We all know that memories can't be changed, especially traumatic memories. .But many studies suggest that this has changed and it would help many people, especially drug addicts, soldiers and people with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Memory Reconsolidation (MR) is the process of reminding a situation and make it better and stronger to lessen painful memoriesm. They are strengthened by taking them from the long-term memory storage and re activated.
Heroin addicts' craving can be prevented from relapsing by using another drugs and a simple Pavlovian conditioning and other unpleasant things. Despite of this, the process seems to work, since the cravings are reduced given that the impact of specific thoughts and memories are changed.
MR is strongly related to NLP (Neuro.linguistic programming), the program that is a big business, but people learn how to make an experience bigger, stronger and brighter so it would have a better impact, thus the memories would not have the traumatic and unpleasant effect on them.
Both processes work and people is able to reduce the impact of traumas, phobias, and addiction, but deleting or manipulating memories (and our way to face problems and experiences) would be deleting a part of or personality. Isn't it all the experiences, good and bad, makes us the way we are?
Isn't MR or NLP erasing our human individuality by creating new experiences to eliminate the others?
What if this is used to manipulate people to do evil things? What if it makes us weaker and more likely to be affected by all the new bad experiences.
I liked reading your post! It’s such an interesting topic—seriously. For some inexplicable reason, the movie Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind came immediately to my mind when I read the tittle of your entry. This is one of my favorite movies, because it portrays a romantic story, in which the leading characters try to forget to each other, using a kind of treatment that is supposed to help them to reach their objective. Have you watched this movie?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I know people who have followed the treatment of Neurolinguistic Programming. I’ve been told it’s very useful and effective, because the person really feels that has recovering his/her energy in such a special way that they feel completely healed. For that reason, I strongly recommend this kind of treatment for those people who might feel deeply hurt or with a depression they consider they are not able to deal with.
It’s not about pretending to forget what you lived or experienced, because we are supposed to learn from these experiences, it’s—as you mentioned—a way to reduce the impact of these events in our lives, changing our perspective about the problem, and assimilating the consequences of this one with peace and maturity.
I'm glad you liked the topic, Sergio. And yes, I have seen the movie. It also came to my mind when I was doing the research for this entry. As you said, it is not about forgetting a certain experience or situation, it is about changing the impact of it and overcome any obstacle that prevent us from being mentally healthy. I also read that some of these procedures are done with drugs in mental facilities to people with advanced conditions. But that makes me think of the side effects, do those people come back to normal? or they become even more delusional and create their own reality?
DeleteHello guys, once I’d read the entry the same film come to my mind. Memory manipulation is a serious issue that wouldn’t be light taken. To every procedure with memory like hypnosis, drugs or psychological treatment, there is a chance that patients may have a relapse which within time could make them get worst and perhaps commit an involuntary crime or kill yourself because a mental disorder. I personally think that the best way to overcome problems or situation is the self- therapy or cooperative-therapy; people is able to cure themselves or between them (unless you suffer for a mental disease) I say it from my own experience.
ReplyDeleteThis scares me a little bit. I think the risks of deleting some information from your brain forever can have secondary effects. I mean do you know if you can get some other memories deleted by accident? call me old fashion, but I think this should be used with a lot precautions.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it was already used by a secret identity to erase some information they wouldn't like to be known. we can actually speculate alot about this topic. Very interesting indeed.
I wouldn't be surprised if this has been used for evil purposes.
DeleteManipulation (of any kind) is a scary word when it is associated to science. Gene manipulation and memory manipulation are good examples of something that may look good at the beginning, but it may be used for other intentions later. Regarding psychological issues, I am very old-fashioned (just as Laura) because I believe that you have to deal with your own problems. It is a painful process that requires a lot of determination and courage, but the results are meaningful in the patient’s perspective. This advancement seems to be a panacea rather than a real treatment.
ReplyDeleteI don`t think that this is scaring. Of course it depends on the context where it is used, for example helping people to overcome drug addcition as you just mentioned above.
ReplyDeleteLike Sergio and Felipe, I also thought about Jim Carry`s movie. And in that respect, why don`t use it to erase memories that are unpleasent to recall? Science is moving forwards, we should do the same.
As Sergio and Felipe, the movie came to my mind immediately. At some point, I believe that there is a necessity for people who want to erase some memories. We all have something in our mind that we would like to erase. Nevertheless, those memories are part of our lives and without them, we would not be who we are now.
ReplyDeleteI did not know about this program, I thought that this was real just in a fantasy world, but now I understand that this could really happen. Thanks Loreto, it is a very interesting topic.
Answering your question, I do think that people might use it to manipulate others to do bad things. There are so discoveries now that can change the world in a wrong way. We should be careful with this, because we do not know when these things can be use against us.
As Sergio, Felipe and Cata the same move came to my mind too. when I was 15 or 18 years old I REALLY wanted that movie to be true in order to erase a particular person of my mind and life. But now that I am older I can realize that all the things that have happened in my life are the bricks of what and how I am now. And yes, I think that this can be used to make us do bad things and we would be one step forward to technology to control us.
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