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You are what You Remember

by: PatrickGlancy
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You have good memories that can make you feel good to think about as well as bad memories that can make you feel bad. Everyone has these memories and everyone's memories affect how they live.

Our mind stores all of our memories and they're always active, just not in a way our conscious mind is aware of. Because of this, we can constantly be affected by the emotions in our memories. Even memories you don't think you 'remember'.

Memories with traumatic emotions can cause disorders like post-traumatic stress and depression. They can also cause other disruptions in your life like problems with anger, fears, and stress.

While medication is commonly used for these issues, it only attempts to dampen the symptoms rather than treat the cause. The issue rarely goes away with this type of treatment.

The key to long term help with these issues would appear to be the emotional association with the memory. What would happen if that association could be erased, reduced or even changed?

There is research using a medication called propranolol that can be used as an "amnesia drug". The purpose is to directly disrupt the connection between our memories and the emotions they are associated with.

This study, in the Journal of Psychiatric Research, talks about psychiatrists at McGill University and Harvard University using the amnesia drug to disrupt the memories of trauma victims. The drug reduces the emotional part of the memory while leaving the conscious part of the memory.

People can still remember what happened, but get a sense of distance or detachment from the memory. How permanent this process is and any potential side effects are not discussed.

There are other ways to reduce and change the emotion connected to memories. Other processes that are well tested, well established and without side-effects.

In particular, hypnosis. Hypnosis seems better suited for this process since, when in hypnosis, you are using the emotional part of your mind. This is very evident when working with traumatic memories from childhood. When re-experiencing memories from childhood a person often 'feels' younger than their current age. You tend to experience memories with the same age of mind that you originally experienced the situation.

Before a hypnotist uses modern hypnosis methods with traumatic memories, they must be properly trained. With the proper training, this process is safe, rapid and reliable. Clients often notice a difference after one session.

This process is essentially about gaining perspective on the experience and the client's part in the experience. This process will often create a sense of distance and separation from the memory. A memory, minus the negative emotions.

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Glancy Hypnosis for Hypnosis in Salem Oregon

You are what You Remember

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