A man, Scott Bolzan, lost his memory by accident and he has no memory of his past, including his memory with his wife, daughter, and family. He said he has no emotional connection with the pictures they took before. According to himself, “The best word I can use to describe it is just being lost. Because I lost who I am (Patria, 2010).” We always recall the memory about either from our childhood memory or last week. Memory is closely connected with our personal life, although it is not an obvious thing before you try to memorize something. Whenever we try to go back to our past, we need to go through a process called memory retrieval. Amnesia is a brain disease that cannot retrieve memory from the past, which means it makes us fail to go through the process. However, the types of amnesia and the corresponding reasons can be various as well, and the reason for Bolzan’s Amnesia is also important to be discussed.
The memory process is essential before understanding the types. Talking about the memory process, we need to understand the concept of short-term memory and long-term memory. The short-term memory only lasts for a few seconds and the long-term memory can last for a long time. We need to practice the thing we want to remember to make it become a long-term memory. There is a model called the modal model well explained the concept. Lots of people have acknowledged amnesia before, which is also a popular topic in tv dramas. This does not only appear in television shows but also everyday life. There are 2 major types of amnesia, which are retrograde amnesia and anterograde amnesia. For Bolzan, he fails to recall the memory, which is a retrograde amnesia appearance. It describes the patients who cannot recall the memory from the past. The anterograde amnesia is kind of the opposite, which is not able to tun short-term memory to long-term memory. Different amnesia has different reasons. Injure with the brain, medication, alcohol, cancer, or stroke, and so on can be a reason for memory loss. Scott Bolzan had a slip in the men’s restroom, he had a head injure afterward. According to the interview, he says the reason that he received from the doctor is there is no blood running through his temporal lobe, which is a place for having long-term memory, and that accidentally causes the loss of his memory. Through the feeling of sadness, anger, and so on, Bolzan finally accepted the result.
Memory is always needed practices to become a long-term memory, the one we can recall at any time and anywhere.

Reference:

Patria, B. W. A. M. (2010, April 20). Man With Amnesia Lost 46 Years in Workplace Slip. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/amnesia-man-hits-head-loses-memories/story?id=10396719

Amnesia: Types, Tests, Diagnosis, Symptoms & Causes. (n.d.). Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21455-amnesia

Brown, B. (2021, July 28). The Most Common Causes Of Memory Loss. Forbes Health. https://www.forbes.com/health/healthy-aging/memory-loss-causes/