Early memories last a lifetime

November 13, 2013

By Isaac Kim

Is there a way to immediately shake off unhappy memories? There are some people who have been suffering from unhappy memories for a long time. Even though they try to forget them and start afresh, it is not easy to get rid of them.

A study shows that unhappy memories such as family violence can affect people, especially females, and possibly lead to intense feelings of stress.

A research team from Tulane University in New Orleans, led by Emily Harville, conducted a survey of 4,865 middle-aged women on how unhappy memories from their youth affected their current lives. The subjects of the survey had been through unhappy affairs such as family violence or economic problems when they were young.

The result was that unhappy memories of youth can cause great stress, which can lead women to smoke a lot and make them unstable.

Relating to this, when children, who had been abused by their parents, become adults, their immune systems get weaker and their average life spans are shortened.

Another study from Ohio State University found unhappy memories from one’s youth can shorten life spans by seven to 15 years.