Age of your earliest confirmed memory

[RandyS]

Though I said my earliest memories were when I was 3, they were just flashes. I can use context I now know to place when those memories had to be. 4 is the same, although there was slightly more to the flashes.

At 5, I could remember moments but not anything anyone said. 6 is the first time I can remember incidents and anything that was said during those incidents. That's when my first full memories are from.

I always thought my situation was the norm. I'm surprised there are people who remember things as early as I've seen in this thread.

There is no "norm". Everybody is wired differently. But, if it makes you feel better, I was brain damaged at birth, which caused my cerebral palsy. It could be that THAT is the reason for my remembering the incident with my baby bottle that I described. I also remember being 1 year old (well, one incident), 2 years old (same), and three years old (also one incident). At four, my memories started in earnest.

 

[Vanyel]

I can remember walking in my walker in the kitchen and going through the cabinets and trying to take out canned food. I asked my parents if the old kitchen, my Dad remolded it shortly after we bought it, had the cabinets where I remembered them and the color (yellow, it was 1970) and I was right. I would have been about a year give or take a couple of months.. I also remember the day, Christmas, when we got the first dog after I was born, Tigger, I was 3 then. Otherwise it flashes things, like eating (read, playing with) jello, or being in a high chair.

 

[Nerys Myk]

The view of Mt Fuji from where I lived when I was about three.

 

[Avon]

i remember pissing on a snowman when i was 2

 

[T'Girl]

When my family first moved from Germany to the Philippines, we briefly stayed in a small house before moving to the place where we would live for years. Outside the room I slept in there was a tree with a noisy wind chime, which kept me awake. At some point my father cut the chime down while i stood nearby watching.

When I was in my teens and my sister's baby was having the near exact identical experience with a wind chime in her new home, I suggested cutting the branch (you couldn't safely get to the chime itself), and I made a comparison to my experience to my mother, who was delighted I recalled something from when I was twenty months old.

According to my mother, she never told me the story.

 

[Lord Garth]

There is no "norm". Everybody is wired differently. But, if it makes you feel better, I was brain damaged at birth

I honestly thought it was the norm. If it's not then I stand corrected. That's all. It's fine.

And no, it doesn't make me feel "better" that something happened to you when you were younger. Just the opposite. I'm sorry to hear about that and I'm glad you're still with us and that you've been able to live your life.

 

[RandyS]

There is no "norm". Everybody is wired differently. But, if it makes you feel better, I was brain damaged at birth

I honestly thought it was the norm. If it's not then I stand corrected. That's all. It's fine.

And no, it doesn't make me feel "better" that something happened to you when you were younger. Just the opposite. I'm sorry to hear about that and I'm glad you're still with us and that you've been able to live your life.

Don't sweat it friend. I wasn't getting on you.

And I don't actually know if my brain damage is responsible for my early memory. That was just a guess on my part.

Like I said, everybody is wired differently.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

My earliest memories are at about age 2:

- That was the last time when my mom was well. She later came down with MS (which she had for most of my early life until I was 11, when she died).

- My grandmother taking me to Dairy Queen so I could practice my reading. She'd put me up on the counter and let me order. (She *taught* me to read by taking me to grocery stores. DQ is where I put it into use. I was well motivated there. )

- Disco. (Oh lordy, did I ever have cheesy 70's clothes and lots of 'em.)

- 1972 was also when one of my favorite songs ("Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress" by the Hollies) was released although unfortunately I did not actually hear it until years later.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

I have a question, for the people who have sub 3 memories. Have you or do you experience lucid dreaming?

(2 1/2 confirmed here, 2 unconfirmed.)

On occasion, but rarely. I do, however, remember my dreams very well and am aware of the difference between them and reality.

 

[Vanyel]

Yes I do. It's fun to recognize that you're dreaming and exert some control of the dream.

 

[Tiberius]

I'm not playing Psychologist, Tiberius. One of my degrees is in psychology. My other is in childhood special education (which includes intense focus on brain development). Both are from NYU, one of the top universities in the country. My concentrations were in neurological development and learning disorders (which means I spent a lot of time learning about human memory). I know what I am talking about, and, as I said before, your claim is just as credible as if I claimed to be doing cartwheels at 2 months old.

My "stop playing psychologist" remark was direct at Finn, not you, and it was in response to the reaction that since it couldn't have happened at the age I was told, then it must be completely false.

Sorry about that, I thought it was aimed at me.

No worries.

I read this last night but was way too hammered to respond (ah...martini, the enemy of reason!). I just have to say how awesome this is, Tiberius. I don't think I've EVER had a debate here in which another person had the intellectual honesty to concede a point when presented with evidence. Usually they just stop posting in the thread. I never get that. If I'm wrong and some one shows me I'm wrong than I acknowledge it and move on. Anyway, you are awesome.

Thanks!

In my opinion, knowledge is the most incredible thing ever. How could I just storm off in a huff when you have given me what I treasure most?

Man, I hope that wasn't too sappy.

And to the question you asked in the other post, if your mother had said 6 or 9 months, your memory would be more likely to be true. You probably would have had enough language to comprehend what your dad said, though not the ability to understand why it was funny. What you thought was funny was more likely his physical reaction. Also, I'd still be very doubtful of the part about planning to do it again.

I'd say it would have been when I was oloder than. My memory of him saying, "Argh! I've already had a shower today!" is very clear, and when I mentioned the incident to my mother (I was in my late twenties, early thirties at this point), her eyes lit up. She definitely remembered the incident. I'm not sure if I actually understood why his shower comment was so funny, but even if I didn't fully get it, I think I had a vague idea why it was funny.

I also remember how funny I thought it was to see my dad in the incident, and my memory is very clear that I wanted to do it again. It would have been very much a case of "Me pee on daddy. Daddy funny. Me pee on daddy again" logic. I can clearly remember trying so hard to pee the next time he did it, but alas my bladder was empty. Not that I understood bladders or anything back then. I only remember trying to repeat it twice. maybe three times.

It's been shown that infants actually have very good memories, and no one's really sure why people have infantile amnesia. So, while it is extremely rare, it's possible to have a few memories from that early on.

Maybe because as we grow and develop, the things we needed to know from back then aren't as useful anymore?

As for the question about Lucid dreaming, it's only happened to me once. Not sure how old I was, but I was at least mid teens or older. It was a wonderful sensation, and I'd love to do it again.

 

[RandyS]

Yes I do. It's fun to recognize that you're dreaming and exert some control of the dream.

Can you change the colors when you dream? I always try, and it never works.

 

[JayOwl]

I said 3. I was on a Skiing holiday in France- I think the year was '98. I remember being on a sledge and going down some kind of snowy slope.

 

[thestrangequark]

My "stop playing psychologist" remark was direct at Finn, not you, and it was in response to the reaction that since it couldn't have happened at the age I was told, then it must be completely false.

Sorry about that, I thought it was aimed at me.

No worries.



Thanks!

In my opinion, knowledge is the most incredible thing ever. How could I just storm off in a huff when you have given me what I treasure most?

Man, I hope that wasn't too sappy.

Not sappy at all. Refreshing and cool as hell!

And to the question you asked in the other post, if your mother had said 6 or 9 months, your memory would be more likely to be true. You probably would have had enough language to comprehend what your dad said, though not the ability to understand why it was funny. What you thought was funny was more likely his physical reaction. Also, I'd still be very doubtful of the part about planning to do it again.

I'd say it would have been when I was oloder than. My memory of him saying, "Argh! I've already had a shower today!" is very clear, and when I mentioned the incident to my mother (I was in my late twenties, early thirties at this point), her eyes lit up. She definitely remembered the incident. I'm not sure if I actually understood why his shower comment was so funny, but even if I didn't fully get it, I think I had a vague idea why it was funny.
I also remember how funny I thought it was to see my dad in the incident, and my memory is very clear that I wanted to do it again. It would have been very much a case of "Me pee on daddy. Daddy funny. Me pee on daddy again" logic. I can clearly remember trying so hard to pee the next time he did it, but alas my bladder was empty. Not that I understood bladders or anything back then. I only remember trying to repeat it twice. maybe three times.

That all makes sense and seems completely plausible.

It's been shown that infants actually have very good memories, and no one's really sure why people have infantile amnesia. So, while it is extremely rare, it's possible to have a few memories from that early on.

Maybe because as we grow and develop, the things we needed to know from back then aren't as useful anymore?

Maybe...I really don't know what any of the latest research into infantile amnesia says or what any of the theories are. I do know that young kids (ages 6, 7, 8, 9) retain memories from when they were 2-3, but their recollection is often very inaccurate and the memories change a lot, and, as with adults, memories for younger than 2 are extremely rare.

 

[captcalhoun]

i always love Brutha in Sir Terry Prathcett's "Small Gods" - he has perfect memory and when asked what his earliest memory is, replies "there was a bright light and then someone hit me."

 

[Mary Ann]

A similar experience I've had is memories of TV shows I watched as a kid being in color, when in fact the shows in question were only ever produced and shown in black and white: my brain filled in the colors for me.

My memory mucked me about in a very similar manner. I distinctly remember watching the Dutch children's show Fabeltjeskrant in colour. We moved back to Canada when I was 5, but it was years later that I was told that our telly set in the Netherlands was black and white. My guess is that my brain added colour to the show because we had books about the show, and they had colour photographs.

My earliest memory is from when I was 3. I had a favourite dress, and must have insisted on wearing it when it was actually too small, because I remember my mother literally cutting me out of the dress. Needless to say I was screaming my head off! I also have a very clear memory from about the same age of dreaming about crocodiles living in the downstairs hallway of our house, and that I was only safe if I stayed on the stairs. The crocs were standing on their hind legs and covered in flour. Bizarre.

 

[Spot's Meow]

I have a question, for the people who have sub 3 memories. Have you or do you experience lucid dreaming?

Well I only have the one memory from before I was 3, but it is faint and I don't remember much of anything besides some flashes of images.

My strong memories begin around 3.5, when I started preschool. They are very clear and distinct memories.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have often experienced lucid dreaming. My mom taught me how to do it by talking to me in my sleep when I was around 3-4 years old. As I was screaming (literally) from the night terrors, she would ask me what was happening and instruct me accordingly. As I've grown older and the need for lucid dreaming has diminished, it doesn't happen as often, but I could likely "will" it to happen again if I needed to.

Often what will happen is that instead of fully directing the dream, I just realize at some point "oh, I really should tell someone about this cool dream after I wake up." And then that dream ends and I immediately start dreaming about telling someone about the previous dream, and then once again realize "oh wait, this is just a dream too, I still need to tell someone when I wake up." And this will continue in several iterations until I've woken up and actually told someone. (Or did I really?)

 

[CorporalClegg]

I have a question, for the people who have sub 3 memories. Have you or do you experience lucid dreaming?

Oddly, I consider myself to be a strong lucid dreamer and my memories don't really start until I'm four or even five.

Actually, I have this weird condition where I'm fully aware that I'm dreaming (or asleep rather) and convince myself I need to wake up and can't.

Then I get all worried that I'm going to miss my alarm clock. Then when I do finally wake up, it's only 4:37.

 

[Mary Ann]

I missed DH's question earlier. I do lucid dreaming quite often, waking up a minute or two before my alarm is set to go off. I can't always wake myself up from these dreams, but I know it's a dream and am more annoyed than anything.

 

[Miss Chicken]

Can you change the colors when you dream? I always try, and it never works.

I can change colours in a dream. Occasionally I can dream in black and white.

Though it wasn't a lucid dream, I clearly remember having a dream which was in colours that no human could see. Maybe I was dreaming in ultraviolet, but I m not sure.

When people ask me to explain the colours I cannot. It would be like explaining yellow, orange or green to people if the primary colour yellow didn't exist at all.