Does stress affect your memory? - Elizabeth Cox

Explore the stages of how your memory stores information and how short-term stress impacts this process.
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You spend weeks studying for an important test. On the big day, you wait nervously as your teacher hands it out. You’re working your way through, when you’re asked to define "ataraxia." You know you’ve seen the word before, but your mind goes blank. What just happened? Elizabeth Cox details the complex relationship between stress and memory.
Lesson by Elizabeth Cox, directed by Artrake Studio.
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View full lesson: ed.ted.com/lessons/the-surpri...
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[@TEDEd]

Check out this playlist to learn more about how stress affects your brain and body: bit.ly/2CjpKnu. Understanding is one way we can build #StrengthNotStress.

[@ockhamopina1571]

Subscribe to our KZbin Channel

[@ockhamopina1571]

@Solar System It's a sadness, but what are we going to do? We wish you the best, and that someday you subscribe.

[@michaelflores9220]

Why do people remember stress in the past less so that the past always seems better than the present?

[@felixlee9645]

TED-Ed more riddles, pls.

[@maitreyeedubey4438]

Please please please make a video on "Neuro Cardiogenic Syndrome"

[@rea8585]

In university, we had an oral exam and the girl beside me was very well prepared, but when the teacher asked the first question, she went numb. And same for the next two questions, she didn't even open her mouth even though she was repeating the same material just 10 minutes before. She failed and was crying like crazy afterward. That was the first time I saw someone completely freeze and it was sad and shocking at the same time.

[@TEDEd]

Oof! That is rough. Luckily there are some mental tools we can use to help us in these kinds of circumstances. Thanks for sharing!

[@soum8975]

TED-Ed Before the test date I think I should’ve studied more and need more days to prepare. What to do with this ?

[@okaywhynot4728]

I'd recommend she see a psychologist. That sounds like really bad anxiety, I hope she got help as soon as possible and is doing better now.

[@Alidaramms1]

It has never happened to me, but to my sister. I've seen her study like crazy and failing because she went blank :o

[@adnin8968]

Yeah.A few days ago,I had to consult a doctor.When the doctor asked me about my issue,I went blank despite the fact that I had rehearsed what my problem was in the waiting area for ten mins or so luckily after a min I got my voice back and told her everything non stop.

[@unleashingpotential-psycho9433]

One thing I've noticed is that when I am stressed out with a lot of tasks to do, my memory is a lot worse since I'm always thinking about the task I need to get done. When I get rid of those tasks, my memory improves.

[@zotoda]

same

[@ericaleighpolicarpio6465]

same

[@averageperson3556]

my memory is bad in general

[@SharpDesign]

the irony of stress while trying to define ataraxia. (A state of serene calmness)

[@jjsmith706]

Congratulations on getting the joke that was explained at the end of the video.

[@SharpDesign]

@@jjsmith706 commented before watching to the end as people do but whatever.

[@pranavlimaye]

*TED-Ed* _(n)_ : universally regarded as the best path to ataraxia.

[@TommoCarroll]

Haha, Whilst having a friend scaring you when revising won't help...it would make the whole exam period a whole lot more exciting!

[@PowahSlapEntertainmint]

There will be absolutely no hippos running in my campus.

[@junaidtariq7576]

hahahaha

[@shivanshchoudhary6280]

😁😁

[@phinaibe8434]

On California colleges, I'd say otherwise.

[@sammym2511]

_You keep saying that word_ _I don't think it means what you think it means._

[@im_aleey]

Are you related to Justin Y by any chance?

[@phoebegodiva-adeniyi5315]

Chronic stress needs to be conveyed in health classes from high school through college. I didn’t learn about chronic stress until I developed a heart condition from it. Great video.

[@thehierophant2307]

For those interested or curious about what ataraxia is, it is the state of serenity and calmness in one's own psychological state, free of mortal restraints. Epicurus and many ancient philosophers believed it was the key to achieving eudaimonia (absolute goodness in your own life or happiness or something similar to that). The Stoics believed that, for this, apathia was necessary (being devoid of passionate emotions), and for the epicureans aponia was necessary (the absence of pain, the origins of utilitarianism according to JS mill).

[@4TFlowers]

No wonder the term seemed familiar We took it up in our philosophy class.😇

[@emiliofreire5125]

Very interesting comment and information brought to the video. It also reminds me of Mindfulness derived from Buddhist meditation that is a state in which you are in the present moment intentionally and with compassion and curiosity. Being in this state could also be a form of ataraxia...

[@ashelletuleja6184]

Most of the time when I'm stressed i can't even remember my best friends name, but I can remember random things that I haven't thought about in years that have nothing to do with my situation.

[@allyzagarma9503]

That's tough

[@bonsur7412]

Wow. I experience the exact same response.

[@aparnadasgupta1872]

The perfect video for me right now! Ted-ed always seems to guess my mood..

[@omarradee6549]

same here xD :')

[@ibraheemkhaleel2325]

Certain type of people are stressed most of the time including me .so yeah this could help me anytime.

[@aparnadasgupta1872]

@@ibraheemkhaleel2325 I'm one of those people too. You're right. This video could help people like us anytime..

[@sj.studygroup]

Same here

[@uhohhotdog]

It’s a conspiracy

[@angelicamorales3842]

It's kind of helpful to know how stress impact the memory, being a person with anxiety it helps to realize that even though we're correct when we said that we can't learn things as faster as before and that often our memory fails, it's important to address these notions with information, and kindness, to remember to breathe more often. Thanks for providing these tools with accuracy and academic background.

[@nishashetty8488]

The animation is amazing, as always!

[@Th1nA1r]

Love the choice in word the girl is trying to remember! very clever. Also I really liked the art style in this one.

[@e4r281]

When I told the doctor about my loss of memory, he made me pay in advance.

[@HS-fb9tw]

lol, so you wont forget to pay..

[@lorenzo_br5803]

Rather, SO he forgets to pay and pays twice.

[@killerqueen7489]

I always forget to pay at restaurants and it's so embarrassing because the staff thinks I'm trying something. Once I even got out the door and the owner came outside chasing me, luckily I wasn't banned and nobody called the cops. I now pay beforehand.

[@siddiki9778]

@@killerqueen7489 lol I'm the opposite. I always pay but sometimes I forget to take what I paid for. Some awkward moments include me paying for stuffs but the shopkeeper later on calling me back cause I forgot to take what I paid for.

[@sahasra5991]

@@siddiki9778 same lol

[@aspiringcloudexpert5127]

Top Ten Best Anime Villain Designs

[@aspiringcloudexpert5127]

It's a meme. If you don't get it, no worries; it's not really important. Have a nice day! :)

[@mglps6316]

Aspiring Cloud Expert lol

[@whathell6t]

Aspiring Cloud Expert Is this a Cells at Work reference?

[@aspiringcloudexpert5127]

+whathell6t Sorry, no.

[@TB-tz8dl]

Beautiful art style, excellent video, as always. Thank you to everyone who makes this type of amazing content!

[@dakshinibhattacharya996]

Wonderful animation! Certainly my favourite amongst the countless TED-Ed videos I have watched 😊

[@IndrajaSalunkhe]

The illustration is beautiful. :) Thank you for sharing the information.

[@quahntasy]

Ted-ed knows my mood. Perfect video for me tonight! The story mode of this video is such a nice way for presenting information. Very thought out and amazing video!

[@sanghpriya9126]

Thank you for sharing such a piece of information. Keep doing the good work Ted!

[@gamsucksatgaming3005]

This video was so helpful. . . Just what I needed. Thank you!!!!

[@erellg5375]

this video was interesting as always! plus the animation was stunning good job

[@gwennyx5815]

One of the better, worthy channels on KZbin (: Thank you for filling my lag of knowledge.

[@meribarseghyan842]

While midterms are coming this was an interesting video to watch. I was always getting really stressed before my exams, now gradually I can stay more concentrated and calm. Being stressed really affects the way our brain works as it makes most of our brain be busy.

[@MonishaRaj20]

The animation is so creatively done!

[@zeywithb393]

I love these videos, thank you! It was really beneficial for me about not also my english but alsa my anxiety. ♡

[@dark6.6E-34]

Wow the last part (definition of ataraxia) gave me chills

[@AkshayKumar-sd1mx]

Absolutely loved the way the word ATARAXIA was carried around in the video.

[@Future_Pheonix]

This explains a lot about my life and might also come in handy soon! Thank you :)

[@texcellency]

Beautiful video along with explanation

[@Btsarmy-ng1pl]

The animation never fails to astonish me!

[@kottonkandy0962]

Show this to schools everywhere. Many schools don't consider the mental health of their students carefully, and it can lead to failure of a course despite them being smart students, or being particularly exceptional students during classwork and homework, yet the excessive stress put on the brain causes them to freeze up and draw a blank whenever put on high stress situations. This is only one of the MANY, *MANY* flaws within the education system. To put it simply, Stress = Loss of Memory = Failure/partial failure. School = Stress = Failure = Disappointment from your Family = You'll die alone as usual.

[@shivamwasp]

this video is pure genius and the animation is just too creative.

[@aadivrath2407]

Excellent Video as always Ted-Ed!!! You should really make a video about students and stress, how to relax, and in all, how NOT to take stress.

[@karl5722]

Thank you for this video. This is really for both friends and family and for me. This will really help me to relax on a test and staying focused. This will also help someone in my family who weight too much stress. As a result this person has many problems including fatness, anger, depression (not real depression which is a mental illness but sadness) and buttons. Thank you Ted-ed🖒

[@shreyashreesarkar5141]

Beautiful animation. Great advise

[@bookclubchd9588]

Amazing graphics and representations!!

[@dianaspencer7574]

THANK YOU SO MUCH! IT'S SO MUCH HELPFUL!

[@wahhajmustafa1907]

Loved the animation on this one

[@akhilambizhethu]

Awesome! TED Ed rocks.

[@divdov7632]

First day of school today Needed this video

[@MARILYNANDERSON88]

This is a presentation by a well kept person in an academic environment, not advice from a person experiencing and surviving the stress of this brutal world of reality.

[@FreedomStrider]

Very true, we both expereiince this often enough - it's great to now know why I can't remember such simple things during times of stress :)

[@divyangana123]

Such beautiful animation !!

[@kavyanagar342]

Thanks i was seriously looking for something like this😊

[@aniellabandril7900]

Thanks TED Ed for defining me in every test

[@Gamerman9653]

That ending was clever. Well done!

[@madelynpoling1738]

I wish my teachers knew this. Having seven classes and all of my teachers trying to get me to memorize a bunch of information at once and I have to deal with my responsibilities at home. I don't always have time to study and when I do I'd rather use it to relaxe than study. Don't they realise I don't have time to do all of this? Its way too stressful. WHYY DO SCHOOLS DO THIS TO ME!

[@pankyshanky69]

While watching this video i realized i have Chronic Stress and now i'm going to work on it.Thankyou TED-Ed.

[@roshnirajan5531]

Thank u for such a great informative video. 😀

[@ayannaez6949]

I really needed this I was going through this while taking a test and I was freaking out instead of crying and having a really bad anxiety attack I had to separate myself and leave and this made me understand more I just couldn’t remember and I made my anxiety worse which led to me not remembering I’m glad you understand this more thank you.

[@richard1113]

Today's outro reminds me of the mansion tours in Newport, RI. If you haven't been and like that kind of thing I highly recommend it!

[@Gaurav-bp8ho]

NYC video . I have been going the same problem from a long time . Ur video helped me

[@aperson2730]

Awesome accompanying animations

[@mjstory1976]

Awesome and informative video

[@yusufrosyid3561]

Well noted, basically the stress can inhibit hippocampus for consolidating the information. Great video👌

[@abigaillui8261]

I have a history oral tomorrow...thanks TED-Ed! :)

[@manahilbaig2702]

It will be very useful for me as my tests are going on as well and on monday its MATHS test!

[@somadas4994]

Love the channel. 💖

[@hetalpatel3249]

Like your animation and ideas

[@imlucia9648]

so useful....! Thank you A month later I have a test and I will use this methods. Of course, Studying is more important...! Cheer up everybody..TT

[@Snowy123]

I've always found it easier to remember the things I like.

[@samadkazi5707]

This is the best KZbin channel ever!!!!!

[@neiljohn3702]

Every student can relate

[@efeguleroglu]

You deserve all of the likes! Perfect!

[@levshanley3776]

We have a quizz contest today related to science, thanks for the advice

[@myc_upoftea]

Excellent animation as usual😊😊

[@sarahmurphy2915]

I have severe anxiety and even during times where I am not stressed My memory was terrible at one point, I forgot my name and where I was, but I subconsciously wrote it, I remembered a second later and it was scary

[@quahntasy]

Perfect video for me right now.

[@cynthiamariemartinez5662]

loved this

[@GabiCarol08]

Amazing video!

[@riteshram74]

I'm able to remember this stuff more than I can remember what I learnt two hours ago.

[@usama57926]

thank u amazing video

[@leizero]

Same thing happened to me in our anatomy moving tests. Been memorizing those specific parts (repeating them a few minutes before the test started) but when it was my turn to identify those parts in the cadaver, my mind went blank. I knew I studied them and know them well but I was unable to retrieve them. I think one major factor that caused it is my hours of sleep. I've been sleep-deprived for that week trying to study the topics (I get 2-3 hours sleep/night at most). I really have to strategize better than my current way of doing things.

[@TanveerGreenBeret]

meaningful and excellent animation

[@user-ci2lg1lw5b]

많은 양의 스트레스는 기억에 나쁜 영향력을 펼친다는것을 배웠습니다. 또 스트레스가 심할 때 어떻게 차분하고 침착하게 대처하며 스트레스를 유리하게 이용할 수 있는 방법에 대하여 배워보는 시간이 되었습니다. 저에게 큰 도움이 될것 같습니다. 감사합니다.

[@galaxy9501]

I have social anxiety but that makes me remember so many things and not just stuff about social situations..i guess it's different from acute stress

[@lovelylittlegirl3332]

Honestly this video was so well thought out. I love how the word Ataraxia was used to create an Irony. Bravo!

[@kristyburton6507]

Thankyou 😃

[@othmanrassi8430]

thanks for reminding ....

[@kirbymarchbarcena]

This was very helpful...and those who gave this a thumbs down couldn't handle the stress

[@hebamadi265]

I liked the animation so much👍👏👏👏

[@itsdaksha]

The best animation I've ever seen

[@strange_and_magnificent]

The animation is great 👍🏻.

[@jairotorregrosa]

Perfect! Casually, I've my italian test right now!

[@yellowskycreations4542]

this explains a lot

[@jimintae3284]

i dönt know what to say. dk how to say tht im really thankful n grateful for this channel n it's existence without it sounding too cheesy or just a plain n empty platitude....sigh, anyway,,thank you

[@ssiddarth]

Amazing Content

[@walkingcaseofrabies4958]

Thank u for telling me this I have a test on Thursday

[@myeonhae]

I used to think very fast and remember things very well but the amount of pressure I was subjected into during university made it hard for me to remember things nowadays, which eventually affected my performance by the time I was about to finish school. It doesn't help that you're surrounded by the best and the brightest in the country too since you'd want to catch up with everyone. Even the people around me would notice that I would "lag" every time I spoke which they say wasn't like me at all since I always spoke "fluidly" in their terms, or at least I used to. These aren't the only bad things that happened though and up until now I'm still paying the price. I sincerely hope this doesn't happen to anyone.

[@JaneDoe-ui3hp]

Watching this video made me realize that school starts tomorrow... And now I'm *stressed*

[@asiagowda1683]

So helpful :)

[@maattthhhh]

I like this new episode of Cells at Work!

[@Mimyakko]

I took a summer calculus class in June/July which stressed me out A LOT. I failed the class because I would instantly forget what I studied as soon as I got the test. Ever since then my memory has been worse. I forget everything now (everyday tasks, homework, names of the students at my job that I previously knew)

[@somethingsomething619]

Summer ends and this video comes out

[@Clown81178]

FeelsBadMan

[@ayush0477]

Very good video.

[@shripadkshirsagar4513]

Hi, this channel is the best!!!!!!!! Love from India..... It allows me to keep my love for science........ Trying to be a great scientist ahead......... Love you #teded.......... Thanks for supporting a 13-year old girl🤗🤗😉😉😊😊

[@Chris-tl1kh]

O

[@zed5133]

O

[@Chris-tl1kh]

@@zed5133 o

[@xBreeze12]

13 year old girl? your comment doesn't make any sense

[@HarshKumar-fg7tq]

Thankx

[@MiPo3333]

Loving the animation and how well this complex content is presented. Great work. The "shtress" stresses me out though, need to reprogram this overreaction somehow 😎