It's Common To Not Be Able To Recall Details Of Your Life Or Recent Activities Right Away

Here's a mini-situation that can make people's anxiety rise during a conversation: Someone asks you a question about what you've been up to recently, such as:

Or they'll ask a more general getting-to-know-you question that requires you to answer with a list:

You have plenty to say - you did some fun things that weekend, you've watched some interesting movies, you obviously know what your own hobbies are - but it's not all coming to mind right away. You reply with something like, "Uh.... what do I do for fun?... Um... I like drawing and cycling... and... what else?..."

You get slightly nervous and flustered because you feel like the answer should have instantly came to you, but instead you're holding up the conversation and possibly creating an awkward moment. You may also worry that if you respond with, "Umm... what did I do this weekend?... I can't remember..." then the other person is going to think you're lame and boring. You fear they'll conclude, "If she can't give a quick response about what she did on the weekend, that means she didn't do much of anything and is a loser with no life."

In fact it's fairly common for people to not be able to recall all the details of their life or recent history right away, even if they're not feeling anxious or put on the spot. You may have seen ten movies or TV shows worth talking about in the last two weeks, but if someone asks you what you've been watching your mind won't instantly be able to pull together a list of them. It's just how memory works.

You'll draw a blank for a second, then be able to remember two or three of the films you saw. If the conversation goes on, a few more will pop into your head later on - "Oh yeah, you were asking earlier what I was watching. I also saw X the other week." Of course, a day later you'll remember one more show and think, "Ugh, why didn't I think of that at the time? That would have been the perfect thing to talk about."

Don't stress out or be too hard on yourself if you can't easily recount everything you've been up to lately, or what you do for fun, or whatnot, when someone asks. It happens all the time. No one's judging you for it. It's fine if you can only remember a few things right away, and then the rest come to you later. You can even quickly, casually mention it when you're giving your reply: "What have I been up to since we last talked?... Uh... I can't remember everything off the top of my head... I did get my car fixed, and I visited my parents. I'm sure the rest will come to me soon enough. Anyway, how have you been?" Like with a lot of minor, trivial conversation stumbles, if you act as if they're not a big deal and move on, other people won't treat them as such.