75% of the world's population are confident that they remember well classmates, childhood events, youth, right up to the present life. However, studies of American scientists have shown that a person can accurately reproduce only 5% of the information he has learned in 50-60 years of life, and 35% of events and his own thoughts can be recalled with additional questions and interference. Many are wondering how to improve mental memory, but do not even realize that it can be done quite easily and quickly.
So, is it possible to improve memory? The creators of more than 80 techniques, which improve the mechanisms of the brain, answer positively to this question. The best result obtained during the experiments is an increase in the memory capacity by approximately 22-24%. However, this is not a guide to action! Do not rush to brain training - scientists warn. Attempts to improve memory on their own can be dangerous to health. Therefore, if we try to concentrate our attention on remembering some information, try constantly to repeat the same thing for a long time, the brain will perceive our actions as violent and will try to neutralize them. As a result, we will feel only fatigue, drowsiness, headache and other unpleasant symptoms. This means that memory can not be trained in the same way as we, for example, build muscle. The meaningless mechanical "memorization" of the material does not lead to the fact that we will learn the new material more easily every day. Nevertheless, there are techniques, resorting to which you can achieve improvements in the work of memory mechanisms. Use them both as a workout, and if necessary.
How does memory work?
Scientists distinguish between two mechanisms of memory operation. The first of these is figurative memory, or logical. Its action is explained by the fact that the brain remembers the connections between certain images - for example, the route, the plot of the book, the story told. In this case, the work of the imagination is extremely important, firstly, the work of the imagination, and secondly, the concentration of attention at the moment of fantasy, which will help to consolidate the formed images in the head. This type of memory is strictly counter-indicative of stress and any disturbance of the peace of mind. Pereenervichav or drinking an extra cup of coffee before the meeting, you run the risk after a time not to remember the name, position or phone vis-a-vis and even get lost if you cross an unfamiliar region.
The second method of memorizing is mechanical. It is based on the connections that arise between the nerve cells of the brain. This happens, for example, in those cases when we are learning something-foreign words, texts, dance or sports movements, and other actions in which we want to achieve automatism. In this case it is important that there is enough "building material" for connecting the cells. To do this, you need to revise the diet - food should be protein.
Begin to improve memory!
The most accurately describes the mechanism and the main principle of figurative memory is the so-called Tsitsiron method. They say that the famous speaker, while preparing the speech, was walking around the house and mentally "placed" parts of the performance on objects that always stood in one place, and then recalled the situation at home, and the necessary associations immediately appeared in his memory. Visualization of information is the key to remembering it, experts in the field of eidetics say, a section of psychology that solves memory problems. Making it the basis of the norm of intellectual work is easy and useful.
- Clean the brain of unnecessary information: routine matters (shopping list, plan for the day), write down in the diary; hang out stickers with reminders about the cases: "call an insurance agent", "check the report".
- Do not just visualize the information you need, but also present it in the form of a photo printed in a magazine or book. Keep in mind, if you forget to focus the image or "out of the frame" important objects will drop out, then the memories will remain partial, unclear.
- Focus! If you read the text several times or hear something important, but skip it "by the ears," the chances of remembering what was being said are low.
- To better remember the material, repeat it before going to bed. At this point, the brain is free from the impressions of the past day and, if you manage to create a vivid image of the necessary information, it will be well remembered.
- If you are preparing to make a speech, imagine yourself a theatrical actor or the talk show host. Imagine the audience and, most importantly, their reaction to your performance. Going 3-4 times for an encore, you will feel that you know the text by heart.
- Improves mental memory complex impression, that is, obtained with the help of several senses. Read aloud or repeat after the audio material. And in the second case it is good, if the reader's voice will evoke pleasant emotions and memories.
Many more times
In his books, the well-known psychologist Dale Karnsgi called the repetition "the second law of memory." He gives an example: "Thousands of Muslim students know the Koran by heart, and all thanks to repeated repetitions." A linguist Richard Berton, who is fluent in 27 languages, has repeatedly admitted to his students that he has never spent more than 15 minutes a day studying the language. He assures us that after this load the brain gets tired, and the mechanisms of memorization do not work. What prevents us from taking advice from psychologists?
- The bulk material is easier to remember if you break it into parts. After the first repetition of the material, take a break of 40-60 minutes. The third stage, take another 3-4 hours. And the fourth one - the next day.
- Do not repeat the information more than 4 times in a row. Otherwise, the brain begins to reject it.
- Reproduce the material only from memory - repeated rereading will not be useful.
If you regularly forget ...
... the numbers:
- a large number of break into groups, because 579534, for example, will be easier to remember as 57-95-34;
- connect the numbers with the dates of birthdays of relatives, apartment numbers, your phone or age;
... names:
- Say the new name several times while accessing;
- You can improve memory by associating new names with the heroes of films or books and fixing a "star" nickname for a person;
... persons:
- note unusual facial features, clothing elements and behavior of the interlocutor, try to focus not on similarities with other people, but on the contrary, on differences;
- collect the "dossier" on the interlocutor, try to include in it as much information as you can associate with it, write it down to several companies that you visit, and think over where you can meet it.
Food for brain
We often believe that the nutritional function for the brain is reading books, talking with specialists, own reflections and spiritual searches. However, according to scientists, everything is more pragmatic. Our brain as a full body part needs food in the literal sense. Scientists have long learned about how to improve the work of mental memory with food.
1. Fish. 100 grams of seafood per day, according to experts, help to significantly increase the speed of the reaction, which means, to strengthen the brain. The secret is high iodine content, which improves clarity of mind, and fatty acids (found in fish) - they regulate the level of cholesterol in the blood and improve the performance of blood vessels.
2. Red wine. Scientists from the Johns Hopkins University claim that this drink enhances the immunity of brain nerve cells. However, it is important to know the sense of proportion, otherwise the brain, on the contrary, will begin to degrade.
3. Olive oil is a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Italian scientists have found that the inhabitants of the Mediterranean, where they use this product everywhere, are less prone to intellectual disabilities as they age.
4. Tomatoes contain lycopene - an antioxidant that helps get rid of free radicals damaging brain cells and leading to dementia.
5. Apples. Scientists from the University of Massachusetts found that substances contained in apple juice, prevent memory loss and loss of intelligence. This effect of juice is due to the high content of antioxidants. Therefore, fruits help to concentrate on work, and also to keep the clarity of thought throughout the whole working day.
6. Broccoli is a source of vitamin K, which improves brain function.
7. Blueberries contain strong antioxidants anthocyanins, which protect the brain from age-related diseases. According to doctors, lovers of this berry can boast of good mental memory and coordination of movements. The fact is that the chemical compounds contained in blueberries improve the elasticity of the walls of blood vessels and have a beneficial effect on blood pressure.
8. Phytomedicine. Each of us faced with a situation when it is necessary to carry out several urgent matters at the same time, while not forgetting anything and not allowing any mistakes. If they do happen, we justify forgetfulness and distraction with stress and nervousness. And increasingly emerging failures in memory are written off to the effect that nerve cells are not being restored.
Recent researches of scientists prove that in some parts of the brain cells continue to be renewed almost all their life. However, they need regular, targeted feeding. And not all the set of substances necessary for this can be obtained with food, so you can fully saturate the brain with the help of special phytomedicine preparations that help the cells to resume. They should be used for preventive purposes during periods of busy schedules at work, before and during the session at the institute. The main task of such drugs is to support the work of the brain.
It is very important that the funds that you trust at the most critical moment, were developed on the basis of natural extracts and passed strict quality control of raw materials and production. For example, drugs that contain a special extract of Ginkgo biloba. This plant is known for the fact that even in ancient oriental medicine it was used to restore the circulatory disturbance that appears with age, and also when trying to improve mental memory. This is especially important for active people who, due to a lot of urgent things and desires, all have time to develop a "manager's syndrome" - intellectual fatigue. Such drugs activate the work of the brain department responsible for clarity of mind and firm memory, strengthen the walls of blood vessels and normalize blood pressure. Did you just remember what you had to do yesterday? Take care that in the future it does not happen again!