Everyone knows the stereotypical case of amnesia as seen in movies,books,TV shows,and videogames.
Is that kind even possible?
I was under the impression that amnesia is simply severe brain damage so that more than just memories would be affected.
There was a British man in his mid-sixties who suffered a stroke and as a result his memory of the last fifty years was completely erased, though he contiuned to function normally otherwise.
There have been threads done on this in the past. You should use the search function before posting questions.
Is it possible to get amnesia like in the movies?
In this thread:How do people get amnesia?
The SDMB’s own MD, Qadgop the Mercotan answers:
I respecfully disagree w/ the good doctor. Apart from drugs,illness, & brain injury there are many documented case of fugue or diissociated mental states. These are “fuctional” as opposed to “organic.” If only claimed by criminals or plaintiffs, I would agree w/ Q. But I do agree it is very rare. Check the DSM-no reason for me to quote it.
In 1995 I received a traumatic brain injury in an automobile accident. I could not account for nor remember most of the ten years prior to the accident . I have now recovered most of my memory.
After accruing a tremendous sleep deficit (from working 100-120 hour weeks for a few months straight trying to finish a project on schedule, fool that I was), I flew home to family for Christmas. First night back, I couldn’t sleep at all (which I found odd since my body was so clearly craving sleep), so I finally took an Ambien 10mg and went back to bed.
[… interlude …]
I woke up and came down to join breakfast, but when I entered the room, everyone was staring at me with worried looks on their faces.
“How are you feeling?,” someone asked.
“I feel fine, thanks,” I replied, even though I was actually feeling very puzzled by all the deep concern I saw directed at me from all around the table. “Is there something wrong?”
“What day is it?,” Mom asked, her brow furrowed with worry.
“Saturday, of course. I flew in last night; Friday night.”
“Er…,” she hemmed briefly. It’s actually Sunday morning."
It turns out that I’d missed an entire day. But I did not sleep during that missing day – oh, no. I learned that I had been apparently completely awake and active all day Saturday, but had forgotten everything that happened! I’ve still have not recovered any memory at all of any kind from that day. It was very unpleasant to learn from others what I’d actually done that day!
Apparently, I was acting like a very creepy, cartoonish child (I was in my mid 30’s). I usually talked fake baby talk, ate like a literal pig, and quite insouciantly vomited all over myself a couple of times without the tiniest expression of concern for myself or others. When they tried to get me into the shower to clean myself off, I… well, let’s just say that I said some inappropriate things for an adult and leave it at that.
Everyone was freaked the hell out, and who can blame them?
They decided against taking me to the hospital because they knew I held high security clearances and was worried that such an incident might cause me to lose my job. So instead they waited it out with me.
Okay, bottom line: I experienced a profound case of amnesia, completely forgetting everything that happened during a 24-hour period. I have never recalled anything at all of that day, and I hate the fact that such a thing ever happened to me.
I can’t even imagine how horrible it must be for someone like hlanelee to lose ten years! My heart goes out to you folks.
I also want to warn people to be very cautious with Ambien. Under certain circumstances, especially when you take too large a dose (as I think I may have done while in my “altered state”), it can really mess you up!
There’s a very interesting and informative article called “Amnesia In Romance: AIR Syndrome” at the All About Romance website. The author of the article takes issue with the way amnesia is portrayed fiction, especially when the character forgets his or her name and identity, but remembers everything else and is able to function normally in every other way.
The movie type of amnesia I was commenting on was the situation where someone gets hit in the head, and promptly forgets everything about themselves prior to the head injury. Some days, months or years later, they get hit in the head again, and magically get their past restored.
I have no quibble with doctordoowop’s commentary on functional fugue states. Especially since he does note that they are truly very rare.
ambushed-one of the noted frequent side effects of Ambien is amnesia, but as a precriber of it, your extended reaction is pretty rare. BTW, Halcion, another sleeper, has been banned in the UK because of amnestic episodes. The clincher was a successful insanity defense in the killing of a bobby.
Hey, I got hit on the head pretty good when I went through the windshield. Other than cuts and bruises there were no other substantial injuries but a bruise on my brain where it bounced off the inside of my skull. My wife was the only person I recognized when I came out of the coma. I believed that the woman down the hall, whose husband had survived a stroke, was my mother. I can remember all the details of being committed in 1994 but I only know about what I did on my wedding day in 1989 because my wife has told me all about it.
OK. I apologize if I misquoted you or used your quote out of context.
Lots of people have that same complaint! 
Seriously, your experience is not unusual after head injury, hlanelee. Spotty memory loss, but not total.
And Dignan, it’s not a problem.
In addition to memory loss, let’s not forget “Foreign Accent Syndrome”
The strange case of Philip Staufen .
This man had total memory loss and, although apparently not Canadian, was trapped in Canada because he couldn’t get a passport, because he didn’t know who he was far less prove it, because he couldn’t got back to where he seemed to originally come from to help remind him, because he didn’t have a passport.
This was a few years back. Anyone know what happened to him?
Thanks for the info, Dr. Doowop.
You say my case is unusual due to the length of time I forgot about, but what about my day of crazy, pseudo-childish misbehavior? Any ideas what that was all about? I mean, clearly there’s more than just amnesia about that day that’s involved here. Ever hear of such a strange reaction to Ambien? Or do you think something else was involved?
p.s.: I’m not a street drug user or a prescription drug abuser. But I figure my great sleep deficit had something to do with it along with the Ambien…
I had a similar experience to ambushed, except the drug was cogentin, and it lasted 3 days. Basically, it ended when I hid all my medication and therefore stopped taking it. Nobody was ever able to find where I put them, either.
I remember disconnected flashes, stuff like lighting up a cigarette, then looking down and seeing it had burned to a filter, with NO sense of time passing. I really thought people were putting one over on me.