January 8

Memory

After our discussion about memory and the possible consequences of repressing our real selves and experiences, what do you think we should do with painful, difficult memories? Think about it on a personal level, then on a societal level.

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Posted January 8, 2013 by tashak38 in category Uncategorized

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I live in the San Francisco Bay Area--Big Up to the East Bay

68 thoughts on “Memory

  1. Maliko P.

    Maliko P.
    AP English 11
    Period: 02
    1/9/13

    When it comes to painful memories my suggestion would be to find a way to let you true feelings about the situation out. Whether it is by expressing it to a friend, hiring a therapist, or maybe even talking to a complete stranger. Keeping bad memories repressed can only hurt yourself in the long run because they will arise sooner or later. But on a more personal note, I cope with things by staying busy and active. It keeps me from thinking about the negative memories. On a Societal level I recommended is acceptance and forgiveness so progress can occur because mistakes will always be made but not always forgiven.

    Reply
  2. Maria Fajardo

    Maria F.
    Period 2
    1/9/12
    Painful memories are memories to try to forget. You know it happen and these scenes just keep playing over and over again in your head. It is very painful to remember memories that were horrible to one but all someone can do is basically accept the fact that it happened and it will probably be forever with you. On a personal level, I would keep it to myself, i dont really like discussing thing with people. On a societal level is to accept the fact that it happened and just move on.

    Reply
  3. Tanzeel H.

    Tanzeel Hak
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Period 2
    9 January 2013

    We should not repress memories. Yes, it may be painful. You may have gone through all sorts of painful events like getting abused. You could have suffered from mental and physical pain, but the important thing is that you endured it and survived. You came up on top, that is something to be proud of, not something to be embarrassed about. If you are going through something at the moment as we speak, you should not just smile and act like everything’s perfect because no one’s life is. If you hide everything then how can someone help you? They simply can not. Maybe the person right next to you is going through the same problem and can help you. If you are keeping it a secret, is it worth the suffering? We should all remain true to ourselves. We should be proud of who we are and how far we have gotten. Others might be going through what you did in your past. You can help them overcome it all, but if you repress your past the one person this victim could have received help from is left alone in the dark. One thing we all should remember is to not be hypocritical. If you are doing something bad and you see someone else doing the same thing as you, like cheating on a loved one, do not act as if they are doing this horrible crime when in reality you are doing the same thing, but keeping it private. We should accept our past for a better future.

    Reply
  4. Heather H.

    Heather H.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11, Per. 2
    9 January 2013

    Painful, difficult memories should always be dealt with when a person feels ready. Forcing someone to confront a traumatic experience will do nothing but cause more trauma. I also believe that no one except oneself knows how best to heal. However, in cases of mental illness, a therapist should always be a part of the healing process. Depression and other illnesses can warp a person’s perception of the past, making memories perhaps more difficult than they need to be. Friends, family, and other loved ones should no doubt provide support, care, and a safe place to talk, but should by no means feel in any way that they need help in dealing with the memory itself.

    Reply
  5. Desiree N.

    Desiree N.

    Ms. Keeble

    AP English 11

    9 January 2013

    When it comes to painful and difficult memories, I think it is best to forget them and move on. I do think you should accept that the memory happened and just try to move on and stop thinking about it. Also talking about the difficult memory will make you feel better because you can get advice and support from someone else. Just knowing that someone is supporting you will give you hope when dealing with the memory. It isn’t good to keep your feelings in either because some way they have to get out, it is better to get them out by expressing the way you feel instead of violence . I think the best thing to do is just accept that something horrible has happened to you and occupy yourself with friends and family, then you won’t have time to think of bad memories.

    Reply
  6. Destiny Bets

    Destiny Bets
    Jan. 9. 2013
    Period 5

    Though many people would claim that talking about painful memories would make the situation even worse and cause the person to act out their pain, I disagree. Talking to someone about a painful memory that’s been building up inside of you can loosen up your anger by letting all of your problems just pour out instead of just holding on to memories that have probably been taking over your life. Letting your painful memories pour out is a sign you are done letting them get to you and you refuse to let them control you from this point on. Therefore, talking to someone you trust can help you overcome your weaknesses your memories may bring you.

    Reply
  7. Zoey Madsen

    Zoey Madsen
    AP English 11
    9 January 2013
    period 5

    Painful memories can be extremely difficult to overcome depending on how traumatizing they are or how emotionally attached to them the person is. However, once overcome, painful memories can be an important part of who somebody is. Somebody can look back at a memory and not identify it with pain but with a lesson learned and a new outlook on a certain situation. But, there are also memories that include no meaningful lesson, just the searing pain of a traumatizing incident. I believe the best way to overcome an awful incident, with absolutely no dignified lesson, is to find a positive outcome within your life. When I feel in distress or extremely upset I try and recognize the simple blessings I have in life. This is called overcoming sadness with happiness. Whatever comfort you may need, you should find that comfort and use it to regain emotional strength. You have all of these people and beautiful creations around you to be happy about.
    Painful memories in society, such as the recent elementary shooting, should always be acknowledged and relevant. We must use events like this (and personal events) to better ourselves and our society. We must remember the children who were lost and fight to make sure the experience never happens again.
    Painful memories can be very difficult to overcome, but they also have a positive side. They make you a stronger and more experienced person, and help our society become more advanced in gun regulations and restrictions to prevent another painful event from ever happening again.

    Reply
  8. Veronica

    Veronica
    Jan. 9, 2013
    Ms. Keeble, per. 1

    In reality, most people are never going to forget the most tragic events in their life, but the best way to deal with them is to cope and talk to someone about what or how that incident made you feel. Another way would be to try to move on because that repressed memory would keep building up and soon enough it would make you act out in outrageous ways and make you do something you’re going to regret.

    Reply
  9. Dartise

    Dartise
    Jan. 9, 2013
    Period 1

    The best way to get over a painful memory is to talk about it with someone close to you, or a person that can relate with you. by talking to somebody about the horrid memory you can express the way it makes you fill. This better than repressing a bad memory because it want build up inside you and cause you to flip out. Like for example when i use to try to hold in bad memory’s i tended to fight more due to held in anger. If i would of talked and expressed myself i could of been more rational about the situation.

    Reply
    1. tashak38 (Post author)

      Insightful, Dartise. I like it! But, what’s up with the “of”s? Shouldn’t those be “have”s?

      Reply
  10. Adria

    Adria W.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English per.2
    1/9/13

    Painful memories are not something people can let go of quickly. No matter how hard people try to let go of it, those memories are there with them. I believe that these memories can make a person stronger by them accepting that it happened and moving on with their life. I know that it will probably take some time for a person to do but when it finally happens, that memory could be seen as less painful to them in the future. I am still holding on to some of my own painful memories but as each day goes by I am letting go of it and learning that things happen in life. It may not make sense sometimes but there are greater things that have yet to come.

    Reply
  11. Dominique N

    Dominique N
    AP English 11 Per 2
    Ms. Keeble
    1/9/13

    The discussion we had in class the other day about memory left me with deeper thoughts on how they affect us. I think what we should do with the difficult painful memories that sit in the back of our minds and haunt us everyday is to talk about them with other people and let them out. By keeping these memories inside you, you are not benefitting yourself at all, and are rather hurting yourself. You should share how you feel with someone close you can trust, or do some sort of activity that will keep your mind off or help you forget the memory. This is something I would personally do, but on a more societal level, the best thing one can do is accept that the event/memory has happened, deal with it, and move on with your life and try to stay positive and strong.

    Reply
  12. Arileni N

    Arileni N.
    Keeble
    AP ENG 11 Per5
    Jan 8,13

    You won’t always be able to make those bad memories vanish like they were never there, it’s going to take time for the bad memories to dissappear and not bring you down. Dealing with those memories that hurt you emotionally and make you feel guilty a way to over come them is to talk to some one a that knows how to deal with people that are going thru painful memories or also doing stuff that will help you overcome them.

    Reply
  13. Harrison Nguyen

    Harrison Nguyen
    APENG 5th period
    Ms. Keeble
    Jan. 8 2012
    With painful difficult memories I think we should try forget them because if we constantly remember them it would haunt us or constantly make us feel some type of way toward it.

    Reply
  14. Elvia Lopez

    Elvia Lopez
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English
    8 January

    Thinking about painful and difficult memories, I believe that on a personal level everyone should always have someone to talk to to give feedback and make you feel better. If you have support from many, it will help you grow out of your cage. It will help express you inner feeling and make the pain run away. Remembering the past and for it to be painful is a great depression and devastating, but knowing that you survived through it all is a great way of overcoming that pain. On a societal level, I believe that it causes more tension within groups of people. It might make them strong because the are not alone, but sometimes brings them down knowing that many people went through pain. It all depends on what your past consists of.

    Reply
  15. Amacalli Duran

    Amacalli Duran
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English
    9 January 2012 `

    It is a natural human instinct to avoid pain or anything that inflicts pain, including memories. Scientists have discovered that the mind creates a variety of defense mechanisms towards daunting memories. The most common of these memories is memory loss. The mind either eliminates the memory all together or alters it. Therefore, when an individual suffers through a traumatic event the course of therapy is controversial.
    Avoiding painful memories is not an easy task that can be done. However, in my opinion I don’t believe traumatic memories should be ignored, instead they should be set on display for analyzation. Personally, I believe writing out one’s problems and their emotions eliminates the possibility of trauma in the future. Writing out one’s ideas and feelings allows them to vent in a healthy manner and release emotions they continue to harbor inside of them. Writing to oneself also helps enable someone to expose their true intentions and beliefs because they do not feel judged. Another method to personally overcome issues is to discuss them with an unbiased party. The listener is able to question the person’s thinking process to uncover the reason behind their true emotions and rationalizations. At last, I feel another method to overcome traumatic experiences would be to involve oneself in an activity. Traumatic experiences usually force one to live in sorrow or depression. Gaining a love and passion for an activity can bring happiness to one’s life and demonstrate that this traumatic experience does not and will not limit the rest of their life’s happiness. Using these methods, any individual can live in the present without focusing on the past.
    I believe that the same concept applies to society; however, society as a whole rather dwell on the past. It is by far easier to overcome a problem when it only affects one person, opposed to a very large population. Take for example 9/11. 9/11 was a horrific event that led to the mourning of the United States. To help overcome issues as a society, simple steps must be taken. First, the entire truth must be exposed. Afterwards, progressive movements must be taken to show a comeback. Afterwards time must be given to the people to get back into the routine manner of their life. Society should not forget memories such as 9/11; however, they should also not remember them and use the memory to hold animosity towards others. Instead, the memories should help society improve and acknowledge their mistakes.

    Reply
  16. Haley R.

    Haley R.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11 Per. 2
    8 January 2012
    Memories can haunt a person forever if they do not express them in some way. Of course there are the memories that you “try to forget” but those seem to be the ones that stand out the most in your mind; you may start to act out with unusual behaviors. We should let these demons free by expressing our anger and sorrow in positive ways; whether that be playing your favorite sport, talking to someone or another activity that expresses your emotions from the memories you have. I have a difficult time releasing my emotions, and tend to repress almost everything that is painful or difficult to cope with. I think people don’t need to hear my problems because they have problems of their own, which is the case. Everyone has things that they don’t want to tell, not secrets but things that may give a negative image to their name. Everyone also wants to be thought of as the best, we all compete for that top spot in society; when you “complain” about your problems all the time, nobody wants to be around you. Directing the repressed memories into activities and speaking with a trusted person can lighten and ease your mind.

    Reply
  17. Alexia G. (period 1)

    Repression is a haunting concept of society. With repressed memories comes pain and abuse. It is unhealthy to keep pushing these thoughts away because they will occur more often. Running away from a problem is never the best solution; society tends to take this route. The ability to deal with issues shows how strong you are. I feel society should cope with the difficult memories and accept their occurrence. The more you deny an issue the harder it will be to accept. Personally, I stand up to any painful memories because I was taught to do so My elders told me to analyze my thoughts and find something positive from it. It is not necessarily to make it a learning experience, although you can, but to realize that there is good in bad. Feelings are complex and uncontrollable; but to truly understand and acknowledge them is what gives you power.

    Reply
  18. David D.

    David Delgado
    Ms.Keeble
    Period 2
    AP English
    08 January 2012
    What we should do with our painful and difficult memories is let them out and share them with people. It is never good to hold those painful memories in because studies show being depressed can be unhealthy and may result in death if he/she is that depressed. Personally if I had to let something out I would talk to my mentor or friends about it. What a lot of people tend to do is hold it in and never let it out but that ends up failing. Some people just think that other people won’t understand their painful memories, but this is wrong. We are all humans we make mistakes and go through hardships so it is possible for people to understand other people’s pain.

    Reply
  19. Kiana Ledda

    Kiana Ledda
    Keeble
    AP English 11, Period 5
    January 8, 2013

    After the discussion in class about the severe outcomes of difficult, painful memories, I realized that people are different and have their own way of coping with them. In class, we focused more so on the negative consequences with terrible memories, but some people have a different perspective. Some people take their memories and think of the positives, and they don’t feel any sorrow. For instance my uncle’s father passed away, and my uncle coped with his father’s death by thinking of what his father was like when he was alive. Of course, my uncle was depressed by his father’s death, but he didn’t have an entire “mental break down”. Me, personally, I tend to relive my painful memories. Sometimes it’s hard to get my life back together after such a huge impact that made me feel insecure, confused, or upset. For instance, I will never forget the day that my grandfather passed away because it had a very negative impact on my family. We drifted away from each other and the holidays were never the same. I replayed all of the happiest memories I had with my grandfather, which made me even more depressed. It took me about a good year to adjust to all the changes due to his death, but my family eventually overcame our sorrows. Although we should try to think of the positive side more often because many people within our society are pessimistic. We, as a society, should try to face/learn from our past, rather than run away from it. Within our society, it’s pretty normal to go through a depression phase when you relive difficult memories. It takes a lot of strength to get over something quickly when it made a huge impact on your life.

    Reply
  20. Thomas T

    Thomas T
    Keeble
    Ap English
    Period 1

    Fighting painful memories is essentially a double-edged sword. We don’t want to remember them and if we try to suppress bad memories, then we express that pain in another way. The only way I possibly see a solution is to confront the memory by talking about it or something else among those lines. Overcoming or confronting a painful memory requires patience with yourself and those that are involved in that memory. When I was a child, my parents had fought with each other and it led to my father’s eventual departing from our once whole family. I remember the day he walked out the door and didn’t come back. For a while, I had tried to ignore it, but he came back into my life and we resolved our issue rather than having to deal with it myself.
    As a society, we want to show positivity in our lives and sometimes brag about how much we enjoy life and that stimulates the pain of certain people’s situations even more because that outwardly positive society can cause anyone to become jealous or be ashamed of memories that aren’t meant to be shared within our society.

    Reply
  21. Alicia Gonzales

    Alicia Gonzales
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11
    9 January 2013
    All of us have in some way dealt with painful and difficult memories to some extent. Whether it be dealing with the loss of a loved one, being physically, emotionally, mentally abused, or being treated for less then what we’re worth. Whatever the case may be, every single person is human, therefore we all have feelings, which means we’ve all experienced something painful or difficult.
    Many people tend to repress their feelings, trying not to think about it while acting as if it never happened, or that the problem/memory just wasn’t ever there. Well, people need to get to the point where they learn to handle things in a more healthy way, by not running away from the painful memory, acting as if it doesn’t exist, but by having the courage to stare at it in the face and deal with it.
    When thinking about painful, difficult memories, I believe that people should analyze how they feel, and ask themselves questions such as “What is causing me to feel this way? When did I start feeling this way? Why am I still thinking about it? What’s keeping me from moving forward and leaving the past in the past?”
    Unfortunately it’s true, many people are broken, unable to let go of their painful past, unable to completely heal due to emotional wounds within their heart. So how does someone deal with that? One has to come to the place where they understand that “everybody” has dealt with similar situations. No one has the perfect life. Even people who we would think have it all (rich people) really don’t, they have their own family/emotional/mental problems as well. There is no perfect person, there is no perfect life.
    Everyone in society must understand that although they may be hurting, healing is always possible, and one has to choose to be strong, believing in themselves, understanding their personal value, and trusting in their heart that the best is ahead.
    Deal with those emotions. Talk to someone that you trust, someone that’ll truly care and support you. Don’t turn to the wrong things such as drugs, alcohol, etc., because all of those are temporary, and it won’t last. After that high the problem you have is still there, and it’ll feel even worse. Turn to the right things that’ll benefit you as a person, and the future that’s ahead. And just keep smiling through it all.

    Reply
  22. Hannah R.

    Hannah Reddy
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11, Period 2
    8 January 2013

    Personally, memories that I choose not to remember, or try so hard to forget I store it away. During those times that I find myself daydreaming about those forbidden memories, I then try and keep myself busy. Usually I do homework, read, watch television, or if I’m that desperate I choose to play with my dog. Most of the time this method works, but those rare occasions where I find myself distracted from my distractions, I tend to go running. Whenever I go running, I just pop my ear buds in and society around me tends to disappear. I run concentrate on the music, and it clears my head! Why I don’t just go running from the get go, I myself am unsure of, but my methods work, so I’m not going to stop what I am doing.

    On a societal level, I believe we should use Freud’s method and go to psychology. When you take Columbine for example, those two boys shot their classmates because they were being made fun of. Imagine what it would be like of instead taking all those insults in and just pushing it to the side, where you could talk about it and have someone who cares listens. Isn’t it a psychologist’s job to help you overcome whatever it was that you needed help with? There’s always something you can do. You don’t always have to take it in and just leave it there. If you don’t like talking, there are always sports or poetry or other things that can help you overcome those pushed back memories. You just have to advocate and take matters into your own hands if necessary.

    Reply
  23. Elisha Hussain

    Elisha Hussain
    AP English 11, Period: 5
    January 8, 2013

    After our discussion about the consequences of repressing our memories it made something inside of me change. I thought about everything that I have repressed and I regret it. I believe that repressing your feelings is a negative way for you to forget about things. It’s a very unhealthy way to forget something by repressing it. Personally repressing your memories deteriorates your health and it causes you to be socially awkward or isolated from others. An example would be if you cheated during a test, the guilt gets to you. For the first few days you will tend to feel guilty and your conscience will tell you that it would be good to turn yourself in, but you try to repress those feelings because you don’t want to fail the test. As for societal issues, repressing your feelings can be terrible for the society, because it can lead up to mental issues in which you can become obsessed with harming others. For example, say if there was a child who had a negelcting childhood and abusive parents, they would grow up on the path that they were familiar with in life. In many instances they would try and repress the past, but it would always come running back to them, causing them to have mental distubances. As a result, they would try and recreate the harm that their parents took out on them to others in the their community. It would be terrible for our society because our population would start decreasing and others would start following the patterns. It would basically be like a chain reaction that would never come to an end. Supressing our feelings is a negative way for us to forget something. We can try and talk it out and slowly move on with our lives, rather than have the memory constantly haunting you for the rest of your life.

    Reply
  24. Phuong-My N.

    Phuong-My N.
    Keeble
    AP English, Per. 2
    8 January 2012

    Memory

    When it comes to painful, difficult memories, I believe that we should confront it so that we can heal from it on a personal level. Keeping those memories in will only harm you and affect you in a negative way. On a societal level, I believe it is best to not keep those memories repressed so that we can learn from the painful memories in order to never repeat them. We cannot deny that something happened; we just have to learn how to cope and move on positively from the difficult memories.

    Reply
  25. Angelica G

    Angelica G.
    Keeble
    Period 1
    In my opinion based on personal experience, I think that when it comes to painful, difficult memories we just have to cope with the situation. Find something that we can do often that will help get our minds off of what is bringing us down, such as a hobby or some sort of activity we enjoy. Sometimes it is difficult to deal with the pain but over time we are able to overcome that, and become much stronger. In some cases it may take a short time, in others it can take up to years to overcome the painful memory. On a societal level I think the same plan would work depending on the difficulty of the situation. Some people would prefer to go to counseling to open up to someone and let out all the pain one can be holding inside. In many occasions I think that talking about the situation, and letting out one’s feelings is a handy way to relieve pain when one is comfortable enough to do so. Each case is different, every person has different strengths, only one’s self can determine what is the healthiest way to overcome their inner pain.

    Reply
  26. Ryan C.

    Ryan C.
    Ms. Keeble
    Period 1

    I think we should accept our memories. Try to think of positive happy things. If it bothers you, it would be best to talk about it with someone you trust. If it is beyond that or its extremely serious, you should see an expert like a psychologist or a therapist that can help you over come these things.

    Reply
  27. Caleb M.

    Caleb M.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Per. 2
    8 January 2012

    Painful memories can have negative effects on our personalities, behaviors, and actions. I think that on a personal level, we should come to terms with our painful memories and accept them as being something that happened in our lives, instead of trying to ignore them and keep them inside. Difficult memories should be what we look towards to for greater knowledge and wisdom. On a societal level, people should reach out to their friends, teachers, parents, etc. for advice and encouragement. I think that it is better for people to have someone to rely on for inspiration or enlightenment, instead of dealing with painful memories by themselves.

    Reply
  28. Joelynn D.

    Joelynn Deng

    Ms. Keeble

    AP English – 2nd period

    08 January 2013

    Everybody has at least one or two repressed memories or feelings regardless of how insignificant or serious they may seem. Those memories/feelings may be hard to talk about, but I agree with Sigmund Freud when he said, “Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways,” because bottled up emotions/memories will always stay in one’s subconscious and affect his/her personality, attitude, etc. Personally, I always try to have an outlet for my deepest and most secret memories/feelings by writing or talking to those I trust because it keeps me from being too mental. I think that our subconscious can be both our best friend or worst enemy, so it important to not only be physically healthy, but also mentally.

    I think that for society, it is even more important to let out repressed memories/emotions because it removes tension and allows every one to be a little bit less stressful. When memories/feelings become repressed for too long, defense mechanisms start to come in to play as well. One example is denial, when a person refuses to admit the truth, even to themselves. Another mechanism is when a person takes their anger, fears, irritations, etc. out on someone/something that is not at all involved. And by using defense mechanisms, society as a whole is no longer stable. Any judgements or decisions made by society are then influenced by those repressed memories/feelings which taint our subconscious. I also believe that as a society, there is not enough trust. By being able to open about repressed memories/feelings, it would allow people to feel less isolated and less inclined to continuing repressing memories/feelings, so having outlets for repressed memories/emotions in society is crucial.

    Reply
  29. Diana Larios

    Diana Larios
    English AP 11
    Keeble
    1st period
    8 January 2013

    Memories will almost never fade away especially painful ones. As much as we might want to forget about them, they will always be in the back of our minds. Today we talked about repression of memories and how it can result in someone acting in an abnormal manner. To avoid that I believe that we all need someone who we can trust and talk to so that we are able to vent and let it all out because it is not a good to keep things all jumbled inside of ones selves. When thinking about society, I believe that we always try to put up a front about how we really feel and we never let anyone see how we really feel, and people my be able to see you but unable to see how your actually feeling. When doing that everything is locked up inside and that just goes to it all creating extreme feelings inside your head which can cause a lash out where you might say or do things you don’t mean.

    Reply
  30. Mercedes G.

    Mercedes G.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English
    January 8, 2013
    I think that we should tell others that we trust about what is on the inside because it can be very hard to deal with whatever the person is dealing with alone. This can lead them to doing suicide, murders, or just going insane because all that pain and suffering is kept inside and they do not know how to let the all pain be free. By telling someone else the person can fell like they released all of the pain and suffering that they were keeping inside and hidden from the world.

    Reply
  31. Sidney

    Sidney 
    AP English
    Period 1 

     I think that people should be able to talk about their thoughts,  feelings  and not feel pulled back by society. It’s important to get traumatizing experiences out in the air because sometimes people can be involved in a crime but have blocked out any evidence of it. In society it used to be looked down upon when one had a psychiatrist, but now it has become more common, and less people mind it. Everyone seems to have there own problems, and are way too busy to  worry about anyone else’s. For this reason it is better to get it out to someone who is payed to listen. It would create better functioning and peaceful people. I myself am a very private person and have always kept things to myself, so I found a special group of people in my life who actually know, listen and understand what I go through. It creates a happier me and hopefully a happier WE.  If everyone could find those friend and or family who cares enough to listen, no one would suffer from any repressions. 

    Reply
  32. Alicia Oseguera

    Alicia Oseguera
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English
    8 January 2013

    On a personal level in my opinion what we should do with painful and difficult memories is just try to get used to them. As much as it hurts it is best to get them off our minds and try to avoid them. It is just better to let them stay in the past and not bring them back to the future. They are memories and they should stay that way, in the past without trying to bring them back because it will only hurt us more. Just like in a personal level I think that in a societal level it should be the same. People should not have to be suffering again by bringing back old memories that have no right to be hurting us again. For example, with the topic of slavery, many slaves have painful memories and it is better to just leave them behind and not talk about it because the only thing it does bringing them back is hurting the person again. There is not point on remembering them; these memories should just stay buried in the past on both the personal and societal level.

    Reply
  33. Oscar G.

    Oscar G
    Period 1
    After our class discussion about suppressing our real selves and suppressing negative memories , I believe that in order to deal with negative memories as people we should find someone we truly trust. Although it is hard to find someone to whom you can give your trust to there is someone out there. And yes there will always be those really hard to talk about topics that will just leave a knot in your throat, but in most cases it is better to talk it out. What I like to do when I am having emotional problems is go out and do something I like to do; most of my emotional relief comes from physical actions such as running, kicking, and or hitting. It looks “okay” if one person does it, but if a whole society does it then the society would look like crazy psychopaths. So as a society what we should do is, find people to whom we can give our trust to and tell them our emotions. It is asking for a lot from someone, stranger-to-stranger, but it is for the better of our society.

    Reply
  34. Johan Ocegueda

    Johan Ocegueda
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English
    8 January 2013
    I believe that if theres something that will only bring you pain, it is better forgotten. It will not do anything for you, it will just bring back the ugly past and bring you down. Maybe its best to keep in them in mind to avoid making the same mistake. But really, if it hurt that much, its pretty hard for you to ever make that mistake again. In my opinion the ugly past is better forgotten and left in tha past.

    Reply
  35. Alexis L.

    Alexis L.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11
    1/8/12
    I believe that people should talk about there problems with someone that they trust. If they hold in all their bad emotions then probably one day they’ll finally snap and do something irrational. They can talk to a therapist about their problems if they don’t have anyone they can trust. A lot of times people do idiotic things when they’re having negative things happening to them, they might even end up hurting someone they care about.

    Reply
  36. Rachel N.

    Rachel N.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English Language & Composition
    9 January 2013

    There are various consequences for burying painful, difficult memories. On a personal level, I know I have stuffed those memories because in my head I thought of it as a shameful experience. The experiences I have had make me feel worthless and unloved. If all I desire is love, why would I desire to reminisce about a time when I felt like I was treated like dirt? Even though this is a logical explanation for pushing my experiences away, it does cause some major damage. The feelings from your experience are still in your head even though it might not be the topic you like to discuss the most. Since my feelings are still there, they are being bottled up and need to come out. The longer you resist to letting them out, the more ugly the time will be when they burst out with no control whatsoever. The recovery might even be worst than the experience. Holding it in is just letting the situation take even more control over you.
    As a society, we do desire for truth from our government and from each other. Most of the time though, we settle for very superficial lives. Beginning in the 1920’s, America transformed into a society where we were into mass media and culture. Materialism became the thing to search for rather than love or security. With our nation focusing on things that don’t even matter, why would truth be dealt with on a much deeper level? The solution to dealing with our emotions is by talking about it with our friends. Of course we don’t want to talk about too much to the point where our problems run our lives, but we all need a good balance of happy healthy memories. Also, ones that were difficult to go through, but shaped who we became as people today.

    Reply
  37. Yarelli Lopez

    Yarelli Lopez
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English Language and Composition
    8 January 2013

    In my personal opinion, I believe that painful and difficult memories should be taken care of with a professional because it is always hard to deal with something like that by yourself. Also it is better to let it out when you can, so you don’t become a timed-bomb that will explote when least expected. Now on a societal level, painful memories should not be hidden from us. They should be told and explained to us because later on it could be something that we could learn from it, ourselves. Anything that is history should become more knowledge to us. Therefore, any sort of memory should be told in order to succeed a feeling of relief.

    Reply
  38. Brittany-Ann D.

    Brittany-Ann V. Dela Cruz
    Keeble
    AP English
    9 January 2013

    Painful and difficult memories should be used as a tool to make the right choices in the future. By remembering bad mistakes, it will prevent the slip-up to be made again. On a personal level, memories should never be pushed aside until forgotten because these same experiences made a stronger and better person. Those who survived the worse have learned lifelong values that can never be taught without learning it through the hard way. As for a society, difficult memories should be a lesson to learn from. It should act as a constant reminder to never commit or repeat the shameful acts of the past. In order for a nation to grow, they must accept their wrong-doings and move on to fixing and improving the problem.

    Reply
  39. Sarai P.

    Sarai Polanco
    AP English
    Keeble
    8 January 2013

    Memories have the ability to leave imprits on who we are and how we react. For myself, painful and difficult memories are not something I long to escape. I perfer to confront the trauma head on, that is the way I cope. I realize however, others cope differently, and/or have experienced some events much more tragic then mine, therefore I could not speak as to how they need to deal. As a society howeer, I feel that we must take traic events like 9/11, and mourn until we feel whole, then continue on improving and learning from our past.

    Reply
  40. Maria

    Maria
    Ms.Keeble
    AP English Per.1

    On a personal lever i think difficult and painful memories will never be forgotten because they were struggles in our lives that made us eather weaker or stronger. Sometimes they will always come back to our memory bringing us that fright for it to occur again. In the other hand, on a societal level i think we should be strong and make those painful memories make us stronger. Make them be the reason for us to do better so that our lives dont fall to that point anymore.

    Reply
  41. Lizeth Jacinto

    Lizeth Jacinto
    Ap. English
    period:1
    8 January 2013
    I believe that memories would never be forgotten no matter how much one tries. The fact that a memory may stay with you because their are always going to be part of your life. painful and difficult to forget because those memories are the ones that usually that teach us life lesson or are mistakes that let us keep on going in life. Memories are what make us who we are and different from others because he have all have different memories. Those painful memories are hard to push into the back of your memory when your no able to accept the fact that is something that is good and that now it all become past.
    as past that is hurtful and that a human been should forget about them as quickly as possible.with out realizing that is what motivates people to keep on going each day to never give to change their present and future from their past. The people of today view memories as just a simple memory with out even image that it could change a person .

    Reply
  42. Rachael B.

    Rachael Brandt
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Period 2
    8 Janurary 2013

    I believe that when I ever have a painful, difficult memory to cope with, it is best that I express the problem in a way that makes me feel better but not including violence. Most people end up surpressing those horrible, traumatic memories, and later in life, it catches up to them. This surpression causes the individual to break down mentally and emotionally and act out in a way that is abnormal such as hysterically cry or with violence. I am pretty sure that if a lot of people had not told someone about how they were feeling, society would be filled with people who do not have the mental and emotional stability to be able to communicate with one another in a way that is natural.
    Despite the fact that talking out a problem may be a good idea in theory, it probably may not be the best choice for some. An example of this would be a person telling another an issue that has been bugging him or her for a while now. That person could react with disgust or truthfully just look at the other as if they had did something that should be shunned forever. It may not be best to regurgitate a haunting memory. Society does look at many things in ways that they feel is unacceptable, causing the individual to become an outcast. Perhaps it is best to tell someone who is understanding, like a therapist.

    Reply
  43. Gonzalo Haro

    Gonzalo Haro

    Repressed memories could often lead to very negative side effects due to the powerful emotion behind them. These negative side effects could include irrational fears, sudden outbursts, intense flashbacks, etc.. Painful memories should be dealt not with repression, but with confrontation. They should be examined and dealt with at that point in time. I would think about whatever was bothering me until it doesn’t bother me anymore. That’s of course something I would do, but that doesn’t mean that everyone is going to do the same thing. A way for society to deal with repressed memories is to talk to people about them. Find someone who cares, or go talk to a psychiatrist about them.

    Reply
  44. Aaron Chon

    Aaron Chon
    Ms Keeble
    AP English 11, Period 2
    09 January 2013

    The action to be taken in the instance of painful and difficult memories should be different in accordance to the severity of the situation. Memories of the most extreme case require phases of coping in order to dispel the immediate shock. In any case, it would be convenient to completely forget the occurrence of such a memory, but this is often difficult and improbable due to visual and audio triggers, as well as mental connections, that may create a link to poor memories. For the sake of the individual, it becomes best to try to completely understand the situation, but real-world experiences prove that this is not as easy as people make it. In any case, an individual should find something that they have learned from the experience, as the experiences define a person just as well as external teachings. Should an individual become unable to properly deal with memories, their actions will become destructive towards themselves or others in some form, reflecting the trauma of their experience.

    Reply
  45. Efrain E.

    Efrain E.
    Period 1
    AP English

    On a personal level I think any individuals that have painful memories should try to resolve their inner conflict and find closure so that they may leave their memories in the past. I know it is probably difficult for an individual to recall difficult memories, let alone find a way to forget them. Talking to others about those memories is one of the best ways to find closure. It helps the individual get out all the feelings that they have bottled up because of that memory and it may even help them get over it. As a society we should try to provide as much support to these individuals as possible. It would be helpful to offer free therapy to individuals that suffer from traumatic and painful experiences. No one should have to go through these experiences alone.

    Reply
  46. Niauni

    Niauni Hill
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Period 1
    08 January 2013

    Painful and difficult memories are things that stay with you forever. They don’t only stay with you, because they’re something you remember, but also because its something that’s painful. It’s more likely to remember things that scar you for the simple fact that they were the things that impacted your life. I think societally, we should embrace those painful and difficult memories, because without those situations how would we know how to adjust? How would we know what pain is? We wouldn’t. Personally, I would take the painful and difficult experiences and make something good of it. I would make something good out of it by rising above all trials and tribulations that the painful and difficult situations has brought upon me.

    Reply
  47. Ross H.

    Ross H
    Keeble
    APENG period 2
    8 January 2013

    I believe that we should keep on repressing them. I think that if you are repressing them, you are doing it for a reason. There’s a reason that they are repressing them. If I were to have a traumatic experience, I would not want to remember it. Forgetting it would be much simpler. It is a way to get over the event. No one has time to continue being shocked, they have to get back to work. Being sad will not do anything to speed up the recovery over what they are sad about. If you are raped or mugged, it is important that you get over it. They need to get rid of their sadness and become happy. Just being happy can help them forget what had happened.Their little sadness is a burden on everyone else. Instead of being a burden on others. They can get over what happened and keep on going. Think of all the people that blame their poverty or how they look on events in their lives. They would never would have gotten to that place if they just forgot. Them forgetting would help out the economy by getting depressed people back into jobs. Repression is a natural device to help people get over horrible events in their lives.

    Reply
  48. Natasha R

    Natasha Ramirez
    Keeble
    AP English
    Period 5

    When it comes to painful memories it can be hard to talk about, but by keeping those memories in you’re hurting yourself more. Personally I cannot relate to that because I have not had traumatic experiences, emotions nonetheless memories should be dealt with. Though there are people who are not comfortable talking to another person about the feelings there are other methods of expressing ones internal conflict. The best way to release problem or experiences would be writing. Writing can be the best way to release all emotions because the paper does not judge you and is confidential, it’s only between you and the paper. Explaining difficult situations is good for the health of the person enough time to make them feel better. Yes, there will be things in life that may not make someone comfortable to talk , but we have to face reality and come to accept that does tragic event happened.

    Reply
  49. Jessica A

    Jessica A.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP. Lang & Composition, Per. 5
    8 January 2013

    Painful, difficult memories should be spoken about with trusted peers, friends, family members, and even therapists. Expressing what you’re feeling internally allows you to refrain from holding weights on your shoulders. Much of what we feel internally is visible externally. For example, when I reminisce about a hardship, my appearance usually explains my thoughts. I become sluggish, apathetic, weary, and extremely irritable. When I think back to the time my grandfather was having unstable heartbeats, I begin to hyperventilate and my hands start to tremble at the thought of losing him. When I speak about the past with my trusted friends, I feel relieved, and speaking to them helps me grasp the struggle and overcome it the best I could. If people within our society withdraw themselves from repressing their feelings, maybe peace would arrive at our doorsteps. For example, the man who was involved in the Connecticut shooting must’ve experienced a lot in his life that essentially drew him to the elementary school. Many of those who rely on drugs for relief from the world are individuals who were troubled and/or are still troubled. Those same individuals are found dead at crime scenes, or in jails for committing crimes. If people learned to let go and speak about their difficult memories, maybe the world would consist of less violence and hatred.

    Reply
  50. Jashleen Singh

    Jashleen Singh
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11 Per 2
    1/8/13

    Painful memories is something that lies within every human being, whether it is obvious or not. The only way to truly deal with this pain is to completely accept it and move on. Ways to accept it could simply be by discussing it with someone you trust. I feel there are other ways to cope with painful memories as well, such as sports. On a personal level, doing Karate lets me escape from anything that emotionally hurts me. On a societal level, I believe the best solution to dealing with painful or difficult memories is to accept it, and move on to a brighter future.

    Reply

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