By Emma Dunn
A woman with memory loss makes memos on everyone in her life so she can remember details about them – and has been nicknamed Dory by her friends.
Megan Mackenzie, 27, suffered a traumatic brain injury after she fell off a stage in school and hit the back of her head.
The author had to relearn to talk without a stutter and over time realised she was struggling with short and long-term memory loss.
Now she keeps a memo for every friend or family member in her notes app on her phone – detailing things such as their favourite colour, birthday and places they like to go.
Megan, an actress and college educator, from New York City, US said: “When I was in school I got pushed off a stage and hit the bottom of a piano. I hit the back of my head.
“I had to relearn how to speak.
“Then I realised I didn’t have a memory anymore. I can remember how things make me feel but the details are blurred.
“I spent the next few years navigating the new normal.
“Each person has a personalised notes app.
“A lot of my friends know and let me tell the same stories over a million times.
“A lot of my friends call me Dory [from Finding Nemo]. I always say ‘just keep swimming’.”
Megan was 17 years old when the incident happened which caused her brain injury.
She said: “I couldn’t articulate what had happened.
“I don’t remember the next few months.”
Her parents took her to hospital the following day – as initially no one realised the damage the fall had done.
She was told she had mild concussion but, after her symptoms continued, she was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury.
Over the years Megan has had various therapy to relearn to read and talk.
She said: “I loved reading. Now I read by speed reading.
“I can read an entire book in three hours.
“I get to redo the Harry Potter series as an adult with a fresh brain.”
Megan started making a habit of writing things down after she realised she was repeating stories to her friends.
She said: “That’s how I started using my notes app to keep track of things.
“I love bullet points. I title the notes app for that person.
“I write down their birthday, places they go, names of dogs.
“It’s random life bits that were important when I wrote them down.
“Everyone wants to see their notes but I never let them see it.”
Her boyfriend, Andrew, 24, a masters student in computer engineering, is very supportive of Megan.
She said: “He is lovely and wonderful. He finds it charming when I tell him my stories for the 800th time.
“When I’m retelling stories I’ll look at him like ‘what happened next?’ and he’ll jump in.”
After Megan’s brain injury she was told it wouldn’t be “an option” to memorise lines.
Now she’s worked out a way to do it – by using movement.
She said: “If I’m learning lines I will touch my head or something.
“Through movement I’m able to lock in these words.”
Megan shares her story online – to help share the “quirks” of a brain injury.
She said: “It doesn’t keep me from doing anything. I found a new normal.”
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