Who here has times when their mind entertains false memories or it is hard to tell whether the memory is genuine or not? These stop short of delusions in that they are not held with unwavering conviction but can be persistent despite the ability to reality test.
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My life is deeply plagued by false memories. It’s sad when it’s a nice memory that turns out to be the false one. There were a few that were a result of some pretty strong hallucinations. I hallucinated a GREAT day with my younger brother once. We actually talked and I could smell his after shave and almost feel his light punch in the arm.
But he wasn’t there. He was far out of town that week. I have to stop myself even to this day when I want to mention, “Hey, you remember… that day you took off work just to hang out and we talked” (He would NEVER take a day off work, not even when his own son was injured at school) … It was the best day that never happened. It felt SO real and I think I want something like that so much … that is why my brain played that game.
I still don’t know which is worse, false memories or the all to vivid real ones.
Normal people do this a lot. 10 to 15% of are memories are false. According to a study. A lot of people say they remember being born because it makes them feel smarter or more spiritual. But according to psychology its impossible to remember anything for a long time until your long term memory has formed at about 5 years old.