Why do we forget?

For as long as I can remember I have had the worst memory of all time. It sometimes really bothers me when my friends and I are discussing things that have happened during our childhood or in the past and most of my childhood is a blur I honestly cannot remember. Due to my inability to remember a lot from the past I decided to write this blog post on why we forget things. Our brains are overcrowded with massive amounts of memories that we have formed over a lifetime of experiences. A lot of my unclear memories are from my early childhood, which is most likely linked to childhood amnesia. Childhood amnesia is a term coined from Sigmund Freud the definition as defined on Google is, “The general inability of people to remember specific events from the early years of their lives. Typically from before the first three and sometimes four years of life. In studies, the average age of the earliest memory reported is about three-and-a-half years-old.” Infantile or childhood amnesia is characterized by the relative absence of memory before 3 or 4 years of age. However years after that are hard for my memory to recall as well. There are a couple of theories on why children develop amnesia for example, parts of the brain are somewhat undeveloped in children of such young ages, therefore the memories they make at these ages are not fervent enough to remain in the area of the brain that holds memories. You are more likely to remember something in your life if it had much importance, if not the brain will have a more difficult time remembering. Another reason for difficulty recalling memories from your earliest years has to do with if you are a focused individual and are able to organize your thoughts or if you are a rather stressed out anxious individual and have more trouble being efficient with detail. The level of stress you have is a huge restriction with your ability to remember things. In order to intensify your memories are by looking at old pictures and home videos, going back to old places you visited when you were a child, as well as reviewing old music you once listened to. Although it is not out of the ordinary for one not to recall their earlier memories in life it could also have to do with a past trauma experienced. Often traumas that occurred as a child limit memory, a reason for this is because of the unconscious mind trying to block out such incidences. The reason for your blain trying to forget these memories is because the person who has dealt with such occurrences may not be ready to handle what has previously happened to them. The more prepared the individual becomes to deal with the previous traumas may slowly begin to remember the experiences. I completely agree with this study because when I am informed of events that have occurred in my past they slowly reappear into my memory, vaguely yet surely, I believe this study is pretty accurate.

“Bustle.” Bustle. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.

“I Can’t Remember My Childhood.” Ask the Psychologist Online Licensed Psychologist RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.

“Unable To Fully Remember Childhood.” Psych Central.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.forgot-something

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