4 ms·

-- long hauler here - I used to be the smartest person people knew - everyone would always say "wow.. you're so smart" - my memory was extremely good - I could

-- long hauler here - I used to be the smartest person people knew - everyone would always say "wow.. you're so smart" - my memory was extremely good - I could remember most conversations I'd had - how I'd learned the things I knew came with ease - I'd be the one people would always pull into conversations to help problem solve - now - I don't know how to describe it - I know the stuff is still in there - but it's like the map to the knowledge has faded - now I spend a lot of time remembering how to remember - it's been particularly difficult as - for better or worse - I really defined myself as the smart person in the room - I really wish I could get back to how I used to be - I've tried everything I can think of but so far nothing has really helped - to be honest when I first realized what was going on I became suicidal - now I've learned to accept it - however I still hide myself away from everyone --

kirubakaran 4y ago
Thanks for sharing that. If you don't mind sharing... did you suffer a lot of sleep deprivation?
- pigtailgirl 4y ago
  -- in fact quite the opposite - I used to struggle to sleep - often I would sleep 5-6 hours and be just fine - since "recovering" from covid - I can't get enough sleep --
hnxs 4y ago
Is this due to long covid?
- pigtailgirl 4y ago
  -- it started after I was diagnosed with covid the second time - the first time I had covid I was physically quite sick - but mentally - post recovery didn't struggle - about four months later I got covid again - this time my only symptoms were loss of smell/taste and some weakness - however I noticed I gradually started to forget things - it was like the lights got turned down in my mind - nothing came through clearly or quickly anymore - my thinking became a struggle not a joy - this decline lasted about two weeks and then hit the point it's at today - that was seven months ago and I've noticed little to no improvement on my cognitive facets - the weakness/sluggishness I can treat with caffeine tablets (I'd never been into caffeine/coffee perviously) --
cjbgkagh 4y ago
People who are very intelligent and have ME/CFS are also much more likely to have hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (hEDS). Most people who have it don’t know that they do, doctors who test for it have a 90% false negative rate. Some people with it are not even that hypermobile It’s best diagnosed with comorbidities that occur in the family on an autosomal dominant basis. https://ohtwist.com/about-eds/comorbidities https://ohtwist.com/about-eds/comorbidities
grog454 4y ago
> I know the stuff is still in there - but it's like the map to the knowledge has faded This is a good way to describe what I've experienced since as long as it would be relevant. I've always thought I just had a weak or slow memory. When asked a question about something I worked on in detail as little as 1 week ago it sometimes takes me on the order of 5-10 seconds to recall, but when it eventually "clicks" it's very clear and I can articulate details well. Maybe a better way to put it, at least for me, is that much of my knowledge is deeply nested. When recalling something it feels like I'm actually traversing a graph of related concepts and memories.

kirubakaran 4y ago

Thanks for sharing that. If you don't mind sharing... did you suffer a lot of sleep deprivation?

pigtailgirl 4y ago
-- in fact quite the opposite - I used to struggle to sleep - often I would sleep 5-6 hours and be just fine - since "recovering" from covid - I can't get enough sleep --

hnxs 4y ago

Is this due to long covid?

pigtailgirl 4y ago
-- it started after I was diagnosed with covid the second time - the first time I had covid I was physically quite sick - but mentally - post recovery didn't struggle - about four months later I got covid again - this time my only symptoms were loss of smell/taste and some weakness - however I noticed I gradually started to forget things - it was like the lights got turned down in my mind - nothing came through clearly or quickly anymore - my thinking became a struggle not a joy - this decline lasted about two weeks and then hit the point it's at today - that was seven months ago and I've noticed little to no improvement on my cognitive facets - the weakness/sluggishness I can treat with caffeine tablets (I'd never been into caffeine/coffee perviously) --

cjbgkagh 4y ago

People who are very intelligent and have ME/CFS are also much more likely to have hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (hEDS). Most people who have it don’t know that they do, doctors who test for it have a 90% false negative rate. Some people with it are not even that hypermobile It’s best diagnosed with comorbidities that occur in the family on an autosomal dominant basis. https://ohtwist.com/about-eds/comorbidities https://ohtwist.com/about-eds/comorbidities

grog454 4y ago

> I know the stuff is still in there - but it's like the map to the knowledge has faded This is a good way to describe what I've experienced since as long as it would be relevant. I've always thought I just had a weak or slow memory. When asked a question about something I worked on in detail as little as 1 week ago it sometimes takes me on the order of 5-10 seconds to recall, but when it eventually "clicks" it's very clear and I can articulate details well. Maybe a better way to put it, at least for me, is that much of my knowledge is deeply nested. When recalling something it feels like I'm actually traversing a graph of related concepts and memories.