How to prepare for a doctor visit when you can't remember the details

A consultation is often ten minutes. Most of it disappears into reconstructing history you already lived through — which is avoidable.

What your doctor actually needs first

• When it started, and whether it's constant or comes and goes
• How severe, in your own scale, and whether it's getting worse
• What makes it better or worse
• Everything you're currently taking, including over-the-counter and supplements
• Allergies and past reactions
• Relevant past episodes and what was done about them

The one-page summary

Write, or generate, a single page with: the main concern in one sentence, a dated list of the last few relevant events, your current medicines, your allergies, and recent test results. Hand it over at the start. It converts minutes of recall into minutes of advice.

Questions worth writing down

• What is the most likely explanation, and what else is being ruled out?
• What should improve, and by when?
• What would mean I should come back sooner?
• Are there interactions with what I already take?
• Do I need a follow-up, and when?

After the visit

Log the diagnosis, prescription, follow-up date and cost the same day — while it's still accurate. That entry is what makes the next visit easy.

In HealthMemory, the assistant can summarise your last 90 days from your own entries, so the one-page summary is ready before you leave home.