Does anyone have false memories from their childhood? If so would ou mind sharing and how do u know these are false memories? Did they pop up as a memory or was it a thought? Guess im asking how do you know if false memorh or real?
I do have a false memory (at least I hope it is false) from childhood. It seems like it got triggered by reading someone on here. It for sure comes as a false memory. It has been over a year and I still do not have clarity if the details actually happened or not. It possibly can be false memory because of the extreme distress and anxiety, the uncertainty if the details occurred or not, asking for reassurance, and googling false memory ocd.
That's how I feel also. Im glad im not alone. Although mine was a memory that popped into my head years ago, i dismissed it and now its back and I cant get passed it, constant compulsions and looking for reassurance.
@bonnie1987 Here is a article written and posted by nocd: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/feeling-stuck-in-the-past-ocd-and-false-memories “An example of false memory without ocd would be a person believing they went on a vacation in 5th grade, but it was actually in 7th grade. Similarly, another innocuous false memory would be a child believing they were present at the birth of a sibling, but they were only told details about it. However, when false memories and OCD intertwine, it’s often far less innocent. for example, the following case. Henry is a man who has anxiety and struggles with obsessive thinking. More recently, he’s been having thoughts and images that torment him. He thinks he was probably ten and the relative was nine at the time. He cannot quite recall, but he remembers them playing a game and hiding under the covers, and pictures himself touching the relative inappropriately. He had never thought of this until recently, and when he did, he felt sick to his stomach about it. He worries that this event may have actually occurred. On the other hand, he tells himself that it seems like if this had happened, the relative would’ve said something about it, or there would be some sort of evidence that it occurred. He can’t think of anything that supports this memory, but still, it haunts him. Feeling intense guilt and shame over the mere chance that something could have taken place, he decides to confide in his mother. She reassures him that this couldn’t have happened, saying that it’s not in his nature to do something like that—but still, he can’t seem to shake this awful feeling.”
I had a horrific false memory nearly two years ago now. It came out of nowhere as I was taking myself to bed one night. Played like a video in my head. Came with a feeling of complete terror and dread, and (TMI) I had to rush to the bathroom. Felt like I was remembering a real memory that I'd 'forgotten' about. I believed it for the longest time because I didn't know False Memory OCD existed. There aren't words to say just how traumatic it was. That being said, false memories present in many different ways. One person's false memory experience can be completely different to someone else's.
How did you come to terms with it being a false memory?
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