4 ms·

This reminds me of the strange way that memories of dreams behave: Sometimes you still remember bits from a dream right after you've woken up - but this memory

by xg15 1y ago

This reminds me of the strange way that memories of dreams behave: Sometimes you still remember bits from a dream right after you've woken up - but this memory somehow vanishes rapidly and is gone a few minutes later. This despite you already being awake at that time and consciously having a memory of having had that memory. Only the memory itself is gone. (Unless one had training and could capture the memory, e.g. in a dream journal) Makes me wonder if this hints at some interesting neurological processes: It seems there is either some process in the brain that actively erases dream memories, or that dream memories are somehow stored differently in the brain than regular memories and only appear as the same thing to the consciousness. (Sort of like some part of the directory tree being mounted on a different file system)

wpm 1y ago
I experience that but then I also experience the somewhat opposite effect, where randomly, spurred on by almost nothing at all, a memory of a dream that I knew that I had but had forgotten about, bubbles up out of nowhere. It's like some pathway to that other filesystem exists, but only gets activated due to some random glitch that is then fixed immediately, as I still won't be able to recall the dreams later on, like something is forcing it to get cleared from my normal long-term memory. Not that I can't remember dreams, I can if they are vivid enough, journals help too, but most of them get locked away in the "you'll watch the memory of this dream evaporate before your very eyes in the morning, and then years later while you're washing dishes you'll remember it vividly" box.
- praptak 1y ago
  I remember having woken up from a dream where I recognised that a) I'm dreaming and b) It's the same dream I had years ago (a sequel maybe). I can't keep dreaming while being aware that I'm dreaming (supposedly you can train this skill but I haven't) so I woke up. Obviously I don't remember what the actual dream was, just that I suddenly realised it's a dream from the distant past.
  - skirmish 1y ago
    When I was small I used to think about recent dreams while falling asleep, and then I would sometimes have sequels. One memorable dream was where I was taking a walk in the forest with my friend a giant talking cat, and wolves would start chasing us, and we would run so fast that we would start flying. This dream had 2 or 3 sequels that I remember.
- Sharlin 1y ago
  It's difficult to know whether these memories are real, though. I sometimes have déjà vu-like sensations of having experienced something before, but in a dream rather than in a real life (probably something similar happens to people who think they've had a precognitive dream). The feeling quickly subsides like in a regular déjà vu.
- josh-sematic 1y ago
  Deleted from your file system but the bits weren’t zeroed on disk. Occasionally your brain reads a random sector.
pixl97 1y ago
Most of the time you have these dreams and are not woken up, so you never remember they exist at all... Occasionally my brain likes screwing with me and in the dream it goes "You're remembering this dream, you're about to be woken up" and then a loud noise or something external will happen an wake me up and leave me with a great sense of unease. Now, I don't believe my mind can actually predict the future. I can only assume my brain is doing this crap quite often and just happens to get it right every once in a while. Still a creepy feeling.
- bee_rider 1y ago
  I’ve heard the theory somewhere that all dreams are more-or-less invented by the brain at the moment you wake up. So, your brain could just invent a narrative that ends with the loud thud that wakes you up. Not sure if this is actually the truth, or just some random speculation, so heap of salt and all that. Also, I have no idea how to test it. Sometimes I my significant other sleep-talks, and sometimes it is clear enough that I’ll answer (misunderstanding it to be regular talk). It is quite rare (although not unheard of) for them to remember what lead to a sleep conversation, which leads me to believe that whatever their brain is doing at night, it doesn’t have much to do with the dreams they remember. But that’s pretty dang anecdotal! Edit: the sleep-talks they do remember could just explained by waking up in the middle of the night to find the memory of the sleep-talk in their short term memory, and then the brain retroactively spins up a dream to fit it, of course.
Sesse__ 1y ago
> It seems there is either some process in the brain that actively erases dream memories, or that dream memories are somehow stored differently in the brain than regular memories and only appear as the same thing to the consciousness. There's a fairly simple model that is consistent with this: Nothing is committed to long-term memory while you are dreaming, so when you wake up from a dream, everything is in short-term memory only. Unless you make an active effort to commit it (which you're used to happening automatically), like writing it down or otherwise thinking hard about it, it will simply vanish once you use your short-term memory for something else, like moving around.
munificent 1y ago
I had a similar but more intense experience. Last week, I had a minor medical procedure and they used twilight sedation with Versed (Midazolam). It causes anterograde amnesia. With previous anaesthesia experiences I've had, it's like a slice of time is cut out. I'm going into the procedure room and the next thing I know I'm in recovery. This time was different. When they wheeled me out to my wife, I was completely lucid (confirmed by her). I told my wife I remembered essentially the whole procedure. I can remember telling her this. But later, throughout the rest of the day, the memories faded out a piece at a time. Now, though I just barely remember telling my wife that I remembered the procedure, I don't remember the procedure at all. In fact, I can't even remember where I was when I was talking to my wife. I don't remember the recovery room or even leaving the hospital at all. I have a very faint memory of being in the car. Even my memories of the rest of the afternoon are vague. It is so weird. It's like the tape slowly degraded over time. I wonder if this is what dementia feels like.
anuramat 1y ago
> stored differently maybe it could be the extreme case of state-dependent memory? <https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory>

by xg15 1y ago

wpm 1y ago

I experience that but then I also experience the somewhat opposite effect, where randomly, spurred on by almost nothing at all, a memory of a dream that I knew that I had but had forgotten about, bubbles up out of nowhere. It's like some pathway to that other filesystem exists, but only gets activated due to some random glitch that is then fixed immediately, as I still won't be able to recall the dreams later on, like something is forcing it to get cleared from my normal long-term memory. Not that I can't remember dreams, I can if they are vivid enough, journals help too, but most of them get locked away in the "you'll watch the memory of this dream evaporate before your very eyes in the morning, and then years later while you're washing dishes you'll remember it vividly" box.

praptak 1y ago
I remember having woken up from a dream where I recognised that a) I'm dreaming and b) It's the same dream I had years ago (a sequel maybe). I can't keep dreaming while being aware that I'm dreaming (supposedly you can train this skill but I haven't) so I woke up. Obviously I don't remember what the actual dream was, just that I suddenly realised it's a dream from the distant past.
- skirmish 1y ago
  When I was small I used to think about recent dreams while falling asleep, and then I would sometimes have sequels. One memorable dream was where I was taking a walk in the forest with my friend a giant talking cat, and wolves would start chasing us, and we would run so fast that we would start flying. This dream had 2 or 3 sequels that I remember.
Sharlin 1y ago
It's difficult to know whether these memories are real, though. I sometimes have déjà vu-like sensations of having experienced something before, but in a dream rather than in a real life (probably something similar happens to people who think they've had a precognitive dream). The feeling quickly subsides like in a regular déjà vu.
josh-sematic 1y ago
Deleted from your file system but the bits weren’t zeroed on disk. Occasionally your brain reads a random sector.

pixl97 1y ago

Most of the time you have these dreams and are not woken up, so you never remember they exist at all... Occasionally my brain likes screwing with me and in the dream it goes "You're remembering this dream, you're about to be woken up" and then a loud noise or something external will happen an wake me up and leave me with a great sense of unease. Now, I don't believe my mind can actually predict the future. I can only assume my brain is doing this crap quite often and just happens to get it right every once in a while. Still a creepy feeling.

bee_rider 1y ago
I’ve heard the theory somewhere that all dreams are more-or-less invented by the brain at the moment you wake up. So, your brain could just invent a narrative that ends with the loud thud that wakes you up. Not sure if this is actually the truth, or just some random speculation, so heap of salt and all that. Also, I have no idea how to test it. Sometimes I my significant other sleep-talks, and sometimes it is clear enough that I’ll answer (misunderstanding it to be regular talk). It is quite rare (although not unheard of) for them to remember what lead to a sleep conversation, which leads me to believe that whatever their brain is doing at night, it doesn’t have much to do with the dreams they remember. But that’s pretty dang anecdotal! Edit: the sleep-talks they do remember could just explained by waking up in the middle of the night to find the memory of the sleep-talk in their short term memory, and then the brain retroactively spins up a dream to fit it, of course.

Sesse__ 1y ago

> It seems there is either some process in the brain that actively erases dream memories, or that dream memories are somehow stored differently in the brain than regular memories and only appear as the same thing to the consciousness. There's a fairly simple model that is consistent with this: Nothing is committed to long-term memory while you are dreaming, so when you wake up from a dream, everything is in short-term memory only. Unless you make an active effort to commit it (which you're used to happening automatically), like writing it down or otherwise thinking hard about it, it will simply vanish once you use your short-term memory for something else, like moving around.

munificent 1y ago

I had a similar but more intense experience. Last week, I had a minor medical procedure and they used twilight sedation with Versed (Midazolam). It causes anterograde amnesia. With previous anaesthesia experiences I've had, it's like a slice of time is cut out. I'm going into the procedure room and the next thing I know I'm in recovery. This time was different. When they wheeled me out to my wife, I was completely lucid (confirmed by her). I told my wife I remembered essentially the whole procedure. I can remember telling her this. But later, throughout the rest of the day, the memories faded out a piece at a time. Now, though I just barely remember telling my wife that I remembered the procedure, I don't remember the procedure at all. In fact, I can't even remember where I was when I was talking to my wife. I don't remember the recovery room or even leaving the hospital at all. I have a very faint memory of being in the car. Even my memories of the rest of the afternoon are vague. It is so weird. It's like the tape slowly degraded over time. I wonder if this is what dementia feels like.

anuramat 1y ago

> stored differently maybe it could be the extreme case of state-dependent memory? <https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State-dependent_memory>