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Posted 9/24/2012 11:46 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone knew of any good study tips? I am currently in grad school and there is so much reading that I am often overwhelmed. I have a very poor memory so I find myself having a hard time retaining some of the material. I'm not sure why I have a hard time retaining school material because I don't have an issue remembering things in daily life or tasks related to work. I find that I can read a page or two of my textbook then if I pause and try and think about what I just read I often have no idea! So I have to read it all over again! I usually make flash cards, but that only works to help me remember things for immediate purposes like taking a quiz. I don't typically retain a lot of the material after the fact, which is frustrating because I need to remember this stuff! I could also use some pointers on writing papers if anyone has any advice. I do the usual routine of making an outline for the paper but it still takes me so long to fight through the fibro fog! It didn't use to be this hard, ugg!!
Posted 9/24/2012 11:58 PM (GMT 0)
Apply. Note-taking when reading is imperative.

It also radically depends on what you are trying to remember. I remember concepts and more application/analysis tasks, but specifics are harder for me. They all used to be easy.

Writing is always hard. Outlining, providing the roadmap, is really the best way to keep yourself on track. Know where you are starting, going, and where you want to end up.
Posted 9/24/2012 11:58 PM (GMT 0)
I used to use little clues. One example was Roy G. Biv, which covers the sequence of hues in the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet. You can obviously use other names or words, too.

I always had a hard time remembering dates. Sometimes, silly as it may sound, if you make a sing-songy rhyme, it might help.

Then there are things like "In fourteen hundred ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue." Easy way to remember that year.

Anyway, silly as it sounds, little rhymes, clues, and things you can associate in a simple way make for a good way to retain the info--at least sometimes.

Best of luck on your studies. Yeah--that fibro fog is NOT fun. :(
Posted 9/25/2012 4:10 AM (GMT 0)
Jen,

I've always had a hard time with just what you mentioned - remembering what I've read. It's infuriating! Whether it's ADD, life-long fibro fog or what, I don't know, but it does make things hard.

When I transferred to a harder school and finally decided I needed to take school more seriously, I figured out that I needed to plan on reading assignments over more than once. The first time, I'd quickly run my eyes over a whole chapter, say, or whatever chunk I was dealing with. Even if I felt like I was falling asleep, I'd make my eyes keep moving. I wouldn't let myself get upset if I didn't get much out of it.

Then I'd go back and re-read a smaller section. This time it would make more sense...my brain must have been picking up more all along than I'd realized. It was like I had to absorb it in layers. I really think this helped me to grasp the big picture, rather than a bunch of little, disconnected factoids.

I also started making notes about what I was reading, as Myself said. This let me define things in a way that made sense to me personally.

Good luck.

Debbie
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