I'll Remember! Will You?

What happens when something catches your attention that you really don’t want to lose?

September is Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month, so perhaps it is fitting that I find myself thinking a little more deeply about my brain, what I ask of it, and the many ways I have learned to support it.

Last week, I shared a simple thought:

'Before you capture the moment, experience it.'

PAUSE. NOTICE. TAKE IT IN.

I thought I had finished there.

Apparently, I hadn’t!

I found myself returning to those three words again.

Some things we notice are simply there to be experienced.

A beautiful moment.

Something that makes us smile.

Something that is going well.

Something we want to appreciate while it is happening.

Nothing else necessarily needs to happen.

But then there are the other things we notice.

The person I want to call.

The conversation I need to have.

Something I said I would do.

An idea I don’t want to lose.

Something that isn’t quite working.

Or even something that is working and I want to remember to repeat.

Those moments are different.

They matter beyond the moment in which I noticed them.

And this is where I have to smile at myself.

I know what I can say next:

“I’ll remember.”

“I’ll do it later.”

“Let me just finish this first.”

“I’ll come back to it.”

Or the particularly confident:

“I won’t forget that.”

And when I say it, I genuinely mean it!

I’m not deliberately ignoring something that matters.

I’m not deciding that I no longer want to do it.

I may simply be concentrating on something else.

I may have been interrupted.

Something more urgent may genuinely need my attention.

Or I may have one of those moments where I place enormous confidence in the belief that future me will remember what present me has just noticed.

One of my close friends would probably smile and say:

“That’s a lovely thought, Annabel, but let’s just make sure we remember!”

And she would have a point.

She hasn’t had a brain injury. Yet, she writes things down, plans everything and is probably one of the most organised people I know.

Every coach has a coach...!

And actually, that makes me think about remembering differently.

Good Intention Isn’t Always Enough

There can be a strange gap between something mattering to us and actually returning to it later.

I can genuinely intend to call someone.

Genuinely intend to send the email.

Genuinely intend to follow up after the meeting.

Genuinely intend to remember the idea.

Genuinely want to fulfil the commitment I made to my husband and girls.

And still...not do it.

That doesn’t necessarily tell me how much I cared.

It doesn’t mean the commitment didn’t matter to me.

Sometimes it simply tells me that something happened between intention and follow-through.

Life continued.

My attention shifted.

Another responsibility arrived.

I moved from one environment to another.

Something else became louder.

And the thought that felt so present five minutes ago was no longer at the front of my mind.

I think that distinction matters.

It changes the question from:

“Why didn’t I remember?”

to:

“What would have helped me remember?”

That is a much more useful question don't you think?

And, importantly, it gives me something I can actually do.

Remembering Doesn’t Have to Depend on Memory Alone

Most of us already know this, even if we don’t think about it this way.

We make lists.

Use calendars.

Record voice notes.

Ask Alexa or Siri to remind us.

Send ourselves messages.

Put something somewhere we know we will see it.

Ask another person to remind us.

We create little supports all the time.

Not necessarily because we can’t remember.

Sometimes we do it because what matters is worth making more reliable.

That is the shift for me.

When I write something down, I am not saying:

“My memory isn’t good enough.”

I am saying:

“This matters to me, so I’m giving it some support.”

And perhaps that is something we could all give ourselves permission to do a little more often.

Having survived a brain aneurysm and lived with the impact of brain injury, I have very personal reasons for thinking about memory this way.

But this isn’t only a brain injury strategy!

My wonderfully organised friend is proof of that!

Supporting our memory is something all of us can do.

And during Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month, I think that is something worth celebrating too.

Awareness can rightly help us learn about brain aneurysms, recognise their impact and honour those whose lives have been affected by them.

But for me, this month is also an opportunity to appreciate the brain itself and to think about how we support it in everyday life.

Perhaps that is one of the things I particularly want to celebrate this Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month.

The brain!

It is the brain that has carried me through life to date, and I am incredibly grateful to still be participating in.

#IChoose

#IChoose to support what matters.

Not because I expect myself to remember everything.

Not because I expect myself to forget.

And not because using support makes me less capable.

If You Remember One Thing…

September is Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month, and perhaps awareness can also remind us of something much closer to home:

Our brains deserve our support.

As a Brain Aneurysm and Bee Foundation Advocate, we research, campaign and contribute to research regarding the prevention of Brain Aneurysm. Please donate to the Bee Foundation on the secure link below: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/bamonth/

With Gratitude,

Your Friend and Coach,

Annabel