Avish Week 16 - Living in My Dream State
Have you ever had a dream that had you reliving an old memory you thought you forgot, or maybe an embarrassing interaction? I definitely have. Sometimes it's the memory of an older friend who moved away over a decade ago, other times it’s something less pleasant. In my dreams, I often revisit moments I regret, whether they be something I wish I had never said or a decision that I should have made differently.
Many studies have conducted research on this phenomenon, and scholars have found that the cause for this connection between memories and dreams is a process that occurs when one sleeps. Recent memories are moved from short term to long term memory areas, and in this process, memories in the long term storage area can sometimes appear in dreams. However, the memories that appear are not full and accurate memories, but instead they are fragments and elements of real memories that have the same basic concept. The rest of the information is filled in by the brain and what we experience is a hybrid between a dream and a memory.
So maybe that friend from 10 years ago who moved away was really a bit younger than me, and maybe there was nothing I could have done to create a better outcome in the situation that I regret. Despite what the reality may be, dreams create a new version of our memories, and they allow us to relive parts of the past, possibly allowing us to create a better future.
Hey Avish. I’ve certainly had dreams where I’ve revisited events or locations in the past, where people in my contemporary life exist in past scenarios. It’s really interesting to experience. I find that the events or times I revisit in my dreams happen to be memorable or cherished moments in my life which bring me happiness, and that makes me wonder if as we get older we’ll begin to revisit moments that are happening right now. Especially with how busy life can get, I wonder if our teenage years will be as memorable and “dream worthy” as the years in our childhood.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your blog for delving into dreams, something that we hardly pay attention to these days. I also like how you split your blog into a sandwich format, where your last paragraph revisits content mentioned in the first paragraph, with the majority of the meat and bones of the information being in the middle. I really enjoyed being able to read your blogs this year!
Hi Avish! I've always found dreams so peculiar and I liked how you weaved it into this blog in relation to memories. I have heard of that phenomenon that you were talking about with every dream we have taking a portion of a memory marinating in our long term memory and retelling it. But, I think this brings up the question of how and why these dreams are a modified version of these memories in the first place. Are we missing that person? Is our brain trying to make us feel a certain way? Is there something else completely unrelated that is causing this? I suppose that to some extent, these are the array of questions we all ask ourselves--well, us and hundreds of scientists who have been asking the same. I digress, but I think that your idea about of your missing your friend probably rings the truest. Something is happening in our life or similar events/feelings to some extent that cause familiar memories (where these were mirrored) to break out of our subconscious. That's just my theory, anyway. I liked the way you structured this piece and enjoyed reading your work this semester! Happy Summer!
ReplyDeleteHi Avish! I found it really interesting to learn about the relationship between memories and dreams. As someone who has a terrible memory I have always used pictures in order to preserve certain memories. You mentioned a phenomenon that occurs to you where you relive old memories. I resonated with this a lot. My dreams often manifest as past memories. Similar to you, it's never the most pleasant experience. I dream of embarrassing moments or experiences that were scary or shocking. After reading your blog it makes a lot more sense why I often dream of these things. The connection between long-term memories and dreaming is the root cause as to why I always dream of things like that. Thank you for your blog. It was very educational. Hope you have a good summer!
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