ReadersDigestAustraliaNewZealand-March2018

March• 2018 | 73

READER’S DIGEST

Hence, the specification of ‘auto-

biographical’ memory. Those with

HSAM aren’t able to recall current

events that they didn’t personally

hearaboutorexperience.Pasternak

knowssingerTomPettydiedonOc-

tober 2, 2017, but she associates his

deathwithOctober3,thedayshe

foundoutandsubsequentlylistened

to‘AmongtheWildflowers’and‘Free

Fallin’ ’ on repeat.

Pasternak par-

ticipates in studies,

online surveys and

phone interviews

with the University

of California-Irvine

research team a few

timesayear.Indoing

so, she learns more

about the condition

and meets others who

have the same abili-

ties. But perhaps most

importantly, it gives

herapurposetowhat

she long thought was a useless tal-

ent. Researchers believe people with

HSAM have the extreme opposite

of Alzheimer’s, and uncovering

what is biologically different about

HSAM brains could help treat

Alzheimer’s, depression and other

mental health issues.

“It makes me so glad that I figured

out I have [HSAM],” she says, “so I

canhelpcontributetothisgrowing

body of research that has the poten-

tial to change lives.”

likeaboardfromtheboardgame
CandyLand.Inhermind,shesees
each month as a different coloured
square;Juneisgreen,Augustis
golden yellow, November is dark
red.Themonthsconnecttoform
apath,weavingbacktoFebruary
2005,whenshehadherfirstHSAM
memory.
Onceshefindstherightmonthin
therightyear,she‘zooms into’ the
square and visualises
eachweekasaseven-
piece pie chart. To
figure out the day of
the week, she starts
witha‘go-to’date
that she knows es-
pecially well. For in-
stance, if you ask her
aboutFebruary17,
2011,she’llfirstrecall
Februar y 14, 2011, a
Monday.
“I know that one
becauseofValentine’s
Day,” she explains. “I know who I
waswithonthatValentine’sDayand
what happened, and then I can kind
of piece it together. Now I remember
what happened on that Tuesday and
Wednesday and Thursday.”
Ittakestimetorecallthosemem-
ories, but eventually, she can re-
member events down to the hour.
“Ican’tjustmemorisethings,”she
says.“That’snothowitworks.Ihave
toseeit.Ihavetobethere.Ihave to
live it, or it doesn’t affect me.”

Those with

HSAM aren’t

able to recall

current events

that they didn’t

personally

hear about or

experience