The deep recesses of the unconscious : Implicit memory & Mental health

“What you write on the inside-you will experience it on the outside”

But what’s been written? Let’s take an example : A little curly-headed child reaches out to the refrigerator to pull out a bottle of milk. He loses his grip on the slippery bottle and it falls down. The mother starts yelling at the child. For the child who’s parents are his entire world-in that moment his world comes crashing down. The child now unconsciously associates the smell of the spilled over milk to fear and disappointment and stores it in his memory. Years later both the child and the mother have completely forgotten about this incident but the child cannot reason out his disliking towards milk. This is a classic example of how implicit memories function and impact our life choices and behavioral patterns.

The “idea” of human memory is flawed as what we cannot recall is not real to us .Somehow we cannot use it to reason out persistent behavior patterns and fears that cause unhappiness . They are like time bombs you cant diffuse because unlike traumatic events we cannot rationalize them because we cannot remember them.

Research conducted on early literacy programs shows that at birth, children arrive with 100 billion neurons, but they haven’t yet formed the synapses to connect them. The memory gives us a connection to them . Our likes/dislikes in our adulthood, how we perceive the world and create our biases are governed by them. If not done right they can turn into compulsive behaviors, disorders, selective mutism and change the overall living experience.

However, there are ways in which we can control these compulsive behaviors and give a new blueprint to the unconscious mind. The most popular and monitored being : Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). CBT aims to stop negative cycles by breaking down thought patterns and is proven to develop coping strategies .On the other hand, meditation promises access to certain parts of the mind opening emotional pathways to stability and permanent behavioral changes.

One technique which has proven to be the most effective is :

Penning it down.

Cambridge University Press posted interesting research, which included a study on a group of people who were asked to engage in expressive writing for 15–20 minutes daily . It was found that they were able to transform implicit memories and address mental health implications faster than those who wrote on neutral topics.

So here is your first exercise :

Write the first story that pops up in your mind for the template:

1. An experience of loss & being invisible
2. An experience of rejection
3. An experience of betrayal & brokenness
4. An experience of guilt/shame
5. An experience of hope, healing and empowerment.

Try talking through and articulating experiences without downplaying your emotions and you’ll be surprised when your subconscious starts getting through. Don’t let your unacknowledged emotions bother you.

Needless to say, everything has been tried and tested.

I hope this helps! Stay Well!