I have noticed that I am forgetting my students, even relatively recent ones. It’s terribly embarrassing. It’s also professionally problematic because students need letters of reference, and when they approach me I all too often don’t recognize their names even one year later.
My dear friend Lindhi suggested a workaround. I need to let the students know that I’ve been through ECT, explain its upshot in terms of memory symptoms, and ask for both their understanding and their help.
In light of her suggestion, I have composed a letter which I’ll now share with every student, whether I remember them perfectly clearly or not.
Dear Student:
As I may have told you, I have recently undergone electroconvulsive therapy for my Bipolar Disorder.
One serious side effect of this treatment is that it seriously affects memory. In particular, I find it harder to recall personal interactions from the past. Happily, when I’m given reminders, the events come flooding back.
As a result, I am now asking everyone for whom I am writing a reference letter to provide me with:
- A list of the criteria for the award, program, or position in question
- A corresponding list of interactions we’ve had, or of things the student has done, which speak to those criteria.
It will also be helpful to have an in person or Zoom meeting to flesh out those reminders.
In addition, I would request the more usual things:
- A statement of purpose
- An informal transcript
- A sample of writing that the student did for me
- Any other documents which address the criteria noted above.
Let me thank you in advance for your understanding of my condition and the unusual request that it necessitates.
Yours truly, etc.