Why Do We Forget?

Have you ever tried so hard to recall a memory, but you simply can’t? Why do we forget things?

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Why Do We Forget Things?
“Our brains are crammed with a massive amount of memories that we have formed over a lifetime of experiences.”

New research explores why we remember and why we forget
“Psychological scientists are exploring the mechanisms that underlie memory to understand why we remember certain things and why we forget others.”

New images of the brain show the forgetful side effect of frequent recall
“A new study has shown how intentional recall is beyond a simple reawakening of a memory; and actually leads us to forget other competing experiences that interfere with retrieval. Quite simply, the very act of remembering may be one of the major reasons why we forget.”
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[HarryNewbury]

I've already forgotten why I clicked on this video in the first place.

[TheColaGoodfellow]

"terrible" memories.

People only say it's terrible because it makes it sound shocking/interesting. In reality our memories are perfectly fine when it comes to what is actually necessary for daily life.

[kennethj]

Over time, Memories are memories of memories of memories.
This is why older people's memories are so inaccurate of actual past events.

[aSStronaut]

I always wondered how we could remember stuff after we forget it. I mean, if our brains are like computers, when you delete something on a computer it is gone, the memory would be erased from existence. So then how can we remember it later in time? Can our brains see the past? Are those memories just repressed? Are fragments of them left behind and then they are just recreated when needed?

[kennethj]

My uncle was in WW2; he heard many vivid stories from other veterans that made a strong impression on him.  Those colorful stories became his memories; so he actually thought he was the person behind those stories.

[WiredforThought]

I wanted to write a nice comment, but I forgot.

[ShawnRavenfire]

It seems to me that if there's any purpose to forgetting things (other than the brain just not being perfect), it would be to make room for new memories.  Just look at the way we design computers to consolidate and defragment regularly, run system cleanups of cookies and temporary files.  We make computers operate this way because it makes sense that they should work this way.

As for forgetting "bad" memories, that's hardly a reason.  Bad memories are probably the most important to remember, because it helps us avoid similar situations in the future.  If it seems that we "forget" something traumatic, we're only repressing the memory (not erasing), which often leads to even bigger problems.

[lightsidemaster]

I wish the brain was like a harddrive.

You could delete files ( memories ) that you are sure are unnecessary and just waste space and keep and ALWAYS access files that you know you will always keep.

Naturally, everyone would be at the mercy of his/her own wisdom regarding that.

[bobb]

There are a handful of people that have 'superior autobiographical memory' which means that they never forget anything in their entire life; they can tell you about what happened on any specific day in their life in great detail. 60 minutes had an episode on it and these people don't see damaged by it.  Yes, you remember painful moments in equally great detail but they can do the same as the rest of us and choose not to think about it.

[brettsoyars]

I often forget to check my rearview mirror in my vehicle, to see who's behind me, Same thing at the grocery store. I forget to look behind me, & I don't realize there's someone behind me less then 3 feet from me. I always look behind me if I remember to maintain space between people. I also forget to turn on my Blinker sometimes when I'm in my vehicle. How many out there are like me? The things I'd usually remember 15 years ago, are now the things I'm beginning to forget about. Am I taking stuff too seriously & just need to ease off?

[Neuralatrophy]

So do I have a savant memory for remembering getting stung by a bee, painting snails with a stripe of nail polish, catching spiders and my mom releasing them on me, munching on a parsnip I pulled from the garden, catching caterpillars, crayfish etc ? I see virtually no reason why those memories, now over 30 years old, should have consolidated so strongly.
I have many more memories over the years I would like to forget too but every once in a while something I do or recall triggers em.

[sdroyagt]

For consolidation what we need is a stimuli. The better the stimuli the longer we remember, the clearer we remember.

[evbb]

So we can learn to remember, Mr. Wayne.

[melexdy]

I have a thing with doors... I always forget if I closed my house door or not... Sometimes I find it wide open...

Wait... how did I get here?  Who are you lady?

[darjluke]

I heard about Jill Price. She can't forget. Actually not good for her. She dwells over the past. It distracts her from the present and she is a bit depressed.

She remembers every detail of every bad thing that happened. That overwhelms the good times.

I also heard of people who can't be depressed because they feel no emotions. They can have extremely good focus on what they do because emotions don't get in the way.

I wonder what someone who can't forget and has no emotions. They could probably rule the world. Ace every test learn extreme amounts. Read every scientific and religious writings and solve many mysteries science has yet to explain.

[mnwsupercrazy]

"Where were you the night of Jily 27?" Its July 28 and I still can't answer the question...

[enmoah]

I have been listening to you for 2 minutes and I already forgot everything you've been saying so far.

[nissaforyou]

I sometimes forget things that I am supposed to do. Like going to make a deposit, buy a present for an upcoming party. Going to the store and buying other things that I didn't need, but forgetting the one thing/reason I went to the store for. Do I have a mental disorder?

[binry_dstructr]

I wonder if people with photographic or eidetic memories are also plagued by mental disorders. It would surely explain Sheldon Cooper's problem.

[face]

There us no even ground when it comes to memory. If only we could remember things premantly without having to constantly train the brain for it.