In a recent Substack post titled “The Day I’ll Never Remember,” 69-year-old jour-nalist Katie Couric recalled the terrifying health scare that robbed her of her memory. Unable to recall the current month, year and president, Couric was fearful that she had suffered a stroke that affected her brain. Upon consultation with her doctors, she was officially diagnosed with transient global amnesia (TGA).
According to board-certified neurologist David Perlmutter, M.D., FACN, who spoke to Couric, transient global amnesia is a sudden inability to form new memories. While temporary, an individual can still recognize who they are and can carry on a conversation, but can’t remember what happened just moments ago or events in recent chunks of time. The most common behavior is asking the same question over and over, because their brain can’t retain the answer.
Couric couldn’t remember being taken to the hospital by her husband who was concerned by her actions. She also answered the year, month and name of the president incorrectly when questioned by the doctors.
Dr. Perlmutter explained, “Despite how dramatic it looks, TGA is usually a benign condition. The episode typically lasts several hours and almost always resolves completely within 24 hours, leaving only a gap in memory for everything that occurred during the event itself.”
While there is no direct answer as to why TGA can occur, scientists point to the hippocampus, which temporarily stops functioning. Most cases are often reported after sudden emotional or physical stress such as extreme exercise or emotional shock as examples. Upon study, these cases generally seem reversible and don’t cause any long-term side effects or serve as precursors for memory issues or strokes later in life.
However, out of an abundance of caution, if an individual ever feels they are having a neurological event, health officials advise treating the episode as a medical emergency unless proven otherwise.
Transient global amnesia is benign, but should never been dismissed in case it can be confused with a much more serious event such as a stroke.
