Rakshan Patnaik Week 14: The "First Memory" and Childhood Amnesia
The "First Memory" and Childhood Amnesia
So I was thinking about the “first memory.” In your childhood, almost everyone has a specific memory that they believe is their “awakening,” in a sense, or their first remembrance of an event in their life. Inspired by my sometimes-faulty memory, I wanted to know whether some people just did not have a “first memory,” or atleast had trouble remembering them. Upon further research, I found out that this concept has a term: “childhood amnesia,” which refers to the inability of adults in remembering their earliest childhood memories.
This ZME Science by Alexandru Micu says that most people can remember their earliest memories around the age of two and a half, according to recent research. Prior, scientists believed that the earliest age memories could be retrieved from was age three and a half. To be honest, I do not think I can remember anything from that young. Micu phrases my memories perfectly, “there but fuzzy.”
Additionally, another possible reason why some might not seem to know what exactly is their “first memory” is because of their age. As you get older, you gain a tendency to increase the age of your “first” memory. The article also states the opposite. In a research survey mentioned in the article, when asked of their “first” memory and probed for more, teenagers would often answer with memories that happened even up to a YEAR earlier than their initially-answered first memory.
Research has been done on childhood amnesia. The article discusses the difficulties of researching childhood amnesia, mainly because the “first” memory is not quantifiable nor is it recorded in physical, tangible evidence. Additionally, much research just states “it depends” based on the person.
Part of writing this article was inspired by my own faulty ability to remember my first memory. I know for certain that I have one, and when someone brings it up, I can remember the event fairly clearly, or atleast remember it happened. But literally as of writing this blog, I cannot remember what it was. This is likely a problem with me storing the memory. Maybe I did not find it important? Just kidding, but I find this phenomenon interesting and somewhat sad. What are your thoughts? Do you have a first memory?
Hi Rakshan, my first memory is also pretty fuzzy, but they become more apparent when I look at my childhood pictures. One day when I was cleaning my room, I came across a giant book filled with baby and childhood pictures. As I examined each one, I remembered that I dropped a wooden block on my brother's head one time. I do not know how this randomly popped in my head by I remembered having a mischievous grin on my face and how he ended up getting stitches. If you have trouble remembering experiences you had when you were a few years old, ask your parents for some pictures, and memories might start rushing in. I am not sure why, but talking about memory so extensively makes me feel old.
ReplyDeleteI have a first memory, but I am not exactly certain on whether it is an actual memory of mine, or if my parents have told me the story so my times that I came to believe that I actually remember that memory. I definitely wish I had more memories within my baby and toddler days, but I can totally see that being plausible in the near future with the advent of technology documenting basically every second of our lives and making it easier to remember memories via photos, videos, or text messages. I wonder if I could force myself to remember some of my early-childhood memories if I sit with myself long enough.
ReplyDeleteHello Rakshan,
ReplyDeleteI have never thought about my earliest memory, but looking back, I do not remember a specific memory that I felt to be my “awakening.” I think I will ask my brother what he believes his first memory was and write it down. Then, in a few years, I will ask him again and see if it changes or he becomes inconsistent in describing the memory. One thing I know is that the more I think about a memory, the more I begin “adding” to it. Sometimes I do not know which memories are real and which are made-up.
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ReplyDeleteHi Rakshan! I honestly cannot think of a first memory as my memories have now been altered by my parents' stories and the videos I watched of myself as a baby. I remember reading about childhood amnesia and it being a phenomenon where people are unable to remember anything that happened before the age of three. I am curious though, if people cannot remember anything before the age of three, then what about the things they have learned during that time? People still seem to remember how to walk, yet we learn that at around 12 months of age.
ReplyDeleteHi Rakshan! I could say I have a first memory right now with something specific in mind, but as time passes, deeper memories could also pop up. It is quite a dilemma that these things cannot be quantitatively or physically measured, but that also makes it all the more interesting.
ReplyDeleteHey Rakshan, I definitely have a lot of memories from early age but I don't think I'd be able to place my very first memory. This actually reminds me of an article I read once though about how a lot of early memories are not actually pure memories. A lot of times when our parents recount old stories to us about when we were really young children, our brain just automatically fills in the blanks and makes memories for us based on those stories we hear. I wonder then how accurate the study was because as you mentioned, there is no true way to gauge the validity of a memory. Even in teenage years and as adults, there have been several instances where other people have been able to manipulate or affect the memories of someone else.
ReplyDeleteHi Rakshan! There are definitely so many memories I've made in my early childhood that I remember and savor, but I don't think I could ever be able to remember my very first one. I feel like the first memory I could think isn't of myself as a baby and as time progresses, I feel as though the first memory off the top of my head that I can think about will change to a memory of a time I was a little older. It's really all interesting how the brain works because we would think memories are something we will never forget but obviously thats not the case.
ReplyDeleteHi Rakshan, I can’t really remember a specific first memory, especially since my parents have told me so many stories that it’s hard for me to differentiate. I also find this dopic fascinating because others have memories of when we were too young to have memories ourselves, which is strange and slightly irritating. We were there but we don’t have a memory of it. It may even be worse if you only remember a fraction of it and can’t quite put your finger on the whole event or memory. I can imagine why the existing research on childhood amnesia can feel so incomplete and inconclusive. Clearly, more research will be done in this specialized field in the future as we have much more to learn.
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