Repressed memory

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A repressed memory, according to some theories of psychology, is a memory (often traumatic) of an event or environment which is stored by the unconscious mind but outside the awareness of the conscious mind. Some theorize that these memories may be recovered (that is, integrated into consciousness) years or decades after the event, often via therapy. The phenomenon of memory repression is sometimes referred to as "traumatic amnesia".

1 Do repressed memories actually exist?
2 Body Memory
3 Famous trials involving repressed/recovered memories
4 Repressed memories in popular entertainment
5 Notes
6 See also
7 External links

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Do repressed memories actually exist?

There currently exists a great controversy among psychologists as to whether repressed memories actually exist, and even more controversy over whether recovering repressed memories is a legitimate phenomenon. This is particularly important as many controversial criminal cases have been based on witness testimony of recovered repressed memories, often of alleged childhood sexual abuse.

One popular theory on how repression works is that traumatic memories are stored scattered about in the amygdala and hippocampus but not integrated into the neocortex. Also, it could be possible the right brain stores the memory but does not communicate it to the verbal left brain. But evidence suggesting repression can sometimes be a continual active effort by the unconscious which can be dropped at a moments notice should the unconscious decide to. For example, one possibility might be the anterior cingular actively inhibits the memory from reaching consciousness.

On the other hand, skeptics of theories of repressed memory suggest that the supposedly "recovered" memories are actually false memories, often based on subtle suggestions by the questioner. Recent research demonstrating the relative ease of deliberately implanting false memories has been cited as evidence for this hypothesis. Hundreds of people who went through therapy and were convinced that they had been abused by their family members have recanted and no longer believe they were abused. More information can be found at the website for the False Memory Syndrome: http://www.fmsfonline.org/

The Courage to Heal is a book that actively encourages memory recovery techniques to uncover hidden repressed memories of childhood abuse. It is controversial in that the authors have no psychological training, and base their opinions on their own experiences, rather than studies of the population at large.

A common explanation among proponents of the existence of repression for the widespread skepticism and denial is that the skeptics are denying their own traumatic experiences and/or they are perpetrators themselves.

False memories, confabulations and screen memories can be implanted/confabulated, as for example, in past life regression and alien abductions.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists summarized their position as:

"Psychiatrists are advised to avoid engaging in any "memory recovery techniques" which are based upon the expectation of past sexual abuse of which the patient has no memory. Such...techniques may include drug-mediated interviews ["truth serum"], hypnosis, regression therapies, guided imagery, "body memories," literal dream interpretation, and journaling. There is no evidence that the use of consciousness-altering techniques, such as drug-mediated interviews or hypnosis, can reveal or accurately elaborate factual information about any past experiences, including sexual abuse."

The recovered memory therapy (RMT) movement peaked in the mid-1990s with tens of thousands of patients annually reporting new so-called recovered memories. Thousands of patients’ families were torn asunder by allegations of abuse produced in therapy. The recovered memory movement was ultimately decimated by a wave of successful malpractice lawsuits. The first multi-million dollar verdict against a recovered memory therapist was the 1995 case of Hamanne v. Humenansky case in the U.S. <ref> Associated Press, Doctor Loses ($2.5 Million) False-memory Suit, Chicago Tribune, Wed. Aug. 2, 1995, Sec. 1, pg. 12.</ref> The final crushing blow to the RMT movement came in 1997 with a $10.6 million legal award to the Burgus family. <ref>Belluck, P. Memory Therapy Leads to a Lawsuit and Big Settlement [$10.6 Million], The New York Times, Page 1, Column 1, Nov. 6, 1997.</ref> "The next thing I think there will be is legislation to require informed consent from psychiatric patients for such so-called 'treatments'," said Dr. R. Christopher Barden, a psychologist and lawyer [for the plaintiff], "This (case) is the death knell for recovered memory therapy."

World-wide attention on the Burgus case exposed the glaring scientific, methodological and ethical errors inherent in recovered memory therapy and the underlying theory of so-called repressed memories. Following a series of high profile litigation losses, many of the professional leaders of the RMT movement suffered licensing prosecutions, license revocations, disciplinary actions and even criminal prosecutions. The leading journal in the field, Dissociation, ceased publication. By 2000, the "memory wars" were largely over and it is rare in 2005 to find a therapist who will admit conducting any form of therapy to recover so-called repressed memories. International experts in memory, research procedures and ethics continue to document how and why such an odd form of quackery became so widespread. The definitive work on the subject to date is "Remembering Trauma" by Prof. Richard McNally, Harvard University Press (2003). Prof. McNally summaries the relevant scientific research and concludes that the notion of repressed memory is nothing more than psychiatric "folklore".

Critics of recovered memory therapy, like Richard Ofshe and Ethan Watters (Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, And Sexual Hysteria), view the practice of "recovering" memories as fraudulent and dangerous. They base this assertion on several claims:

Traumatic experiences which obviously have happened, such as war time experiences, are not "repressed"—they are either forgotten or remembered clearly in spite of attempts to suppress them.
The "memories" recovered in RMT are highly detailed. According to RMT literature, the human brain stores very vivid memories which can be recalled in detail, like a video tape. This belief contradicts virtually all research on the way memories work.
The patient is given very extensive lists of "symptoms" including sleeplessness, headaches, the feeling of being different from others etc. If several of these symptoms are found, the therapist suggests to the patient that they were probably sexually abused. If the patient denies this, they are "in denial" and require more extensive therapy. This is a form of catch-22.
During the questioning, patients are openly encouraged to ignore their own feelings and memories and to assume that the abuse has happened. They then explore together with this therapist, over a prolonged period of many months or even years, how the abuse happened. The possibility that the abuse has not happened at all is usually not considered.

According to these critics, RMT techniques used for "reincarnation therapy" or "alien abduction therapy" are comparable to the techniques used in Satanic Ritual Abuse therapy. To verify the false memory hypothesis, researchers like Elizabeth Loftus have successfully produced false memories of various childhood incidents in test subjects. This is viewed as further evidence that comprehensive false memories can be produced in therapy.

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Body Memory

A form of repressed memory is Body memory. Body memory is a claim that the body itself (rather than the brain) remembers something - typically abuse. This is characterised by a pain in a body part where there appears to be no present day physical reason for the pain, so this is seen as evidence of the body remembering a past pain, similar to phantom limb syndrome.

There is no scientific evidence to support the theory of Body memory, although it is unlikely that there have been any serious studies on the issue.

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Famous trials involving repressed/recovered memories

George Franklin, charge: murder, accuser: Eileen, daughter crime: 1969, convicted 1995 time in jail: 6 years, duration of memory suppression: 20 years
accuser: Nicole Taus, charge: abuse, duration of suppression: 11 years
In some of the cases of Catholic priests accused of fondling or sexually assaulting juvenile-turned-adult parishioners.

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Repressed memories in popular entertainment

Repressed memories were a frequent topic among talk-show hosts in the 1990's .

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Repressed memories have frequently been portrayed in popular entertainment, especially as a plot device.

The film Tommy: the title character is coerced into forgetting that he has witnessed the murder of his father.
The film Nurse Betty: Betty also witnesses a murder and as a result of the trauma forgets her entire reality for a time, deluded into being a character in her favourite soap opera.
The video game Final Fantasy VII: the protagonist Cloud Strife carries false memories of his service in SOLDIER, the real memories suppressed after his Mako treatment.
The anime/manga Elfen Lied: one of the main characters, Kouta, suppressed the majority of his childhood after seeing his little sister being murdered by the protagonist Lucy.
The anime/manga Fruits Basket: the supporting character, Hatori Sohma had to surpress the memories of his love, Kana after Akito Sohma blinded Hatori's left eye by throwing a vase at him and blamed hatori's injury on Kana. The guilt from the accident drove her into madness and Hatori was forced to surpress her memories so that she could once again smile. Hatori has also had to surpress the memories of Yuki Sohma's friends, and Momiji Sohma's mother.