Posted by Mark H. on October 29, 2004, at 17:21:15
In reply to Re: What all this repeated info is really saying.... » Shadowplayers721, posted by fires on October 27, 2004, at 16:42:11
> > There is no such thing as repressed memories (science based evidence of).
Hi Fires,
When I was attending university (almost 30 years ago), a group of us ate our meals together every day in the main dining hall and became very close over the course of the academic year.
At the end of the spring quarter, we were about to have our last meal together for the year. Some of these dear friends were returning to their families and careers in other states, and we'd literally never see one another again.
As I was walking to the dining hall that day, carrying my Rolleiflex on a tripod to take a group picture of us all, a driver turned without looking into the crosswalk and I wound up sprawled across the hood of her car.
We had a nice lunch together and exchanged the expected pleasantries, but only towards the end of our meal (perhaps two hours later) did I suddenly remember that I had been hit by a car! Apparently I was so intent on the importance of this time with my friends that I had completely repressed my memory of the accident until I felt safe enough to allow it to emerge. (And no, I hadn't hit my head.)
Likewise, a friend of mine killed himself in late 1975, and a year or so later the woman he had been living with told a mutual friend of ours that I was pretending I didn't know who she was. Yet I had (and still have) absolutely no recollection of ever having met her, even though she knew details about me that suggested otherwise. Did the trauma of my friend's death cause me to repress all memory of her?
I had a friend whose partner was killed in a small plane crash in Los Angeles. She remembers getting the message from the Sheriff's office, and the next thing she remembers is that it was several hours later, and she was sitting in her car somewhere she had never been before, sobbing uncontrollably. She had no idea where she was or how she got there.
I have read a little about "false memories" and the problems created by them, but I have also witnessed verifiable repression of memory in myself and others, especially around traumatic events. So I have to think there is truth in both, and that we need to be careful not to make generalizations.Best wishes,
Mark H.
poster:Mark H.
thread:406646
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20041026/msgs/408847.html