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I was thinking recently about this thing I've encountered as a recovering alcoholic. I'm pretty sure I have a "drunk memories" brain and a "sober memories" brai

by neom 3y ago

I was thinking recently about this thing I've encountered as a recovering alcoholic. I'm pretty sure I have a "drunk memories" brain and a "sober memories" brain - and I don't know I can access some of each while I'm in the other, that is to say sober memories when I'm drunk and drunk memories when I'm sober. I'd like to test this more, but I'm not willing to break my sobriety, so who knows if it's imagined or real.

Terr_ 3y ago
> Research shows that individuals are less likely to remember information learned while intoxicated when they are once again sober. However, information learned or memories created while intoxicated are most effectively retrieved when the individual is in a similar state of intoxication. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory
deleted 3y ago
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phkahler 3y ago
>> I'm pretty sure I have a "drunk memories" brain and a "sober memories" brain A pet hypothesis of mine is that maybe some of the brain chemicals act like an extra input to the neural network, and can be associated with various behaviors or memories. Lets say there are 5 of them which would create a 5 dimensional "chemical space" you're operating in. Certain things can be remembered and associated with regions in this space. Being anxious, depressed, afraid, or whatever could be temporarily "cured" by shifting you out of the current region in this space. Which chemicals work would depend on your specific programming. This might explain people who have a fear response to positive emotional situations (they were traumatized by someone that otherwise gave them positive emotions that release certain chemicals). Just a weird hypothesis - I bet it's been researched but I haven't looked. Edit: One of the other responses to the parent post provided this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory

by neom 3y ago

Terr_ 3y ago

> Research shows that individuals are less likely to remember information learned while intoxicated when they are once again sober. However, information learned or memories created while intoxicated are most effectively retrieved when the individual is in a similar state of intoxication. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

phkahler 3y ago

>> I'm pretty sure I have a "drunk memories" brain and a "sober memories" brain A pet hypothesis of mine is that maybe some of the brain chemicals act like an extra input to the neural network, and can be associated with various behaviors or memories. Lets say there are 5 of them which would create a 5 dimensional "chemical space" you're operating in. Certain things can be remembered and associated with regions in this space. Being anxious, depressed, afraid, or whatever could be temporarily "cured" by shifting you out of the current region in this space. Which chemicals work would depend on your specific programming. This might explain people who have a fear response to positive emotional situations (they were traumatized by someone that otherwise gave them positive emotions that release certain chemicals). Just a weird hypothesis - I bet it's been researched but I haven't looked. Edit: One of the other responses to the parent post provided this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory