10 Surprising Memory Improvement Tips

Author: Alvaro Castillo

There are several brain fitness topics where we still see a large disconnect between research and popular knowledge, and a major one is the relationship between memory and stress. Caroline and I collaborated on this post to bring you some context and tips. Our society has changed faster than our genes.

Instead of being faced with physical, immediately life-threatening crises that demand instant action, these days we deal with events and illnesses that gnaw away at us slowly, that stress us out and that, believe it or not, end up hurting our memory and brain. Dr. Robert Sapolsky, in an interview about his book Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, points out that humans uniquely “can get stressed simply with thought, turning on the same stress response as does the zebra.”

But, the zebra releases the stress hormones through life-preserving action, while we usually just keep muddling along, getting more anxious by the moment. What is the relationship between stress and memory? We all know chronic stress is bad for our heart, our weight, and our mood, but how about our memory? Interestingly, acute stress can help us focus and remember things more vividly.

Chronic stress, on the other hand, reduce our ability to focus and can specifically damage cells in the hippocampus, a brain structure critical to encoding short term memory. When is stress chronic? When one feels out of control. Irritable, anxious. While every individual varies in their response the type and quantity of stress, there are some things we can do to feel more in control of your environment.

This sense of empowerment can lower stress, and as a result, help memory. What are the best defenses against chronic stress, that will help our mind and memory remain healthy for life?

1- Exercise strengthens the body and can reduce the experience of stress, depression, and anxiety. Doing something cardiovascular at least twice a week is the minimum.

2- Relaxation through meditation, tai chi, yoga, or other techniques to slow respiration, slow metabolism, and release muscle tension. Simply investing 10 minutes per day can make a difference.

3- Biofeedback programs and games that provide real-time information and tracking, allowing one to learn effective techniques for reducing stress levels

4- Appreciation. Make sure you appreciate the good things you have and have done, and your support group around you.

5- A good social network of friends, family, and even pets help foster trust, support, and relaxation.

6- This may be obvious…except that we may not do it precisely when we need it the most: Use a calendar to schedule important things. Give items a date and a priority.

7- This one too: Make a list of things that need to be done. Even if it’s a long list. It is rewarding to cross off items as you complete them.

8- Prioritize. Ask yourself how important something truly is to you. Maybe you’re stressing over something that you are better off just letting go. Do you really need to remember 25 new names from that party? Focus on the 5 you want to see again.

9- Get enough sleep so that you can recharge your batteries.

10- There is no solid evidence that Ginko Biloba helps. Of course, the placebo effect does, so if you are already taking it, you think it helps you, and you can afford it, well, just skip this point (which you will probably do, anyway). But please ask your doctor if you are taking prescription drugs; there may be interactions.

These are not magical cures, but habits that you can develop with practice to improve your memory and quality of life.

About the Author:

Alvaro Castillo has been writing reports for 10 years on healthy sleep habits and stress with positive results. For more information check out his website at http://www.mynighttimehealth.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – 10 Surprising Memory Improvement Tips

Mind Mapping Tips For Improving Memory

Author: Gen Wright
Mind mapping is a technique to keep a track of your thoughts and ideas through sketches and words that represent the flow of your mind when you are thinking. It can as simple as how your brain went from thinking about the local caf?o the great movie you saw last summer. The caf?ad a poster of the movie when you last visited and hence you thought of that movie. Or else it could be a complex process through which you realized that your company’s product could be effectively advertised in a particular niche.

Whatever your thoughts are, retaining them or remembering them is equally important and mind mapping can help you here. What you need to do is to cultivate a few habits so that whatever you read, see or hear, remains in your memory for a long time to come. Photographic memory is a rare gift and nothing can give you that kind of retention. But every one who has a great memory is not born with it; they have trained themselves to remember things better than other people.

There are many memory devices that are used by people for remembering facts and figures and these include things like mnemonics and rhymes. However, mind mapping can help you remember things even better because when you are using mind maps you are actively creating a flow of thought that is associating itself with the idea or fact that you are trying to remember.

One sure way to improve your memory is to improve your listening skills. Listening with deep concentration is very essential to remember what is being said. If you are putting in an effort into listening, you are automatically engaging a greater part of your brain into the lecture, presentation or the conversation. Have a mind map planner handy and you can instantly start to associate the key phrases and terms on paper and thus make sure that you remember right from that point.

Another very important skill to develop is your reading skill. I cannot emphasize enough on how important a skill this is. When you are reading something, you are using a large chunk of your brain by using your vision and processing it to understand written or printed words. Due to this factor, you have a better opportunity to memorize something written and visual instead of just something you have only just heard. What you need to do now is to create a mind map of the logical flow of the items that you are reading. By doing this you will be engaging your brain and immediately recalling what you have only just read. You will also be processing the ideas that you have just absorbed. This will really help you improve your memory.

These are two of the most important ways through which you can improve your memory and you will find many basic methods of improving both of these areas using mind maps. Having a good mind map planner in front of you when you are doing this is very important. It helps you make the process more efficient and effective.

About the Author:

Bill Tyler is Founder of the Bubble Planner, which develops innovative planners and organizers. His passion is helping you discover your own unique talents to unleash the potential inside. Try one of our exceptional Daily Planners today and build unstoppable momentum toward your dreams.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Mind Mapping Tips For Improving Memory

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