eponagirl,

You likely have a dysfunctional short term and immediate term memory in auditory and possibly visual areas. This makes learning new things difficult. You can still do it but you must make changes to how you learn. You will likely need many more repetitions and hands-on experience as you learn.

There are three learning senses, tactile (touch), visual and auditory. By using as many of these three as possible with many repetitions, you should be able to learn new things. It may help to put time spaces between each repetition. You need to be able to get the information into long term memory. You have massage skills that are both muscles memory and what is called an "over-learned skill."

As you learn or study, do the repetitions and then repeat with the time between repetitions getting longer as you go. The lengthening of the interval between causes your brain to work harder to find the path to the memory. This sort of beats down a path to the memories. It also allows the memories to become stored in multiple places within the brain.

With your hoof trimming information, you will need to have a visual presentation (papers or a work book) that you can refer to as you handle your horses hoof. If someone can be reading the directions to you as you examine your horse's hoof, you can convert the information into a real life experience. Straight book or lecture learning will likely be very difficult if your memory skills are weak.

You might try examining each hoof with this assistant prompting you. After you have examined all four, take a break and plan what you need to do. Separate the examining from the trimming. After enough repetitions of this technique, you will likely have the skill learned.

Those of us with PCS memory dysfunctions can still do most things. We just need to do them in a different way.

btw, You could help me by putting a paragraph space every 4 to 6 lines. I struggle to follow from the end of one line to the start of the next if there are more than 6 or so lines.

With your massage practice, can you get a muscle diagram on a dry erase board? You could then chart the complaints so you have a visual reminder. It also may help you educate your clients so they keep their bodies in better shape.

Hope this helps.

My best to you.