If you’re like me, you sometimes struggle to remember what it is you need to do five seconds after deciding you need to do it or you forget the key item you need to buy at the grocery store. Of course, you can write things down. But, you can also try to improve your recall, using an ancient trick, reports Erika Engelhaupt for National Geographic.
The “method of loci” or “memory palace” is a way to strengthen your memory, which dates back to Cicero’s time. All you do is relabel items in a space with which you are familiar, with the items you need to remember. Your living room painting of a cow becomes the milk you need to buy. If the painting is of a boy, imagine him drinking milk for breakfast.
You get it. Force a connection between things in the room and the things you need to do. You need to make a doctor’s appointment? Consider the chair that needs fixing as a patient in need of attention.
Cicero used this technique to memorize his speeches. Some memory pros today use the technique to remember thousands of pieces of information. It allegedly can help you keep your brain from deteriorating as quickly as it otherwise will.
Apparently, the weirder the connections you make between items in a room and the things you need to remember, the easier it is to recall them. But, that does not make it easy.
How does the method of loci work? It works based on our visual memory and spatial navigation abilities. We are not programmed to recall information that is unlinked to an experience–e.g., a series of numbers or random words. We are better at recalling visual images and places we’ve been.
When we use the method of loci, we can pull from the images we know and give them new meaning. For example, the six of diamonds might mean a relatively expensive ring and the king of diamonds might mean an insanely wealthy man.
Some experts see the method of loci as a means of staving off dementia. It certainly sparks the imagination and creativity. And, one big NIH study found that this training can help older adults keep or even improve their mental aptitude.
Some experts also see the method of loci as a means of treating depression. Instead of associating items in a room with actions you need to take or names of people, you can associate them with positive images, memories of good times and joyous activity.
Bottom line. Our brains can hold a lot more information than we realize. We need to exercise it. And the method of loci is one compelling way to do so.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Avoid memory supplements
- How to improve your memory
- What happens to your memory as you age?
- Exercise may strengthen memory in healthy older adults
- Lifestyle changes could help reduce risk of memory loss as we age
