Why is my memory so bad at age 19-20?

It seems that you've answered your own question. You say,

"I don t sleep all that well due to stress, depression, and anxiety."

The four factors you mention here all play a part in poor memory and concentration.

At your age, doctors are often reluctant to prescribe medication for anxiety and depression, but there's a variety of things that can help.

Treatment usually begins by seeing the GP, who can give you a physical and a referral. I mention referral because just a bottle of pills is not a very good approach.

The things you'd want to tell the doctor are how you feel at different times of day and any symptoms you might have like change of appetite or sleep.

I often mention self-help methods. For one thing, it can take time for people to get the help they need, and this is especially true with people your age.

I can't tell you exactly what kind of help you need because there's no one size fits all solution. I can tell you though that there are healthy lifestyle methods that help with all kinds of depression.

The answer below, under DEPRESSION TREATMENTS, tells you about a variety of things.

/question/index?qid=20150...

Of all the basic lifestyle choices, the one with the best evidence is exercise, and you don't have to be an athlete to benefit from it. Research shows that when people suffering from depression go for long walks with friends, this is very therapeutic (source - the lifestyle-depression project at the University of Kansas). Things that take your mind off your problems for a while, like a funny movie, are helpful, as long as you don't let them dominate you.

Of all the traditional mind-body practices (meditation, etc.), the one with the best evidence for affecting mood disorders is yoga breathing. Slow breathing is used for treating anxiety, depression, panic disorder, and PTSD. It's safe and it doesn't take any training. You can find out about the work of psychiatrists Richard Brown and Patricia Gerbarg and PTSD therapist Emma Seppala in my recent answers.

Brown and Gerbarg recommend 20 min of slow breathing twice a day.

There's something very important to understand - the difference between motivation and energy.

People say, "I know there are things that will make me feel better - getting exercise, taking care of myself, straightening up the house and cleaning, but I'm depressed and I don't have the energy." The thing is, people do have energy when they're depressed - as much energy as they always do, but for some reason, the system is reluctant to let you use your energy.

Why is this? One theory - our prehistoric ancestors didn't get depressed, and we haven't evolved good instincts for dealing with depression.

We have to use psychology to coax energy out of our systems. Psychology has some nifty tricks.

Remember that you don't have to be an athlete to benefit from exercise. As little as 20 min brisk walking a day can help, and you can add to that gradually so long as you don't make yourself sick of exercise with too much and quit.

This is a motivation trick that's been used in behavior modification programs since the 1930s. If a task seems like it's too big, think of it as a series of tasks that you can take on one at a time, and start with something really, really easy. Cleaning - start by cleaning for 3 or 4 min and take a 5 min break.

A famous psychiatrist said that when we can't control our feelings we can still control our muscles. If you tell your arms and legs to get you to the bathroom for a shower, they will obey.

Try this when it seems that you're too tired to work. Lie on the couch, close your eyes, and get ready to work by imagining yourself working for 5 minutes.

You have have early onset Alzheimer's

It is good you are reaching out for help!

*****Natural Remedies to help with RELAXATION

**Chamomile

** Lavender

****Yoga

***Eating a healthy snack

like a handful of walnuts, or a piece of dark chocolate, along with a glass of water or a nice cup of hot tea Eat breakfast, every single day of the week.

****** Get outside

Being able to spend just 20 minutes outside can have lasting effects on reducing stress levels and increasing positive moods,

*****Breathing exercise for stress

Check out these links for some more tips that you might found helpful:

http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/Pages/tip-manage-...

http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/Pages/tip-just-br...

If you need help talking to counselor on the hotline or you can reach out through email, chat, or text, if you need more support! Take care and keep reaching out for help! Counselor KO

Take large amounts of vitamin B combination to alleviate the stress, help you sleep better and improve your memory.

Its you growing sleep debt that is the culprit. Seek a doctor's help before it gets any worse. It can also be the cause of your depression and anxiety. At your age you should be sleeping like a baby, but often just not giving yourself time to do so.