Remember verbal instructions

there is now beginning to be some recognition (at long last) that chronic trauma suffered by children causes physiological changes to the brain and therefore short term memory and planning problems as adults – as per post-traumatic stress disorder.
That causes problems for me – I’m damn intelligent and articulate, yet someone gives me more than two verbal instructions or ‘demands’ an answer from me and I’ve had it. I have no immediate recall under even slight pressure. I end up looking like an idiot cos how can I explain where it comes from? Grrrr.