Monday, November 5, 2012

Room to Room Memory Loss




I always figured that I had attention deficit as I would go to the bedroom to get something just to discover that I could not remember why I was there.  I sometimes thought, “I am losing it” but now I can blame it on the door.  A University of Notre Dame study discovered that passing through a doorway triggers an “event boundary” in the mind that separates one set of thoughts and memories from another.  So my brain separates the thoughts I had in one room and prepares a “blank slate” for the next location.

I think this makes a lot of sense as we tend to compartmentalize things in our world and in our head.  The door as a metaphor is powerful.  We view doors that open for us and doors that shut as beginnings and endings.  It is a transition from inside to outside, a new chapter, or one life to the next.  Anyway, I am happy to have a reason (excuse) for my forgetfulness. 

Stay Well!

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