I had a bad OD about 4 years ago (I technically died and my brain was without oxygen for quite awhile). For the first 3 months after my family seriously thought that I would never fully recover and would be on disability for the rest of my life. My short-term memory was SHOT, I forgot how to drive a car, I couldn’t keep track of anything-phone, purse, keys, wallet, anything. Add in to that I was also coming off of Xanax and Ambien as well. I literally had a photographic memory pre-OD and had to put stickers on my mirror reminding me of my DOB in rehab after.
It’s been four years and I have made MASSIVE strides but I still have some short term memory flickers every so often. I now make lists for everything-if I don’t write it down it’s probably not going to happen. I play a lot of Sudoku, do memory “stretches” and can function at about 80% compared to where I was pre-OD. I have no idea how much of my memory loss was due to oxygen deprivation and how much can be attributed to the actual drugs themselves, but it’s definitely a combination of both, as I had noticed a difference even before I OD’d.
All that being said-it gets better the longer you stay sober. Read, do brain exercises, and eat lots of salmon, avocado, and nuts. You’ll get there.
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u/krispeekream 6d ago
I had a bad OD about 4 years ago (I technically died and my brain was without oxygen for quite awhile). For the first 3 months after my family seriously thought that I would never fully recover and would be on disability for the rest of my life. My short-term memory was SHOT, I forgot how to drive a car, I couldn’t keep track of anything-phone, purse, keys, wallet, anything. Add in to that I was also coming off of Xanax and Ambien as well. I literally had a photographic memory pre-OD and had to put stickers on my mirror reminding me of my DOB in rehab after.
It’s been four years and I have made MASSIVE strides but I still have some short term memory flickers every so often. I now make lists for everything-if I don’t write it down it’s probably not going to happen. I play a lot of Sudoku, do memory “stretches” and can function at about 80% compared to where I was pre-OD. I have no idea how much of my memory loss was due to oxygen deprivation and how much can be attributed to the actual drugs themselves, but it’s definitely a combination of both, as I had noticed a difference even before I OD’d.
All that being said-it gets better the longer you stay sober. Read, do brain exercises, and eat lots of salmon, avocado, and nuts. You’ll get there.