Question for husbands - Do you easily forget what your wife told you? Why?

Question

I know I'm guilty - she says 'I told you this yesterday' but I honestly can't remember. I'm not ignoring her. Why does this happen? And no, I wasn't watching TV or on the computer! :)

Answer 1

Perhaps even though you "heard her" doesn't mean you were listening to her. There is a difference in hearing and listening. Sometimes in that situation you were thinking about something else when your wife "told" you. So even if you heard what she told you it really didn't sink in and therefore did not stay in that area of the brain we call memory.
In order to be a good listener we actually have to concentrate on what is being said. Unfortunately for many/most of us we have not learned good listening habits. When it comes to casual conversations at home many of us have a tendency to tune out at times, think about other things, or just not feel any interest in what is being said.
You don't have a mental defect you have a listening defect. You just need to teach yourself to concentrate more at home when your wife is talking to you.

Answer 2

I forget what my husband says to me all the time. Here's why: he prattles on endlessly about stuff that doesn't require me to pay close attention to then slips in stuff I *should* pay attention to. it drives me up the wall frankly but he can't help it. He wants to chat when he comes home and I am fine with that but I'm just not that fascinated by his choice of conversational topics like electronic devices and some article about the weather and etc but in the middle of that he'll choose to say something about his mother coming to visit and by then I'm already sitting there half-listening and saying "yeah, uh huh..."

He's learned to ask me a question about important stuff like "so will you be okay with my mother coming?" and I say something like "what? wait, when did you say she was coming?" and then I'll be more likely to remember it.

When your wife is talking, you are likely just not really paying close attention because a lot of what she is saying is not that interesting (to YOU) or needing your attention, so you turn off half your brain. Then you probably miss the important stuff. I'd tell you to try to listen better but I know its hard when the other person just needs a sounding board and you aren't really required to pay attention.

Tell her to always check details with you when it comes to important things. Explain that a lot of times you ARE listening, you just aren't letting it seep all the way in.

Answer 3

All the important stuff gets lost among all the unnecessary blabbering (no offense). Studies show their voices just fade into a background noise we don't really hear.

Whenever she needs to tell you something important, turn off all electronic devices and have her grab your nutsack with extreme prejudice.

then tap it into your phone or microsoft outlook (my phone works great - give things 24 hour, 2 hour, and 15 minute alerts) so you will not forget. because if you say "uh huh, yeah , uh huh i heard you, quit riding me about it" and then forget she will be steamed.

Answer 4

That used to happen to me too. I think that the problem was she was always nagging and nagging and nagging so I just naturally tuned her out. When she had something important to say I couldn't hear her because it all sounded the same. I always told her I forgot when actually I never heard her.

Answer 5

I forget about the unimportant stuff. I could care less about a sale at bath and body works or that Desperate Housewives new season just started.

Answer 6

I have the same problem . Its called C R S and it worst with age .If you dont know what C R S is its cant remember shiit lol

Answer 7

I do that sometimes, if I am deeply envolved in paper work or school work I hear someone talking and I just say "ok" or "uhuh" so I don't lose my train of thought. I don't do it to blow her off, it's a concentration thing. I think she knows I do this cause I usually get a reminder later.

Answer 8

Hmmmm Let's see Maybe because you were'nt listening!!!!! My husband does this to me all the time. I will tell him something and he swears I did'nt. It gets on my nerves. Would it be that hard to actually listen to what we are saying?

Answer 9

Then you are not a very good listener. Put your listening ears on and retain what you hear, it is just a matter of engaging your brain....

Answer 10

it happens to everyone. sometimes we just get sidetracked, my husband hardly remembers anything and neither do i sometimes. its life.