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Did you catch yourself thinking that what had just happened had already happened to you? Usually this state is given such a definition as the effect of deja vu, in a literal translation «previously seen». And today I will try to reveal to you the theories that scientists rely on to explain how and why this happens to us.
A bit of history
This phenomenon was paid attention to in ancient times. Aristotle himself was of the opinion that this is just a certain state that arises due to the influence of various factors on the psyche. For a long time it was given names such as paramnesia or promnesia.
In the 19th century, one French psychologist, Émile Boirac, became interested in researching various mental effects. He gave paramnesia a new name that still exists today. By the way, at the same time he discovered another mental state, completely opposite to this, called jamevu, which is translated «never seen». And it usually manifests itself when a person suddenly realizes that a place or a person becomes completely unusual for him, new, although there is knowledge that he is familiar. It was as if such simple information was completely erased in my head.
Theories
Everyone has their own explanations, someone is of the opinion that he saw what was happening in a dream, thus having the gift of foresight. Those who believe in the transmigration of souls claim that exactly the same events took place in a past life. Someone draws knowledge from the Cosmos … Let’s try to find out what theories scientists offer us:
1. Failure in the brain
The most basic theory is that there is simply a malfunction in the hippocampus, which causes such visions. This is the part of the brain that is responsible for finding analogies in our memory. It contains proteins that perform the function of pattern recognition. How it works? Our convolutions create in advance something like «cast» faces of a person or environment, and when we meet someone, we meet, in this very hippocampus these «Blind» pop up as just received information. And then we begin to puzzle over where we could see it and how to know, sometimes endowing ourselves with the abilities of great soothsayers, feeling like Vanga or Nostradamus.
We found this out through experiments. Scientists from the United States in Colorado offered subjects photographs of famous people of various professions, as well as sights that are familiar to many. The subjects had to say the names of each person in the photo and the names of the suggested places. At that moment, their brain activity was measured, which determined that the hippocampus was active even in those moments when the person had no idea about the image. At the end of the study, these people explained what happened to them when they simply did not know what to answer — associations with the image in the photo arose in their minds. Therefore, the hippocampus began violent activity, creating the illusion that they had already seen it somewhere.
2. False memory
There is another interesting hypothesis about why deja vu occurs. It turns out that it is not always possible to rely on it, since there is a phenomenon called false memory. That is, if a failure occurs in the temporal region of the head, then unknown information and events begin to be perceived as already familiar. The peak of activity of such a process is the age from 15 to 18 years, as well as from 35 to 40.
The reasons are different, for example, adolescence is very difficult, lack of experience affects the perception of the world around us, to which they most often react sharply and dramatically, with very intense emotions that sometimes knock stability out from under their feet. And to make it easier for a teenager to cope with this condition, the brain, with the help of a false memory, recreates the missing experience in the form of deja vu. Then it becomes easier in this world when at least something is more or less familiar.
But at an older age, people live through a midlife crisis, feeling nostalgic for young times, feeling a sense of regret that they did not have time to do something, although the expectations were very high ambitions. For example, at the age of 20 it seemed that by the age of 30 they would definitely earn money for their personal house and car, but at 35 they realize that not only did they not reach the goal, but they practically did not come close to it, because the reality turned out to be completely different. Why tension increases, and the psyche, in order to cope, seeks help, and then the body activates the hippocampus.
3. From the point of view of medicine
Doctors are of the opinion that this is a mental disorder. In the course of research, it was found that the déjà vu effect occurs mainly in people with various memory defects. Therefore, one should carefully consider the fact that attacks of insight did not often make themselves felt, as this indicates that the condition is deteriorating, and may well develop into prolonged hallucinations.
4. Forgetfulness
The next version is that we simply forget something so much that at some point the brain resurrects this information, combining it with reality, and then there is a feeling that something like this has already happened somewhere. Such a substitution can occur in people who are very curious and inquisitive. Because, having read a huge number of books and owning a large amount of information, such a person, for example, getting into an unfamiliar city, comes to the conclusion that in a past life, apparently, she lived here, because there are so many familiar streets and it’s so easy to navigate them. Although, in fact, the brain reproduced moments from films about this city, facts, lyrics from songs, and so on.
5. Subconscious
When we sleep, the brain simulates probable life situations, which then really coincide with reality. In those moments when we notice that once it was exactly the same as now, our subconscious turns on and gives that piece of information that is usually not available to consciousness. You can learn more about the work of the subconscious mind from this article.
6.Hologram
Modern scientists are also puzzling over how to explain this phenomenon, and have come up with a holographic version. That is, pieces of a hologram of the present time coincide with pieces of a completely different hologram that took place a long time ago, and such layering creates a deja vu effect.
7.Hippocampus
Another version associated with malfunctions in the gyrus of the brain — hippocampus. If it functions normally, a person is able to recognize and distinguish the past from the present and the future and vice versa. To find the difference between only the experience gained and already learned long ago. But some kind of illness, up to severe stress or prolonged depression, can disrupt the activity of this gyrus, then it, like a computer that has turned off, works through the same event several times.
8. Epilepsy
People with epilepsy are prone to experiencing this effect frequently. In 97% of cases they encounter it about once a week, but at least once a month.
Conclusion
And that’s all for today, dear readers! I want to note that none of the above versions has yet been officially recognized. In addition, there is a considerable part of people who have never lived like this in their lives. So the question is still open. Subscribe to blog updates so as not to miss the release of new news on the topic of self-development. Bye Bye.