Memory - How it works

Many survivors have difficulty understanding the nature of memory, why we forget and what causes us to remember. We often doubt what we remember or others doubt what we say. We think we must be crazy to even have certain thoughtss. We have nightmares that keep us awake and we try everything in our power to make the bad memories go away. We have heard stories of created memories and false memories and half-true memories. So how can we be sure that what we do remember is real? How do we trust ourselves and what is contained in our memory.

For example how many of you can remember the smell of fresh baked bread (olfactory memory) or the sound  of the wind in the trees (auditory memory). What about the softness of your favorite material (tactile memory) or the taste of your favorite foods (gustatory memory). These are all different types of memory. Your mind has the ability to recall information through all of your senses not just sight (visual memory). What about feelings? (emotional memory) How many remember feeling scared or happy, sad or proud. We can also remember what we were thinking or saying in a situation (cognitive memory) or what we were doing (behavioral memory). Those are memories too. And each of these types of memory is stored in your brain in a different place and in different ways.

Triggering one of the sensory memories will usually trigger the other parts of the memory. For example, as a kid I used to go to the fish market with my father on Saturday mornings. Now, whenever I think of cod, it triggers the olfactory memory and I smell cod (not a smell that I like). The smell of cod triggers the picture (visual memory)  of us walking into this store (behavioral memory) filled with huge tubs packed full of water and fish. I remember feeling sad (emotional memory) for the fish and wondering how they could breathe in there with so many other fish (cognitive memory). I also remember the sounds of the market (auditory) of people shouting and of fish splashing in the water. I also remember I hated going anywhere with my father because he was always yelling at us which created a lot of anxiety (emotional memory). I could go on but I think you get the point.

In most cases one piece of a memory will trigger the next piece and so on until you have the whole memory. Something that most people have experienced concerning memory is called "Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon". This occurs when you are trying to remember someone’s name. You can see their face and maybe even remember where you saw them last or what they were doing but you can’t remember the name. This is an excellent example of knowing that you know something but not being able to access the part of the memory you want even though other parts are recalled. The more you try to remember the harder and more frustrating it becomes. Most often if you forget about it and start talking about something else the name will pop into your head. 

Years ago, Dr. Penfield in Montreal discovered that the brain stored memories in different parts of the brain. In some of his research he was able to map out which parts of the brain were responsible for different kinds of memory. He discovered that when something happens to us we do not put the entire memory in one place in our brain and label it as "Memory of learning to ride bike", for example. Each part of the memory is stored in different places which actually means that there are many pathways to a memory. For example, when learning to ride a bike various senses are used to learn this skill.

Almost any one part of that memory has the power to trigger all the other parts or only a few or on rare occasions none.

This is what happens to a lot of abuse survivors. One part of the memory gets triggered and nothing else. For example I might smell cod and start feeling anxious and not know why because none of the rest of the memory gets triggered. So I am left feeling anxious and not understand why I am having that reaction.. By not being able to make the connection and not understanding the nature of memory I might start to believe that I have an anxiety disorder. By being able to connect the anxiety I can begin to connect the rest of the memory by trying to find the other parts of the memory (This should initially be done with a therapist who understands the nature of repressed memory especially if there is a history or suspicion of abuse).

When I went to college there was a candy factory across the street from the building where I had to go for some of my classes. One morning they were making something that smelled like coconut cream pie. A good memory of a special candy that I loved as a child. But it took me almost the whole semester to remember the connection to the candy. For a long time I went in to school every morning and I was the only one smelling coconut cream pie. The smell had connected with going to school. So I didn’t need the smell anymore to make the connection. School was enough to trigger the memory of the candy.

For those of us who have been abused it is very important to understand how memory works and how some of your dignosed problems may be related to memory.

I haven't have time to re-read this - but giving a Good Bttt Back Up.

Thank you for all your time & effort.

This is a very important topic, and I appreciate your.....your.....your.....

Gosh.....I forgot what I was going to say!

What was that you were saying SFJ

I'm glad you resurrected this thread LL. It's a shame it was lost. There was some good stuff in the other, so let's see if we can improve.

Triggering one of the sensory memories will usually trigger the other parts of the memory.

I think I experienced this with many of my abuse memories. To this day, there are a handful of songs from my childhood (Judy Garland singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas") and I am transported back to 1966 complete with footy pajamas. It's amazing how this process works. I don't think I'm special, I think this is the case for most people just as you point out.

One part of the memory gets triggered and nothing else.

Absolutely. For me it was a phrase, a threat someone made to me that sent me screaming into a corner. I do believe in this cascading of memories because I experienced it. One led to another and another, and soon the whole thing fell over like a house of cards.

Memory is a funny thing. What we choose to remember versus what we don't.

What's too painful to remember

We simply choose to forget

Barbra Streisand

Yup sometimes we choose and sometimes the choice is made for us. Death threats have a way of making us forget. If I forget what happened then I can forget the threat and then I can wake up in the morning and act like everything is normal

But it isn't and we don't know why.

The more I learn about the mind and memory the more it fascinates me. Forgetting can be such a gift sometimes. The downside is that if we forget what happens then we have no information to use to protect ourselves. The adage "Knowledge is power" is very true. 

We must not overlook the possibility of false memories.  In a number of cases involving children in preschool sexual abuse cases it was determined that preconditioning by parents and therapists created false memories of events that never occurred.  Young children are vulnerable in these situations.  Courts are cautious now to accept testimonies from very young children because of this. 

Therapists were often the greatest offenders.  They could easily implant false memories in their sessions.  Instead of trying to gain an unbiased opinion, they worked hard to condition the child to testify falsely.

Also, memory can be tainted by other factors.  I have a clear memory of hearing about the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941.  But since I was only six years old at the time, I'm really not sure whether this memory is a true one or one that was developed by listening to everyone's story about that Sunday morning. 

One has to be very careful when it comes to Memory...and how it works!

Mizpah we are in the middle of this discussion on another thread

Why is it that the issue of false memory has to come up all the time.

One of the problems I have found is that people discount many types of memory simply because they don't know there are different kinds. Hence they wind up with a diagnosis of anxiety or panic disorder when all they have is a part of a memory.

Now I am one who believes tha no one - not a person  and not a therapist should go looking for memories. if they are buried there is a reason for it. Leave it alone. Deal with the other problems in life. Once those other problems are dealth with the repressed stuff will surface when the person is ready for it

Hello mizpah,

Thanks for the warning - another one was given this morning by rem ----- and everytime a thread is posted about memory or repressed memory, a poster feels obligated to warn all others.

To be honest?  Anyone who has read both sides of the arguments on memory & repressed memory knows the arguments.  I've done some of my reading..........have you?

You do understand the different between memory - and therapists/doctors/parents/teachers who taint the memories of children (primarily in the 80's)?  Even in adults while in therapy?  Does this mean that there is no possibility of repressed memories in any person on earth......or that some forms of therapy interaction with sexual abuse survivors (or dealing with anyone in memory work) is unsuitable.

" I have a clear memory of hearing about the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941.  But since I was only six years old at the time, I'm really not sure whether this memory is a true one or one that was developed by listening to everyone's story about that Sunday morning. "

One fact is certain - the bombing of Pearl Harbor DID happen.  You were six - you were old enough to remember.  You could also have absorbed other people's speaking of this event.

But the fact remains - the bombing of Pearl Harbor DID happen. 

That's one of the over-riding themes in these threads - memory is not 100% accurate sometimes.  There is this thread and a 4/5 page thread by Big Tex with many posts about accuracy (or lack thereof) in memory.  Please take the time to read.

waiting

 

Hello Lee,

I am assuming that all the warnings get redundant?   

 

Your post was excellent waiting

Yeah I get tired of repeating it over nad over.

I know Mizpah probably hasn't read it before - maybe I'm just tired - sorry Miz - my frustration isn't at you - it is the attention false memory gets all the time  - it takes over preventing any decent discussion of memory repressed or otherwise from taking place

This was posted by Lady Lee in a thread I started on repressed memories. 

 

The false memory syndrome phenomenon was started by two parents who were accused of abuse by their daughter!!! The parents had a vested interest in destroying her credibility. And a lot of other perpetrators have jumped on the bandwagon.

WARNING the 3rd quote makes me ill



If you can get your hands on a copy of Betrayal Trauma: The logic of forgetting childhood abuse by Jennifer J. Freyd



on Page 198 she states

Quote:

In my own case I lost the ability to choose privacy. Approximately eight months after I first presented betrayal trauma theory, my parents, in conjuction with Ralph Underwager and others, formed the False Memory Syndrome Foundation (FMSF). Before the organization was formed, my mother, Pamela Freyd, had published an article presenting her version of family history under the name "Jane Doe" (Doe, 1991).

Freyd never went public with her accusations about her family. It was her mother that took a pre-emptive strike and published a sanitized version of what happened.



You might also want to look at page 38 where the above mentionned Underwager when asked "Is choosing paedophilia for you a responsible choice for the individual?" in an interview with Geraci in 1993 stated:

Quote:

Certainly it is responsible. What I have been struck by as I have come to know more about and understand people who choose paedophilia is that they let themselves be too much defined by other people. That is usally an essentially negative definition. Paedophiles spend a lot of time and energy defending their choice. I don't think a paedophile needs to do that. _Paedophiles can boldly and courageously affirm what they choose. They can say that what they want is to find the best way to love. I am also a theologian and as a theologian I believe it is God's will that there be closeness and intimacy, unity of the flesh, between people. A paedophile can say: "This closeness is possible for me whithin the choices I have made."

Another member of the advisory board of FMSF suggested that

Quote:

"It would be nice if someone could get some kind of big research grant to do a longitudinal study of, let's say, a hundred twelve-year-old boys in relationships with loving paedophiles. Whoever was doing the study would have to follow them at five-year intervals for twenty years.

Frankly I feel ill typing that. That they would even suggest allowing this abuse to go on so they could study it is beyond belief



These are the founders of the FMSF



The book by the way is a fascinating read with a lot of insight to repressed memory

It is interesting that at least the survivors who've posted here & on other threads are so careful to consider the birth of the False Memory Foundation - and the teaching of false memory (which wasn't even in any medical books before the Foundation founded it - and they aren't medical professionals.)

The people who caution us politely and carefully usually haven't done near the consideration of background for their cautions. But I thank them for the politeness.

One time when I was new to the net - I read where psych student was wanting experiences of sexual abuse for his term paper. I responded - stating that most memories were remembered after I became an adult. He immediately dismissed me saying that all repressed memories were false - and all professionals knew this.

That was it. I had no validity.

Actually, it was quite cruel of him. But I learned to be more careful......and I continued to read all kinds of literature on memory.

waiting

Why do think that is waiting?  Why do you think so many people easily buy into the False Memory Syndrome but have so many problems buying into the possibility of repressed memories?

I'm thinking that most people don't want to believe children are treated so hideously.  (I answered my question  --  just like a man)  If they acknowledge, then they must also acknowledge the totality of the experience, as well as the incredible number of women and men who went through the meat grinder.

Loftus is the person you are referring to that supports FMS.

She has dome some research on memory and concluded that all memory is not exactly accurate. The problem is that regular memory and traumatic memory are different. They are encoded into the brain differently. And they are retreived differently. The results of a study on non-tramatic memory as Loftus has done cannot be used to evaluate the veracity of traumatic memory.

Researchers know there is a difference between the two but Loftus alliance with FMS and the media ignore the differences and she puts her research out there and makes no mention of the differences and she should know better.

In traumatic memory details can be captured much more clearly than in regular memory. One of the reasons for this is the hyper sensitivity and focused attention of the person at the time. A couple of examples. The Kennedy assassination and 9-11. Most people went into a state of shock when they heard the news. They tuned in and intently listened to what was happening. These memories are classified "snapshot memories" They recall fine details very clearly. They don't fade or distort. When veterans come back from the war they often will have flashback memories. These too are captured in a state of high focussed attention and when they come back they are a clear and distortion free. No one questions these memories.

Another issue is that if a memory has been repressed then the person hasn't been talking about it with others or mulling it over in their own mind adding or distracting details to it. When it comes back it is as fresh as the day it happened. Time becomes distorted but not the memory. There was no opportunity for other information to get mixed up with it simply because it was repressed.

going for my coffee. stepping off my soapbox

Thanks Lee,

It was late last night - brain dead.  Loftus indeed.

A classic study of hers is usually cited to refute all repressed memory.  The little boy who is supposedly lost in the mall, if my memory recalls that.  Other students purposely told him false information, which he assimilated into his account.   It shows how facts can be distorted - and it's true.  Her study was directed at how normal memory works.  She also stated that this experiment couldn't be repeated with traumatic memories because someone would have to be traumatized - which isn't ethical.

Another point about the current academic teachings on memory:  A psychologist (French?  quite elderly now) was told as a child that he was kidnapped (with supporting details) - by his nanny?  Anyway.............he was told the story so often that he firmly believed it - even had pictures in his mind of the event.  He had conjured the memory for himself, with the help of others.

When he was an older, highly educated adult, he found total proof that his memory was absolutely false.  Thus providing evidence that "false memories" do exist. 

But both of these studies/events do NOT prove that repressed memory does NOT exist.....just that memory isn't infallible, ..................as all of us stated in the beginning.

I think the popular thinking is ................if repressed memories aren't infallible, they doesn't exist - which is ignorant.  If we took that line of thinking - then nothing would exist.

And your previous post wasn't on a soapbox - it's called discussion.  If someone doesn't want to read this - fine, don't.  If they want to enter in - fine, but be prepared to share & discuss.

Thank you very much for your continuing  sharing, education and insight for me & others.  I know I highly value it.

waiting

 

Lady Lee:

No, I had not read the other threads regarding this subject. (I'm rather new to this forum.) I was merely trying to show both sides of this issue.  I knew of a woman who had accused her father and grandfather of sexual abuse largely because a therapist "recovered" the "repressed memories" of the individual.  The father who was still alive at the time was devasted by the accusation.  It probably contributed to his early demise.  At the time, it was at the height of the "repressed memory" furor.  Many therapists were centering all their attention on this possiblity without considering other alternatives.  Many families falsely accused were destroyed during this time. I don't blame the patients as much as I do those therapists who seem to be following a psychological fad at that time.

Do I believe in repressed memories?  Yes, I do.  Trauma can bury true memories that can later be recovered. And sexual abuse is one of the worst traumas a child can experience. But I only wanted to caution the danger when dealing with this issue.  Sorry if I offended you in any way.  But it is always helpful to be reminded that there are two sides to every issue. 

waiting:

My point was that the memory of even true events can be tainted by other factors.  A child of six is very impressionable.  I think I have a clear memory of those events of December 7th.  But there still remains a possibility that I was influenced by the many tales told in our family of that Sunday.  We can often "see" through the eyes of others.  And in later life, it is difficult to separate the two.  That was my only point.

In the cases of the day care workers who were accused of sexual abuse of children, it caused a "feeding frenzy" among the reporters.  Strong emotions and feelings took over.  It destroyed the lives of the workers.  Along with the sexual abuse, the children accused them of ritualistic murders and other fantasies that only adults could conjure up.  Some of the workers were tried, found guilty and served sentences.  It was only after a sobering assessment of the whole situation that one realized that these accusations lacked real evidence.   Eventually, the significance of false memory and conditioning became understood. Most of the workers were exhonerated.  But by then, their reputations and lives were ruined. 

Tragedy stalks both sides of this issue.  Children experience it when they are sexually abused by adults or other children.  It leaves them with permenant scars all their lives.  But it also follows those who have been falsely accused.  Their lives are never the same.  Although not guilty, they live with the shame and suspicion the rest of their lives. 

sorry mizpah I really wasn't angry with you.

I agree that FMS does exist. But i suspect it is far more rare that the real incidents of abuse.

Memory is complicated. Repressed memory is more complicated. And traumatic memory is different than normal memory.