Forgetting a motor skill due to trauma

[Corzhens]

I don't know if this falls in this category. This is my problem that I am thinking all the time. I have forgotten how to ride a bike. When I consulted a doctor about this (on the suspicion that my maintenance medication for hypertension is the culprit) I was asked to recall a traumatic experience on bikes. It doesn't matter if I was not the one riding the bike. Maybe a tragic incident I witnessed involving a bike. Well, there's a lot I have seen but mostly on television. The evening news is not complete without the report on accidents of motorbikes and bicycles. Until now I am still in search of what caused me the trauma that I couldn't ride a bike anymore.

 

[listener1987]

Even though it's sad you're experiencing this phenomenon, from an outsider's perspective I think it's fascinating! Maybe a therapist could help better than a doctor, as they're good at helping people remember buried things in their past.


But did the doctor think the forgetfulness could be due to your hypertension medication? Because it seems strange that he/she jumped to a psychological cause.


What happens when you do attempt to ride a bike?

 

[rz3300a]

Well I am not exactly proud to say that I have been here, but I have. The road I chose early on was certainly not the best one to take, and along the way I happened to suffer a pretty traumatic injury, and it was of my own doing so I have nobody to blame but myself. With that, though, I have vivid memories or taking walks around the hospital with the nurse holding on to me. I never would have thought that I would have needed to relearn how to walk, but there I was. The speech was also a little difficult, although not as bad as they said it could have been. You live and learn, though, so thanks for sharing.

 

[HappyKoi]

This happens to me when I get anxious. I got in a car accident, and for awhile I forgot how to drive because the trauma paralyzed me to the point where I couldn't think. My advice would be to continue to work with your therapist and take it as slow as you need to. Be gentle with yourself. Maybe one day it will be just staring at the bike and trying to remember what to do, and that's perfectly okay. These things take time, and they don't always go as fast as we'd like.


You mention that it could be your medication, and that might need looking into as well. You may want to bring this up with the doctor who prescribed it and see if this sort of thing is a side effect. I wouldn't change your medication or stop using it without talking with your doctor about it first, though.

 

[janemariesayed]

I was hit by a car a few years ago and as the car hit me, I broke three of my ribs. I was in such a state because of it that I didn't go outside for a year. I knew the person who did it and he took the keys from my bag and stole everything from my flat. I was in a complete mess. I am not so bad at going out doors now, but actually driving a car now really makes me nervous. I had to take driving lessons all over again to help me to deal with it. After taking lessons I can drive now on quiet roads but I'm still having a problem driving on fast A roads and motorways whereas before I used to drive all over the place. My advice is for you to perhaps get on a bike with someone beside you. Go to a quiet park away from any roads and cycle up and down until you feel relaxed enough to go out onto the street. You could always do a cycling proficiency test too, as that will help you to overcome your fears by teaching you road safety. They could also probably help with nervous cyclists making it easier for you to get out cycling on your own.

 

[explorerX7]

There was a co-worker of mine who, while on her way to work, witnessed a terrible accident in which the person riding the bike lost control of the vehicle and it ran into a wall. The person riding the bike was killed on impact. She came to work that day and was unable to work because she was very shaken up and kept remembering what she had seen. I believe that if she was a bike rider she would probably not be able to ride one anytime soon or ever at all. I have seen where similar incidences like this have really placed some persons in a state paranoia when it comes to a similar event to which had adversely affected them before. There was a person who was involved in a serious accident in which someone had died when she was about 13-years old, and because of that experience, she refused to learn to drive or apply for a licence after being eligible.

 

[kgord]

What do you think Corzhens ? Do you think it is related to seeing bike accidents. I mean it sounds a bit far fetched to me. It is unusual to forget how to ride a bike, as with any motor skill there is muscle memory that allows you to do something that you have done in the past. It is just one of the things that you will find when you are doing various activities. I think that you are the best judge of what is happening with you, of course trauma can keep you from being able to perform certain motor skills.

 

[AngelaMc]

I don't know if this falls in this category. This is my problem that I am thinking all the time. I have forgotten how to ride a bike. When I consulted a doctor about this (on the suspicion that my maintenance medication for hypertension is the culprit) I was asked to recall a traumatic experience on bikes. It doesn't matter if I was not the one riding the bike. Maybe a tragic incident I witnessed involving a bike. Well, there's a lot I have seen but mostly on television. The evening news is not complete without the report on accidents of motorbikes and bicycles. Until now I am still in search of what caused me the trauma that I couldn't ride a bike anymore.

I have had a similar experience except it wasn't riding a bike. My experience was swimming, I came to find out that I had slipped and hit my head on the pool when I was younger which resulted in stitches. I never even knew this happened to me until I was older and started having issues about getting in water. This may be the same in your case (a trauma that happened).