So, I'm 25, and make a pretty good living as a research scientist. I would say I have above average observation and association skills, and my long term memory is even pretty good.
For some reason, I have never had good short term memory. If I don't make a conscious effort to memorize something, it will vaporize almost immediately. Recently, it seems to have gotten worse. It's at the point now where I can be in the middle of a conversation, hear a loud noise, and instantly have absolutely no idea what I was just talking about. As you can imagine, this is super frustrating. I also have a hard time remembering people's names, but for some reason, if I put them in my phone, I remember them easily forever (I think that has something to do with seeing their name in writing).
I am not medicated, I don't drink or smoke anything, I sleep 6-8 hours a night, I've got an awesome job, and a great girlfriend. I've got a good set of friends I hang out with on a regular basis, and no childhood trauma etc that I am aware of. During my undergrad work, I talked with a doctor who told me I have some slight OCD and ADD issues, but nothing that required medication.
My memory is fine for certain tasks, I just don't understand how it can be so bad in other situations. A few years back I started carrying around a notebook to help me keep track of things I am thinking of, and it seems to help.
Am I just overreacting? Could it be some vitamin deficiency? Is there some magical food that will make it all better? Should I play more tetris or sudoku? I tend to already be pretty good at those card flipping memory games. I really don't want to medicate. Is this something I should see a doctor about? It would cost around 100 dollars, and they normally just try to sell me pills. I mostly just want to understand what's going on, if there is a name for this type of condition, and if I should be worried etc. If it's degenerative, I want to make sure I take care of it now etc.