Traumatic events can cause anxiety and depression triggered by "repressed memories." Researchers argue that the memories that are returned are sometimes just pseudo memories. However, suppressed memories can be restored by undergoing therapy, triggering memories, or stopping dissociative thought patterns.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Undergoing Therapy
Step 1. Consult a therapist with experience dealing with trauma
Therapists who specialize in dealing with trauma can help people who have experienced traumatic events, for example, by restoring suppressed memories. He can determine whether or not the memory is restored. Even if you forget what happened, a therapist can help you work through your problems and lead a more enjoyable life.
- If you have experienced a traumatic event, consulting an inexperienced therapist can make matters worse. Before consulting, seek information about the therapist, such as educational background, special training, and work experience to ensure he or she is competent as a professional therapist.
- Find the right therapist by reading their educational background, work experience, and therapeutic methods on their website.
Step 2. Explain to the therapist that you are experiencing problems that are most likely due to memory
Determine why you need to remember what happened. Explain why you suspect that you are experiencing a suppressed memory and what happened at that time. Describe mental and emotional health disorders triggered by the memory. Also tell us what happened to you at that time.
- The therapist needs to know the changes you want. When doing therapy, he is able to help you make changes even though the memory cannot be completely restored.
- For example, you may experience anxiety that is most likely related to a bad experience as a child. Tell your therapist, "I can't calm down, I'm often irritated, and nervous because I'm always feeling anxious. It's possible that I experienced this because of an incident that happened when I was staying at my grandparents' house when I was 7 years old."
Step 3. Undergo special trauma therapy administered verbally to restore suppressed memories
Although the progress is slower, sharing useful experiences and feelings brings out the memories that are buried in the mind. The therapist will listen as you talk about the problems you are experiencing and the events you have experienced. In addition, he may ask you questions. During therapy, memories will appear as soon as you are ready to remember them.
- When undergoing verbal therapy, a therapist is available to help if you are recalling a traumatic experience while restoring repressed memories so that you feel safe.
- Verbal therapy is the safest and most effective way to restore repressed memories so that it is the best way to restore memories.
Step 4. Undergo cognitive behavioral therapy to develop emotional coping skills
The therapist can help you identify problematic thought patterns or behaviors and explain how to change them to form positive thought patterns and behaviors. This way, you can deal with problems triggered by suppressed memories and remember events that have happened in the past.
- Know that emotional disturbances can be overcome even if you don't remember what happened.
- For example, the therapist may be able to explain how to control rising anger or use positive affirmations to deal with depression.
Step 5. Focus your mind on the things that keep you healthy
Traumatic events are hard to forget, but you deserve to live a happy life. Realize that remembering painful experiences makes you suffer more. So don't let past events keep you trapped in memories of the past. Restoring suppressed memories is useful if it can help you solve the problem.
- Work toward the goals you set with the therapist to keep you progressing.
- Get in the habit of focusing your mind as you go about your daily life so that you're always aware of what's going on.
- Don't guess what happened in the past while bringing back suppressed memories. Besides not necessarily true, this method can be self-defeating, rather than beneficial.
Method 2 of 3: Provoking Repressed Memories
Step 1. Keep a diary as a means of restoring memory
Thinking about whether or not you are experiencing a repressed memory makes you miserable and depressed. When you keep a diary, you can express your feelings, find out the causes of the emotions you are feeling, and bring back memories. You will feel calm after pouring the emotional burden down on a piece of paper. Write down what you are going through right now and everything you remember about the past. As soon as the memory returns, write it down immediately so you don't forget.
- You can build your memory by reading your diary.
- Writing can free you from the feelings and thoughts that are buried in your memory.
Step 2. Retrieve memories using sensory triggers
Repressed memories may be related to certain states of mind. You can re-experience the moment by activating your senses, although this may make you suffer. The senses of sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste associated with a traumatic experience can provoke repressed memories. However, don't do this step alone, because the memories that come back can trigger painful emotions or traumatize you again.
- For example, you want to remember an event that happened while you were at a party. For that, wear the clothes you were wearing at the time, listen to the song that was playing at the party, see the collection of photos made during the party, and eat the food that was served at the time.
- If you're not sure where to start, look for memory gaps or moments you can't remember. For example, many events that you remember when you were 6 and 8 years old, but you forget everything that happened when you were 7 years old. This is called a memory gap. Try to provoke memories starting from your life when you were 7 years old.
- Ask a therapist for help if you want to provoke a repressed memory.
Step 3. Imagine the location of the traumatic experience if possible
Depending on what you're going through, memories can come back by imagining you're at the scene. However, this method may frighten you. In addition, you need another trigger in order to relive the events of the moment to bring back memories.
- Do not do this step alone because you will remember the painful experience. Ask a therapist or supportive person to accompany you.
- Avoid situations that are physically and mentally dangerous. Don't come back to a location that has traumatized you.
- For example, if you want to do a retrospective to bring back lost memories of your childhood, visit your hometown. To provoke memories, use smells that you smelled often at the time, bring toys from your childhood, and look at photos of you as a child.
Step 4. Use hypnosis with caution
Maybe you are interested in undergoing hypnosis because it can restore memories easily. Hypnosis alters the state of consciousness so that you can access a wide variety of memories and restore memories gradually or all at once. However, hypnosis makes it easy for you to believe what is being said or suggestions given even if they are not true. Sometimes, this method forms false memories that are just as painful as true memories.
- Some mental health experts suggest that you undergo hypnosis therapy to restore suppressed memories. However, scientists warn that false memories and true memories are difficult to distinguish when undergoing hypnosis.
- If you want to undergo hypnosis, find a licensed hypnotherapist who has experience helping traumatized people. Make sure you consult with a therapist or counselor who has studied hypnotherapy.
- Find out various questions or suggestions that the hypnotherapist may ask you so that you don't lead to certain memories. Have the therapist record the entire hypnosis session so you know everything he or she says.
Step 5. Focus on your feelings
Maybe you want to bring back a repressed memory to relieve painful emotions or improve mental health. The good news is that you can deal with negative emotions without remembering what happened. You just need to admit that you are experiencing negative emotions because of past experiences. Forcing repressed memories to be brought back is far more dangerous than forgetting them. Instead, learn new methods of dealing with negative emotions so you can apply them to your everyday life. Also, talk to a therapist about how to control your thoughts and change your behavior.
- For example, you don't like being hugged. You don't need to find out the reason for this. Tell yourself that you don't like being cuddled and that you want to get over it.
- Consult with a therapist to determine whether or not your mental health is problematic due to suppressed memory. He or she can help you overcome the trauma by doing cognitive behavioral therapy to make your life more enjoyable.
Method 3 of 3: Breaking Dissociative Mindsets
Step 1. Know the common symptoms of people with dissociative disorders
When experiencing a bad event, the mind will block the event by dissociating. Repressed memories occur when you try to forget or distance yourself from the traumatic event. People who use dissociation mechanisms to cope with painful experiences tend to separate themselves in other ways. You can restore memory by breaking dissociative thought patterns. Common symptoms of people with dissociative disorders:
- The mind is blank or wandering.
- Experience the sensation as if your life is not real.
- Feeling separated from the people around you, the environment, and/or yourself.
- Loss of emotion.
- Feeling neglected or abandoned.
- Eyes blank or shifting.
- Feel like you are viewing your life as a spectator.
- Drowsy when you have to do something.
- Slow to react to events that you experience.
- Can't explain how you feel.
Step 2. Focus your mind on the present by activating your five senses
You will feel calm if you are able to focus your mind on the present by controlling yourself. Focusing on the five senses enables you to accept yourself where you are. This step helps you stop dissociation and focus on the present. If you can't activate all of your senses, you can stop dissociative thought patterns using just one of the senses according to these instructions:
- Viewers: describe your location, name a blue object around you, look for a specific object, name an interesting thing you saw.
- Listener: explain to yourself verbally what is going on right now, listen to a song, mention the sound you hear.
- Touch: pay attention to the physical sensations you feel, observe the sensations of the soles of your feet hitting the floor, touch textured objects in the room.
- Smell: inhale and determine the source of the smell or inhale the aroma of an essential oil.
- Taste: eat a small snack or stick out your tongue to taste the air.
Step 3. Practice focusing so you can live life in the present.
A focused mind means living in the moment. Dissociation separates you from the present, but by focusing your attention, you understand how to live life in the present. Apply the following instructions so you can focus.
- Meditate for at least 10 minutes a day while sitting quietly and focusing on your breath. You can meditate using a guide. To do this, download a free meditation-guided app, such as Headspace, Calm, or Insight Timer.
- Walk outdoors while activating the senses.
- Eat food alone in silence. Focus on each time you chew food, noticing its taste, aroma, and how you feel in your mouth.
- Breathe while counting.
- Focus on a specific activity, such as knitting, painting, carving wood, or embroidering cross stitch.
Step 4. Consult a mental health professional
An effective way to deal with dissociative disorders is to undergo cognitive or dialectical behavioral therapy. A therapist can help you restore memories, deal with traumatic experiences by finding out the causes of dissociative disorders, and dealing with inner conflicts triggered by dissociative disorders.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy trains you to think and behave in new ways. While in therapy, you learn to deal with negative emotions in appropriate ways and change the thoughts or behaviors that trigger the problem.
- Dialectical behavior therapy trains you to control your emotions, be aware of the present, and prevent conflict in relationships.
Tips
- Don't assume that you have a suppressed memory if you have an emotional disorder, such as depression, anxiety, or anger. Many things cause the disorder and are not necessarily related to trauma.
- When restoring a suppressed memory, usually the memory returns at once if it can still be restored. If you find yourself stringing together pieces of memory, don't force yourself to reconnect the broken memories to prevent false memories from appearing.
