recovered memory

American  

noun

1. a memory of a past event that has been recalled after having been forgotten or repressed for a long time.

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recovered memory British  

noun

1. the alleged recollection of traumatic events from childhood by a person undergoing psychotherapy See also false memory syndrome

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Etymology

Origin of recovered memory

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

The Franklin case was “the first of the recovered memory persecutions,” said Richard Ofshe, a professor emeritus of social psychology at UC Berkeley and coauthor of “Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, and Sexual Hysteria.”

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 7, 2024

Choking under the pressure of recovered memory, Will jumps in his old car and embarks on a going-back-to-face-my-past road trip to end all road trips.

From Washington Post • May 12, 2017

Egyptian officials said they were preparing to move the recovered memory unit from the ship to the Egyptian coastal town of Alexandria.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2016

In the 1990s, some psychiatrists used a treatment called recovered memory therapy, which encouraged patients to dig deep into their memories and find trauma that could explain their suffering.

From Slate • Apr. 24, 2016

After a momentary effort, he recovered memory enough of what had passed to thank the porter, and to ask whether he would take something himself.

From Armadale by Collins, Wilkie