Scientists find way to block fearful memories

Dec 9, 2009
CHICAGO (Reuters) – U.S. researchers have found a drug-free way to block fearful memories, opening up the possibility of new treatment approaches for problems such as post traumatic stress disorder, they reported on Wednesday.

The findings in people build on studies in rats that showed that reactivating a memory -- by showing people objects that stimulate the fearful memory -- opens up a specific time window in which the memory can be edited before it is stored again.

"Before memories are stored, there is a period where they are susceptible to being disrupted," said Elizabeth Phelps of New York University, whose study appears in the journal Nature.

Earlier studies have shown that drugs can be used to block fearful memories, but the results were not long lasting.

Phelps and colleagues based their studies on findings in rats that showed that old memories can be changed or reconsolidated, but only during a specific window time after the rat is reminded of the fearful memory.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/96aa99d58b87.jpg[/atsimg]
An undated image of the human brain taken through scanning technology.

news.yahoo.com...

Would be great to forget fearful memories, on the other hand you may also forget important memories, not so sure it is good to be playing with the brain.

reply to post by Aquarius1


Imagine is someone was out to destroy your life, is it safe for these clowns to block those memories, so you can try to live your life, with that person trying to wreck your life.

There are countless reasons why letting these things are a bad idea, but dumb people get these jobs and decide who should have a life or not.

My memories, my life experiences are me. They make me who I am.

The pain I've lived through, the happiness I've enjoyed, all of those things combine together in the wonderful little bundle I call myself. (not that I'm biased, lol)

If I remove a memory, how would that impact me? Would it change me for the better, the worse, or just lessen me in some fashion?

Interesting. I'm not sure what I would do in this situation.

Thanks for the insightful reading!

reply to post by smyleegrl


Excellent post. Exactly what I was thinking.

reply to post by smyleegrl


Exactly, who gives anyone a right to decide what is good for another person, these people doing these things are planks of wood, with no mental capacity for deep thinking at all, other than there egos gone wild, oh we can wreck peoples lifes.

reply to post by smyleegrl


You are right smyleegrl, good or bad our memories are who we are, maybe we don't forget the bad ones but learn to live with them and focus on the good.

[edit on 14-12-2009 by Aquarius1]

[edit on 14-12-2009 by Aquarius1]

This may seem good on the outside, kind of like the VeriChip, but I'm almost certain that there is an ulterior motive behind this. If they can just edit memories that are bad, them i'm sure that they can do other stuff, like make them think that they have an obligation or duty to do something. This will on doubt be abused.