I was raised by a single mother all of my life. I have met my father and he was in and out of my life but I did not retain the best relationship with him. Around January of 2013 I slumped into a deep depression. I was in a relationship which ended abruptly. And at the same time my mother was trying to get back with my father. I didn’t understand why she would want to be with someone who had once cheated on her and left her broken and alone before.

I began to sleep as much as I could in order to avoid the real world and others. I ignored my friends and family. I isolated myself as much as I could. It got to the point where I felt so alone and sad that I decided to run away from home. I completely cut off my relationship with my mother and even started missing school. I had been to therapy and counseling before after my father leaving so I decided that maybe it would be a good idea to go back talk to someone about what I was going through.

I personally believe that going to counseling was the best decision I ever made. I felt as though I could be honest about my feelings and not have to worry about hurting others. My therapist used a mix of psycho dynamics and cognitive therapy in our sessions. I had to realize that I was using a negative explanatory style for my problems. I blamed everything on myself and believed that it was going to last forever (just like Dr. Wede talked about in class). In addition to counseling I also went to my physician and talked to her about maybe starting an anti-depressant. She prescribed me a low dose of Celexa, a well known medicine in the families of Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Today I am feeling better than ever and have learned different ways to cope with negative events in life and that life does go on.

I found it to be very interesting when Dr. Wede was lecturing about how our mind can make up and add details to what we think are real memories. One of the earliest memories I have is from the first house my mother and I lived in. All I remember is being stuck in a hole in the wall and having to have a firefighter rescue me and pull me out. When I asked my mom about this memory she informed me that I was all wrong. What had really happened was my uncles friend had stopped by and he was a volunteer firefighter. There was a small door leading to a connecting bedroom that we rarely ever used. I had opened the door and his jacket was hanging up. I have no idea how my mind came up with this traumatic event that never happened. I do not personally remember the event, but I do remember the memories I have about it. I believe that this was an example of memory construction. I recalled my previous recall events and filled in missing pieces that I do not remember happening.  Another term that I related to from lecture was Eyewitness Memory. My grandmother had always told me this story ever since I was able to remember. My grandfather was sitting at the dinner table eating pork chops, while my unlucky self was eating chicken. I asked my grandfather if he was chicken as well and his reply was “Kinda”. I then proceeded to ask my grandmother and father for some “Kinda”.  From her telling me this story I believe I have created a false memory. 

This past weekend, amongst all of my “studying” and reviewing notes I found some time to relax and watch some TV. As I was flipping through the channels I came across the iconic movie, The Water Boy, starring Adam Sandler. One of my favorite scenes is when, Bobby, the main character, takes his first class in college. The professor asks if anyone knows what makes an alligator so ornery all the time. Bobby proceeds to answer with an old wives tale that his mother told him.

The real answer to the professor’s question is that the medulla oblongata and parts of the limbic system is where anger and temper problems stem from. The medulla oblongata is a part of the brain stem, the oldest part of the brain, and the first part to develop when a baby is in the womb. The brain stem is where survival tactics come from, the alligator has learned to be ill-tempered and mean in order to find food and survive in the wilderness.

Another place where aggression and anger comes from is the limbic system. At the end of the brainstem and next to the cerebrum the limbic system is contrived of the hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, and other parts. Here is where emotions such as fear and aggression come from, and also the drive for sex and food.

So unfortunately for Bobby Boucher, alligators are not abnormally angry because “they got all them teeth, and no toothbrush”.