Declining mind or mental health? what sort of age?

M0nica

Age has got very little to do with it. My father lived to 92 and was still an active committee member of three local organisations.

A dear friend recently died of dementia at 75

Agreed, not about age. My dad was the same aged 96, until he died of a broken heart.

It's not about age- some of it is genetic, but most is due to lifestyle. Keeping active, physically (walking is the best, or swimming), socially, go out, meet people, and learn something new every day. Doesn't have to be fancy, academic stuff either. But repetitive memory tests like Sudoku, don't help. It has to be new stuff- crochet, a card game, a bit of a new language, the list is endless.

And if you want to keep driving- do it daily or as often as possible. Don't let your DH drive you everywhere, and hope you will remember how to when he can't anymore.

Eat well and healthy, don't smoke, and drink in moderation. And daily concentrated curcuma- proven to help reduce the inflammation that causes brain issues (and joints, win win).

Maybe it's worth mentally reviewing what types of life these friends are living - as in is it a type of life where they are still making new friends/following new interests/following what's going on in the world OR is it a life where they keep doing "the same old same old" and nothing and nobody in their lives ever changes much?

There's a lot to be said for still checking out new people/new ideas/etc throughout one's life - whereas many people think "done and dusted - this is me and my life now" and change nothing. So perhaps a combination of telling yourself "This too will pass - it's just stress and understandable" and doing the "new things/new people" bit.

mrsnonsmoker - it’s almost certainly stress. (but ofcourse don’t take my word for it). When I was 50 and going through separation/ divorce, I lost my sense of direction, twice. Once, I could not find my daughter’s house and another time, my own house I had driven past both the houses. Saw my GP, who assured me there was nothing wrong with my memory. It’s just that my mind was pre-occupied.
Please see your Doctor and ask for a memory test.

Age has got very little to do with it. My father lived to 92 and was still an active committee member of three local organisations.

A dear friend recently died of dementia at 75

I think it is perfectly understandable that being recently divorced would cause you stress, along with anxiety when driving and some loss of memory. A relaxation regime, as suggested by pascal, I am sure would help you. 💐

Go and ask your doctor for a Memory test if you are really concerned.

I have the same problem, not with my friends but with myself. My mind is nowhere near as sharp as it was even 5 or 10 years ago. As far as I can make out, it's normal to lose sharpness as we grow older (it happens with our limbs, organs, skin, etc, so why would our brain be immune to deterioration?). Our current societal ideals would have us believe that age/death can be outrun (the Internet is full of answers, from eating miracle pills to drinking your own urine). I don't think it can. That's a hard thing to accept but since when was reality a soft cuddly reassuring thing? You can only try your best to hold on to what you have, in whichever ways you feel will help. We aren't clones of one another, so what works for me might not work for you. Surf the net for answers - but NOT quick-fix promises which will almost certainly cost a lot of money and won't work anyway. Try to keep smiling and don't let the black dog catch you. All the very best from me and doubtless loads of others who also recognise what you're saying.

I don't know the average age at which dementia (IF it's going to happen) kicks in. But I would have thought you were too young an age.....

I would say a prolonged period of stress can have an effect - which, hopefully, will vanish once the stress is over/has been recovered from.

I was a bit worried recently for a spell - and getting annoyed at my mind not functioning quite so well as normal. I'm used to having a pretty good mind and regard it as one of my advantages and so that was really annoying me that it wasnt working properly. But I did realise it was stress and that the causes of the stress had dialled down. In my case it was a combination of 1. house renovation (in an area of the country with particularly unreliable workmen - they're known for the "Pembrokeshire Promise" here, ie they promise and then they often do a let-down) 2. Bad neighbours here and some of whom were trying to make me decide to move back to England and they would have denied that's what they were up to - but I had realised!!!! 3. Lockdown.

I just had to remind myself firmly:
1. That house renovation I've had to do is basically over now - I've managed to get through the workmen and get the house up to normal standard finally (not the bodge job/old-fashioned it was to start with).
2. The worst neighbours of all have moved (near enough to still be a pain if they can possibly think of an excuse - but at least they're not in my road anymore).
3. Lockdown is over.

So a lot of the stress has dialled-down at last and it was just a case of gritting my teeth, being determined not to be beaten by it and hopefully I'd get "my full mind" back and I have and my mind is "my own normal one" again at last.

I have friends in their 80s who are still mentally alert so I think your problems are more likely to be caused by stress.Do seek help if your problems persist .Best wishes for a happy future.

I woudn't be so concerned if it was just one or two but seems to be most I know of those over 65.

I don't recognise that generalisation.

as you already know stress caused mental distress and lack of clarity.. Before you decide you have a problem I would suggest you start some sort of relaxation regime which could be Mindfulness, meditation, yoga, tai Chi, Chi Gung.. even having massages.... all would probably help you at the moment..