Bothered By Bad Memories? There Could Be A Pill For That
“A man is the sum of his memories” — Dr. Who
What date is it today? Did we just fast forward in time to April Fool’s Day? Actually, no. The blogosphere is jumping about a Dutch study that shows that the use of beta blockers could help people forget bad memories. The study notes that this is still all theory and that more research needs to be done.
If bad memories were fuel, then in a depressive, bad memories would be like nuclear power — complete with waste you can’t get rid of. But, if later research shows that beta blockers like propranolol can help you forget traumatic events, is it a good idea to take a pill to get rid of those memories?
The Value of Bad Memories
Bad memories — even traumatic memories — can be helpful to a person in the long run. It helps teach a person how to avoid or survive such events, should they ever crop up again. But they are oppressive when they repeat over and over again and you can’t shut them off or all you can think about are those bad memories to the point where they block out all good memories.
Part of dealing with depression or trauma is learning how to deal with the memories. Otherwise, you haven’t really progressed in your mental health. You can ease the symptoms, but until the root cause is dealt with, there won’t be a cure.
The Fire
In August of 2005, I saw my home burn down. It is not a memory I cherish and many days I would like to forget it. But it has become part of my personality that I survived a fire and kept my dog safe, too. If the beta blockers should prove to block bad memories, count me out. Getting rid of my bad memories also gets rid of parts of myself.
February 18th, 2009 at 1:12 am
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