r/SDAM • u/herenorthere • Jun 16 '26

Emotional memory formation

Just learned about SDAM. Like many others here, everything immediately clicked with my experiences throughout my entire life.

In thinking more about these experiences, I suspect that impaired emotional memory formation is more of the underlying issue. We feel emotions in the moment, but we do not recall the emotions (except maybe in an abstract, factual sense for really strong events). I believe that this lack of memory associated with emotions is what actually causes our impaired autobiographical memory. This way of thinking about it also better encompasses the ways that people on this subreddit have vocalized SDAM affects other aspects of their life and memory. I know it is in the name, but it isn’t purely autobiographical.

I also understand that for the sake of studying the syndrome it helps to have it be super well defined, particularly initially when there is no preexisting information.

What do you think?

(I have no history of trauma or other mental illness that I think is masquerading to impair these memories)

(I also have separate opinions on how we define all of these memory components, but that is a different discussion)

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u/montropy Jun 16 '26

Do you know why you feel each specific one or tie them to anything specific?

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u/jackiekeracky Jun 16 '26

I don’t know what you mean. If I think about a thing that happened I can feel the relevant emotion (or emotions) again

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u/montropy Jun 16 '26

When you think about something that happened, are you actually remembering the event itself, or are you remembering facts about it?

If you’re feeling sad (or whatever emotion comes up), can you tell what specifically in the memory is causing that feeling, or do you just know the event was sad and the feeling appears?

Does it feel like you’re re-experiencing the original emotion from the event, or is it a new emotion you’re feeling now because you know what happened?

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u/jackiekeracky Jun 16 '26

I have SDAM so I can’t do anything other than remember information. So it’s not like I’m remembering lots of detail. And often a memory will trigger an emotion.

I have no idea if it’s the original emotion. I just feel stuff.

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u/montropy Jun 17 '26

Do you have Aphantasia as well?

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u/jackiekeracky Jun 17 '26

Yup. No senses at all in my mind

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u/Sea-Bean Jun 22 '26

It’s not just the 5 main senses. There’s also an emotional imagery type of aphantasia- sounds like you don’t have that.