Everyone has memories they prefer to forget, and they may know the triggers that bring them back. Bad memories can underlie many problems, from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to phobias. When an unwanted memory enters your mind, it is a natural human response to want to block it. More than 100 years ago, Sigmund Freud suggested that people have a defense mechanism they can use to help manage and prevent traumatic experiences and unwanted memories.
While more research is still needed, scientists are
beginning to understand how this might work. Neuroimaging studies have shown
which brain systems are involved in intentional forgetting, and studies have
shown that it is possible for people to consciously block memories from their
consciousness.
How To Forget
Unwanted Memories?
By investigating and studying the human mind, researchers can better understand the neuronal mechanisms that create and store memories.
While more
research is needed, neuroscientists and psychologists can use this information
to help people forget unwanted memories.
Some evidence supports the motivated forgetting
theory. This theory suggests that people can block out unpleasant, painful, or
traumatic memories if there is a motivation.
Substituting
memories
Some people may consider using thinking or memory
substitution strategies to help them suppress unwanted memories. This technique
suggests that people can substitute a negative memory by diverting their
consciousness to an alternative memory. Experts sometimes describe this
technique as similar to hitting the brake or steering wheel in a car to avoid a
hazard. A better understanding of how people can change an unwanted memory can
help people avoid reliving a traumatic event.
Changing Contexts
The mental context in which a person perceives an
event affects how the mind organizes memories of that event. Context can be
anything related to memory. Oftentimes, it can include sensory cues such as
smell or taste, the external environment, and the thoughts or feelings a person
experiences around the event. A 2021 study found that attributing a positive
meaning to a negative past experience can have a long-lasting effect. By
associating a positive experience with the memory, the person can change the
context of that event and evoke a positive emotion when remembering the event
in the future.
This strategy can work in the cognitive regulation
process. Changing how a person thinks about a situation can change how they
feel about it.
Additionally, a 2016 study suggests that changing
contextual information about an event makes it possible for a person to
deliberately forget an unwanted memory.
Weaking
Memories That Cause Phobias
One treatment option for people living with a phobia
may include exposure therapy. This involves exposing the individual to a
fearful situation in a safe environment to help them form a secure memory.
Similarly, a 2016 study shows that disrupting a memory
can reduce its power. In the study, the researchers exposed individuals with
arachnophobia to images of spiders and were exposed for longer periods of time
in subsequent sessions. In the last session, people's tendency to avoid spiders
decreased. Researchers suggest that the first exposure renders the memory
unstable, and longer exposure causes the person to register the memory in a
weaker form. By disturbing the memory, it was more difficult for the fear
element to return so easily.
Retrieval
practice
The
retrieval practice defines the strategy of recalling or retrieving information
from memory. The research states that this effective study method can help
people remember information. Some experts suggest that this technique can help
people replace unwanted memories.
Similar to
how people can forget information and update it with more relevant information,
such as when changing passwords or phone numbers, the undo app can help people
update their memories and
acknowledge new ideas. A 2020 study shows that the rollback app can help make
memory updating easier. However, while it can strengthen new memories and
reduce the intrusion of old memories, it may not suppress old memories.
Alternatively,
other research suggests that suppressing, preventing, or suppressing the
ability to recall memories may also help ward off unwanted memories. A 2022
study suggests that suppressing retrieval may help control intrusive memories
by weakening them and making them less vivid.
However,
more research is needed on the practice of recall to understand how it can help
forget unwanted memories.
How Do Memories Form
Neurons are nervous system cells that use electrical
impulses and chemical signals to transmit Trusted Source information throughout
the body. The brain contains roughly 86 billion neurons, and each can
potentially form and connect to other neurons, forming up to 1,000 trillion
connections.
Some
experts might define memory as how the mind interprets, stores, and retrieves
information. Memories develop when a person processes an event and cause
neurons to send signals to each other, creating a network of connections of
varying strength.
The more a
person dwells on memory, the stronger these neuronal connections will be.
Memories typically stay as long as a person revisits them. When a person revisits
a memory, they become resilient again. Each time a person remembers it, the
memory may change slightly and reset stronger and more vividly with each
recall.
Experts
call this strengthening process reconsolidation. This process can change
memories and make them more positive or negative.
The brain
can also process memories in different ways. Most scientists agree that there
are four different types of memory:
- working memory
- sensory memory
- short-term memory
- long-term memory
Different
areas of the brain specialize in the storage of different types of memories.
For instance, the hippocampus can process and retrieve declarative and spatial
memories. These refer to memories of facts and events or places and planning
routes. Additionally, the hippocampus helps turn short-term memories into
long-term memories.
Why Are Bad Memories So Vivid?
Many people
may find that bad experiences stand out more in their memory than good ones.
These memories can enter our consciousness even if we don't want to.
This may be
due to negativity bias, which refers to our brain placing more emphasis on
negative experiences. Negativity bias may be due to evolution, as it may have
been useful in helping our ancestors stay cautious in dangerous areas.
Similarly,
research indicates that negative emotions can help with the clarity of
memories. Other evidence also highlights that people are able to remember
emotional events more clearly, accurately, and for longer.
To complement cognitive approaches, some scientists
suggest using drugs to help remove bad memories or their fear-inducing aspect.
For instance,
D-cycloserine is an antibiotic and also increases the activity of glutamate, an
"stimulant" neurotransmitter that activates brain cells. Some
evidence from Trusted Source suggests that this drug may reduce fear responses
and promote extinction learning. This term refers to the gradual decrease in
response to a stimulus, such as a negative response to an unwanted memory.
Similarly,
other evidence shows that propranolol, a beta-blocker that helps the heart beat
slower and more regularly, may also help reduce long-term fear and promote
extinction learning. However, more research is needed to understand how to
safely and effectively use these drugs.
Ethical Issues
While it is
helpful to have strategies that can manipulate memory and help people forget
unwanted memories, these methods are not free from ethical issues.
People have
the potential to abuse these techniques and implant false memories or delete
important ones. People can use them to delete inappropriate incidents; others
may commit crimes and make witnesses forget what happened.
Frequently Asked Questions
Some common questions about unwanted memories may
include:
How Do I
Forget Something Traumatic?
It's not
always possible to forget unwanted memories, but people can use strategies to
help them cope with traumatic events. This may include memory suppression
techniques, identifying triggers, and contacting a mental health professional.
Why Do I
Only Remember Bad Memories From Childhood?
It is not
unusual for people to have trouble remembering their childhood. When they do,
it's also not uncommon to recall bad memories. There are many possible causes
for this, including the emotional significance of a bad memory and brooding
over unpleasant thoughts.
Summary
Many people
may experience unwanted memories after a traumatic event. By studying the human
mind, researchers are beginning to understand how the brain creates, stores,
and recalls memories.
A person
may not be able to forget an unwanted memory, but techniques are available to
help an individual manage negative events.
Typically,
these strategies involve disrupting the original memory and replacing it with a
positive meaning, downplaying its importance, replacing it with another memory,
or suppressing the memory itself.
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