About Sexual Trauma Therapy.”
How does PTSD cause memory loss?
PTSD has been known to impact a person’s memory in two possible ways according to 2022 research reports.
The first manner where PTSD can impact memory is affecting your memory of the traumatic incident(s) itself. You may have vivid flashbacks or it may be difficult to recall specific memories of your trauma.
Secondly, PTSD has the ability to impact your memory generally speaking.
Some ways PTSD can impact your memory include the following:
Difficulty with short-term and/or long-term memory
Enhanced forgetfulness
Less working memory
From a neuroscience perspective, PTSD can actually alter your brain, having an impact on memory. These changes occur in specific brain areas, like the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex, which are connected to your stress response and memory.
These areas of the brain are very important for human memory. This is another reason that may explain how PTSD can change working memory, memory formation, and memory recall.
What are some signs of memory loss from PTSD?
There are many ways in which memory loss can manifest from PTSD.
It may be difficult for you to even recall particular details of the traumatic event you experienced or witnessed. Your traumatic experience may feel like a jumbled recollection of what happened or you may experience memory gaps.
Sometimes, PTSD may make it difficult for you to remember important personal information. Right after a traumatic event, you may not be able to recall crucial information, such as your address, phone number, or important historical events. Along with this, you may forget important milestones in your life or significant relationships.
Memory consolidation is another unexpected symptom of PTSD where you transfer memories from your short-term memory to your long-term memory. PTSD can interfere with the process of memory consolidation, making it harder to recall new information you learn or making some experiences harder than they should be.
PTSD causes flashbacks and intrusive memories. Intrusive memories of a traumatic experience can occur in the forms of flashbacks or vivid memories. These unwanted thoughts are not necessarily triggering your memory loss, but they can be contributing to it since they distort normal memory processes and make it hard to recall unconnected information. For more help, read “6 Ways to Handle Intrusive Thoughts.”
Working memory is the ability to remember and alter information. PTSD can impair your working memory which causes issues with recalling information, attention, and focus.
Even recent events, discussions, and aspects of your daily routine can be hard to remember if you are someone with PTSD. You may have memory gaps or frequently forget recent encounters.
Treating PTSD Memory Loss with the Help of a Trauma Therapist
A trauma-focused mental health counselor can help you work through your PTSD, including the memory loss you experience as a symptom. At Anchor Therapy, we have seasoned trauma therapists who can help you feel like your best self again, whether you are attending in-person sessions at our downtown Hoboken, New Jersey office or you are a New Jerseyan, New Yorker, or Floridian seeking virtual trauma counseling.
PTSD-related memory loss can be improved with various mental health interventions and therapeutic approaches.
First, psychoeducation plays an important role in trauma counseling. Your trauma therapist will educate you on the effects of trauma on the brain which will reduce anxiety you may be experiencing about your symptoms. Just by understanding the root cause of your memory issues, it can make this symptom feel more manageable.
Your trauma counselor may try to employ cognitive rehabilitation exercises in your therapy sessions as well. This can include memory drills, exercises to improve attention, and so on.
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) can help you identify and challenge distorted thought patterns you are experiencing related to your trauma. This can enhance your memory function by lessening your cognitive load.
For more information, our blog “Everything You Need to Know About CBT for PTSD” is a must-read.
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) Therapy can also be used in CBT for trauma. In exposure therapy for PTSD, you are exposed to your trauma-related memories in a gradual and controlled environment. This will help desensitize you and help integrate your memories together which can assist in reducing memory fragmentation.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a leading form of mental health treatment for PTSD. EMDR primarily focuses on reducing the emotional distress that comes along with specific traumatic memories, but it can also assist with memory processing. PTSD comes along with intrusive memories that have not been fully processed. EMDR can help you process these traumatic memories and potentially help with memory by lessening the fragmentation. EMDR can also allow you to get a clearer picture of the traumatic event(s) that took place. When you process your trauma, you may remember some details you avoided or blocked out. Lastly, EMDR can potentially trigger neurobiological changes in the hippocampus and amygdala which could help memory functioning.
Overall, a trauma therapist offers a supportive space so you can explore your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. A strong therapeutic alliance will leave you feeling like you can take on the world (and you can)! A supportive environment makes it easier to process your trauma and retrieve your memories.
Here are some benefits of working with a PTSD therapist for PTSD-related memory loss:
Specific treatment plans
Less intrusive symptoms
Better memory recall
Better emotional regulation (Read our blog “How to Regulate Your Emotions”)
Development of coping mechanisms
Better cognitive function
Better self-awareness and understanding
Safe setting to process trauma
A support system
Long-term improvement
What happens if I don’t treat memory loss from PTSD?
PTSD and memory loss can be life-altering. It may interfere with your ability to function as a human being. Perhaps you are ignoring or forgetting important appointments, obligations, work and home responsibilities, and so on.
Memory loss may even make you question your competence levels, bring your self-confidence into question. Read our blog “The Ultimate Guide to Building Self-Confidence.”
In severe cases, memory loss can endanger your sense of safety. Do you remember where you are? Are you with people you can trust? You may even forget certain safety precautions, such as wearing a seatbelt when driving. This neglect can lead to accidents, injuries, or even a neglect of your self-care needs.
At certain points, memory loss may make it hard to go through trauma counseling. After all, in order to heal from trauma, you need to recall uncomfortable memories and work through those experiences with a trusted trauma expert.
Memory gaps or difficulty recalling certain components of your trauma may make it hard to move through trauma therapy in a linear manner but that does not mean that it is impossible. Forgetting certain events may cause you to feel irritated or guilty but please understand that it is a normal part of PTSD.
Forgetting traumatic events and choosing to not work through them may even cause identity confusion. You may fear that you are regularly losing valuable information about yourself, leading you to question your faith in your recollections. Memory loss can negatively impact the self and identity. Missing information about your past and life experiences can cause a fractured sense of self.
Check out our blog “5 Healthy Ways to Cope with PTSD.”
Most people associate PTSD with anxiety and anger, but it can also lead to memory loss. Your stress-related disorder experience can cause cognitive difficulties, from trouble retrieving personal information to having a difficult time learning new information. Luckily, you can work with a PTSD therapist to improve your trauma symptoms and enhance your quality of life so you can achieve your goals.
Victoria Scala
is the Social Media Manager and Intake Coordinator at Anchor Therapy in Hoboken, New Jersey. She is a graduate of the Honors College of Rutgers University-Newark. In her roles, Victoria is committed to managing the office’s social media presence and prioritizing clients' needs.
IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR HELP FROM A PROFESSIONAL COUNSELOR TO ASSIST YOU IN MAKING POSITIVE CHANGES IN YOUR LIFE, CONTACT US
WORKING WITH US IS EASY
Fill out the contact form below.
Our intake coordinator will get back to you with more information on how we can help and to schedule an appointment. We will set you up with an experienced licensed therapist who specializes in what you're seeking help with and who understands your needs.
You’ll rest easy tonight knowing you made the first step to improve your life.
