beatriceee
- Date posted
- 4d
false memory
can a false memory feel very very very real? because i literally don’t know if something happened or not. absolutely no clue but it feels so real
Sillygoose27Sillygoose27
- Date posted
- 4d
I read someone else’s experience on Reddit in which they confessed about wrongdoings they did in their childhood to a therapist, and their therapist immediately said that those things did not happen. OP was so persistent that they did happen because they felt so real but the therapist was very adamant that it did not. So based on what you are feeling, it is not impossible for it to feel very real. Hope this helps!
beatriceeebeatriceee
- Date posted
- 4d
@Sillygoose27 omg thank you 😭 i hope it applies to me too
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 4d
Hello beatriceee, I see you are struggling with an intrusive thought surrounding a false memory. The short answer to your question is that, yes it can feel like something horrible could have happened. Despite this feeling like a real possibility, in the case of OCD it is a false alarm. This alarm makes us doubt weather something has happened and makes us feel we have to know to handle it. When experiencing one of the intrusive thoughts, have you tried to introduce uncertainty? Are you struggling to let distress pass? Do you need help figuring out where to start? At NOCD we are trained experts in the diagnosis and treatment of OCD and related conditions using Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP). ERP is the gold standard of treatment for OCD and related conditions, with the better part of the past century's research backing the efficacy of ERP. If you would like more information on OCD and ERP, please visit our website at www.treatmyocd.com. If you are seeking to begin/resume your journey of recovery, you may reach out to our member advocate team at care@nocdhelp.com. I hope this message reaches you well and know that at NOCD, we are always here to help! Take care, Ian M. Reeder
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 4d
I had one which I found about recently. It was a core memory of mine from childhood that was traumatising. Both my parents remembered what actually happened and I was shocked the brain could do that. It still feels real, thinking on it, but I know deep down that it doesn't make sense.
BroMike65BroMike65
- Date posted
- 4d
Sometimes when I wake up my intrusive will make up the dream I had and it’s usually horrible and I have to think about it.
Related posts
eb123456789
- Date posted
- 16w
Responsibly ignoring intrusive images
Hi all, I’m really grateful for all the support I’ve gotten from people in the last few days. My mental health is at an all time low and I really appreciate the relief people have brought. I had a question about whether an intrusive image of a potentially imagined event can feel just as real as a real memory. I’m doing my best to stop ruminating over an image I have in my head, and have gone so far as requested security footage of myself and have been told both through that and by my friends that nothing bad happened, but the image in my head feels just as real as other memories. I was also drinking the night in question, which makes it harder for me to dismiss the image and makes me feel like I shouldn’t. I was just wondering if imagined images can feel just as real? I’m trying to use tools to ignore the image, and have therapy scheduled for tomorrow, but I feel like I can’t responsibly dismiss the image even with the evidence I’ve gathered if there’s something about a real memory that looks different in the brain and that if so, that suggests my memory is real and I should confess it. I’m really working on stopping reassurance seeking as well, especially now that even after being told that nothing bad happened when the establishment I was at reviewed security footage, my brain is telling me “they’re probably just lying and never reviewed it.” I know I need to just stop ruminating, reassurance seeking, and mentally checking the memory, but I just don’t know if I can/should in case the image is what I should trust more, if that makes sense.
June123
- Date posted
- 16w
False memory
When you have a false memory, can you actually see it happening in your mind?
Anonymous954
- Date posted
- 14w
False memory
Does anyone else’s false memory intrusive thoughts of what could have happened feel very, very real?
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