January 30, 2009
Do you constantly forget to pay the phone bill? Have you accidentally left your bath water running till it overflows? Are you wearing two different shoes? Congratulations! You just might have Momnesia, the unique malady that fogs the brains of moms, leaving them addled and forgetful. But does this condition really exist? Asha Dornfest of Parent Hacks asks the panelists, "Do you suffer from Momnesia?"
Share some stories of your "Momnesia moments." Have you forgotten to pick the kids up from school? Missed appointments? Called your husband Bob when his name is actually Steve? Or do you think this whole Momnesia thing is hogwash? Join the Momversation by posting in one of our related forums:
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20 Comments
Lomwefgbnbv
Thu, 2010-03-04 10:41
Hjuasdfasef
Wed, 2010-03-03 18:07
Over the weekend on vacation at the Dells in a 3 room suite, I turned the whirlpool tub on to get my self a nice relaxing bath. Then I was called out of the bathroom and asked to run down the hall and run down to get food ordered for the kids. Forgetting all about the water running and not telling any one that it was going I returned to the room and a bathroom of our very own water park. The kids loved it but maid service didn't. Hmmm...I wonder why not.
http://childrensbirthdaypartythemes.com
Fri, 2009-02-06 18:17
that's true badmummy. it does get better, or at least it did for me. i remember feeling like i was on heavy sedatives or something for 3 years after i had ariel. i just could not think as clearly. but my brain came back, or so some say. thinking back, i got my body back before my brain. go figure!
http://blackswanpapers.blogspot.com/
Sun, 2009-02-01 17:36
I used to be hyper-organized. Before Erin came along I always pictured myself being Michelle Pfeiffer's character in One Fine Day. You know, the kind of mum who can whip together two super hero costumes just using the contents of her handbag. Um...no.
Not only can I not make a super hero costume I also, regularly, forget really basic things like sippy cups and baby wipes. One time, actually it was my first non hospital outing since Erin came home, I met up with a friend for lunch. We were sitting down waiting for our food to arrive and decided that it'd be a good time to feed our kidlets. Only when she pulled out her bottle did I realize I'd left my formula container at home! Who does that?! Worse than that, I'd also forgotten the teats!
I agree with Daphne though. I think a lot of it has to do with sleep deprivation. At 22 months Erin's only just started sleeping through the night and I've definitely noticed things have gotten *a lot* better. I still forget things, but it's not usually one of *the* most important things.
Sat, 2009-01-31 23:45
I'll probably add juggler to my profiles after this one.
I put the milk in the cabinet just the other day. I haven't done this since I was pregnant. I'm always forgetting my reusable bags. I've even left the house in my slippers. I lost a beverage bottle, a piece of cheese and a jar of almond butter in one week.
I'm terrified that I will forget to pick up one of my children one day. Sometimes I feel like (I Know!) that I'm not only thinking for myself but I'm thinking for all three girls, my dog, and my husband. They are all dependent on me to take care of certain aspects of their life and now my head is about to explode.
It's no wonder we think we have momnesia. There is just no room left for anything else.
And Anne, I too remember my phone number from when I was in kindergarten, along with all of my teachers names from elementary school but I can't remember if I received the water bill for two months (which I didn't)
How am I supposed to write all of this down?
Daphne, you are adding another person to think for to your list, prepare yourself.
Kellie
www.momranoutscreaming.com
Sat, 2009-01-31 15:25
What was I about to say.....
I think it's the combination of sleep deprivation and too much juggling at once.
When I was pregnant with my last son, I dropped off my oldest son at daycare, went to work rushing only to realize I never put my blouse on. I took off my jacket and surprise, I only had a tank top on.
Luckily, I manage a department store so I quickly bought a blouse. Yeah, that sure impressed my associates.
Sat, 2009-01-31 13:51
I posted on my blog to continue the convo and get some solutions to this epidemic :)
http://www.ohanamamablog.com/2009/01/mommy-brain-epidemic-whats-your.html
Sat, 2009-01-31 10:57
Lets be fair on the moms. Its not our fault. It is society's..or the universe. Our brains were only designed to retain a finite amount of information...the rest of the world just have not learned the rules yet. And again...blaming all us moms!
>>grin<<
Sat, 2009-01-31 08:54
It's true--I definitely have mommy brain. Somehow I keep showing up for my tennis lessons without my tennis racket. I manage to make sure the kids have their snowpants, snowboots, hats, mittens, gloves, scarves, coats, backpacks, and lunches--but I guess there's only so much that I can remember at a time. I agree--part of it is sleep deprivation and part of it is that there's just too much going on.
Fri, 2009-01-30 19:24
you know me well... that and all the notes on my post it pads that litter my desk. And I have to put all appointments in my black berry or I would never remember them. As the fatigue of late stage pregnancy is setting in the mom brain is having a harder time.
Fri, 2009-01-30 23:27
"I slur my children's names together, LaurColTayDylMaddi.."
me too! lol that includes my dog's name ha
I have mommesia. How about placing the milk in the cupboard instead of the refrigerator?
Fri, 2009-01-30 20:00
Ah, at last, one of my favorite subjects: momnesia. It's one helluva problem. I wrote about it a couple of times last year on my blog... or at least I "think" I did.
http://themoxiereport.blogspot.com/2008/11/momnesia.html
http://themoxiereport.blogspot.com/2008/12/no-brithday-for-you.html
Good to know that I'm not the only one who had part of her brain sucked out when she had a kid.
Tracy
Fri, 2009-01-30 19:03
Aw, I wish there had been a lot more moms on this one to mention ways to conquer Momnesia, especially Mindy!
I definitely think it has something to do with keeping all the balls in the air, as well as the elephant in the room, the fact that we are not running one life, we're running two, three, or more. You can go to the gym without your sneakers or forget your grocery list as a single person, but when you go to the gym without your sneakers, forget your grocery list, and forget to go to the goodbye window (or in my case today, forget my grocery list, buy a poster board instead of a foam board like I was supposed to, and show up 15 miles away at the haircut place but decide to do it tomorrow because your husband wasn't at work next door to pick up the coupon and hadn't told you he wouldn't be there when you told him you would be there), it feels a LOT more compounded. On top of the fact you're not just affecting you're affecting another person's life, not just your own.
Fri, 2009-01-30 13:13
At the hospital, we jokingly tell moms that their brain cells come out with the placenta.
Honestly? I think it is a function of having too many things to do and being somewhat new at a task, whether that be the ever-changing schedule of a infant, then toddler, then school-aged kid with activities, etc.
Today, I took my son to my Mom's house so I could do a little uninterrupted grocery shopping. My Mom offered to bathe the boy, so I had a few extra bath items to remember. I brought those, but forgot MY WALLET and phone. Thank goodness I noticed the oversight before I got to the checkout line.
When I came home, I found that the coffee pot was still on, cooking up some lovely concentrated tar, at 1:10pm.
Yeah. I need an infusion of brain cells stat. And yes, I am the nurse in charge of your loved one tonight for 12 hours. Feeling good about that, aren't we? ;-)
Fri, 2009-01-30 12:20
I absolutely have momnesia. I've got 3 kids, and lost additional brain cells with each kid. I think it increases exponentially. To top it off we've moved a lot, so now sometimes I'll forget for a second which city I'm in, or I'll think about going some place that was in the last city we lived in. Oy. Reason #8,334 why I won't be having a fourth kid.
Fri, 2009-01-30 12:07
I'm with you Karen - I've got a head full of stupid stuff (phone number from when I was in Kindergarten 31 years ago? check!), but can't remember for the life of me when I'm supposed to send back paperwork to my daughter's school! And I've only got ONE kid....if I had three or four I might be reduced to spastic babbling instead of complete sentences!
Fri, 2009-01-30 09:16
I do have momnesia, although not as bad as when my children were babies. Being able to get a full night's sleep more often then I did when they were small makes a huge difference (my daughter is now age 10, the boys are almost 8 and almost 6). I think we have a limited number of brain cells that can store and retrieve information at any given time. Keeping track of not only what I need to buy at the grocery store, but also when Princess has a doctor's appointment and what day Lil Joe is supposed to bring in something for show and tell and remembering to buy a farecard so Hoss can go to the hockey game with his aunt...well, something's got to give. I compensate as best I can by trying to keep central lists/reminders. We have a huge calendar in the kitchen, and each family member has a designated color, so everything goes on the calendar (weekly dance lessons, sleepovers, dinners with friends, me or Hubby working late...) so I can refer to it all the time. I have a specific place to keep all the grocery needs (reusable totes, coupon file) and I have a designated routine for getting out the door to go shopping. I can't depend on my own memory anymore, because there are just too many things to remember.
If only I could purge the memory of all the lyrics to "One Night in Bangkok" and use that space for something useful, maybe I would have to have so many lists and reminder notes.
Fri, 2009-01-30 08:58
I've experienced this momnesia, but my husband also experienced it. Everyone has so many things to do, but another part is just that we are not being present. Norman Mailer said that no one can really multi-task we are just doing tasks fast or without being present. They key is to be 100% present in anything we do. Easier said than done (I think I'm averaging 50% present).
If this fails, I write everything down and try to finish what I started out doing before I start something else - even if the kids have to wait :)
Fri, 2009-01-30 08:39
… moral of the story… kids cause drain bamage.
My mom’s theory is that we have too much on our plates. She tells me that just listening to my day makes her tired. If I want to have a productive day I have to (HAVE TO) keep myself on a schedule. It’s hard to believe that once upon a time I had a brain demanding job, I was a mechanical engineer. Now I have two kiddos ages 12 & 9, I’m back in school and I’m thinking who is going to hire me. *lol* I’m always forgetting things. My husband doesn’t have this, but then he doesn’t have to keep everyone’s schedule in his head. Right now I typing this, planning out a store list, thinking about meals for next week, waiting for the dryer to get done, posting on facebook, watching the time for the oldest go to out for bus, waiting for youngest to wake up for breakfast, debating on baking cookies, youngest has a friend coming over after school, posting my assignments, making plans for the weekend… I have so many thoughts racing through my head. I walk into rooms and go blank “why did I come in here/what am I suppose to be doing?” Paying bills is my husband’s job, when I have to do it I pay them as soon as we get them in fear I’ll forget. It’s sort of funny but then it’s not, I feel like a shell of the person I use to be. I use to be smarticle!
Fri, 2009-01-30 04:57