One afternoon, I was having a talk with a friend. It was a very interesting topic, but it ended in the middle. I stood in front of that part, feeling a rush of recognition flood over me. Even though I knew it was my first time having that talk, it felt like I had been there before, standing in the same spot. This occurrence is referred to as “déjà vu”. Up to 97% of people claim to have experienced déjà vu at least once in their lives, with 67% doing so regularly.
What is Déjà Vu and its meaning
“Déjà vu” translate to “already seen” in French. As a dissociative occurrence, déjà vu occurs when a person bizarrely feels familiar with the here and now, as if reliving an unknown past, intriguingly bridging the gap between déjà vu and recollection. This expression was initially used in 1876 by Émile Boirac.
“The Psychology of the Future” by Boirac, a French philosopher, addressed déjà vu. Despite déjà vu’s historical label as a memory recall, these studies have led scientists to conclude that it is actually a memory phenomena. We encounter an event that seems like a real memory, but we can’t quite put our finger on it.
Types of Déjà Vu
There are 3 forms of Déjà Vu that we humans experience
• “Already Lived” (Déjà Vécu) Déjà vécu encompasses all of one’s senses and emotions, going beyond mere visual recognition. In déjà vécu, the experience is more than just seeing what happens; it’s as if you’ve been there, done that. Everything from smells to emotions to sights and noises is frequently a part of this intense and comprehensive experience.
• Déjà Senti (Already Felt) Déjà senti is focused on feelings and thoughts. It feels like you’ve had a certain emotion or thought before, even though it’s taking place for the first time. Unlike déjà vécu, which involves sensory data, déjà senti is more about recalling sentiments or mental states.
• Déjà Visité (Already Visited) Déjà visité is a sort of déjà vu where you have a strong sense of familiarity with a place you’ve never been to before. It’s especially stunning since you can find yourself navigating these strange circumstances with an unexpected feeling of direction and knowledge.
Déjà Vu in Literature
Writers and poets have consistently found the phenomena of déjà vu intriguing, integrating it into their stories and poems to dive into fundamental issues and the essence of human existence. Here are some ways they portray déjà vu in literature.
In many novels, déjà vu is typically related to reincarnation. Characters frequently experience a recognizable connection towards individuals, locations, or occurrences from their prior incarnations.
This idea is evident in writings like “Cloud Atlas” by David Mitchell, where connected storylines across several periods hint at a cycle of rebirth and recurring relationships. Poets and authors often associate déjà vu to dreams, implying that our subconscious may be reliving dream scenes when we face particular real-life circumstances. T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land” catches this idea brilliantly, with its broken memories and dream-like pictures generating a strong feeling of déjà vu.
Scientific Explanations of Déjà Vu
Déjà vu is a captivating and perplexing phenomenon that has captivated scientists and scholars alike. This sense of discovering something that looks strangely familiar, even if you know it’s new, has led to countless investigations aiming at discovering its underlying mechanics.
• Temporal Lobe Activity and déjà vu
The temporal lobe, vital in absorbing sensory data and storing memories, is key to feeling déjà vu. Research reveals that this brain region, especially the hippocampus, is extremely active during déjà vu episodes. This heightened activity assists in clarifying why fresh experiences can feel eerily familiar, as the brain wrongly sees them as memories. Déjà vu is notably noteworthy in the setting of temporal lobe epilepsy, typically being a crucial symptom addressed during clinical examinations for epilepsy.
It’s not simply confined to neurological diseases; déjà vu is also connected to numerous psychiatric disorders. Clinicians routinely question about déjà vu experiences when examining patients for probable epilepsy, as these sensations might provide important insights into the patient’s condition. The relationship with psychiatric diseases further underlines the complexity of déjà vu, demonstrating its relevance across many domains of mental health and neurologic examination.
Some patients with neurological disorders with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) frequently experience déjà vu at the commencement of their seizures. In TLE+ patients, particular deficiencies were observed, contrasting from the general recognition-memory deficits found in a control group of TLE- patients who did not experience déjà vu. MRI scans showed that the medial temporal structures were less impacted in TLE+ individuals than in TLE- patients, with more localized volume decreases in the rhinal cortices of the TLE+ group. This revealed a direct link between déjà vu in TLE and similarity evaluation processes, as specified in cognitive models. This selectivity in identification impairments is rare and of major interest to memory research.
• Brain Imaging Studies
fMRI scans analyze brain activation during déjà vu events. Studies demonstrate that persons who experience déjà vu (DV) have a reduced percentage amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF/ALFF) in specific brain regions when compared with those who don’t (NDV) experience déjà vu. These regions include the mesiotemporal frameworks, putamina, caudate, frontal cortices, parietal cortex, and cingulate cortex. This shows that déjà vu may originate from brief disturbances in brain networks and increased cortical activity. These findings highlight the significance of the default mode network (DMN) in this remarkable phenomena, providing an improved comprehension of the brain’s complex functioning during déjà vu experiences.
Memory is crucial to déjà vu, stemming from an imbalance between recalling prior events and experiencing new ones. When a current experience closely mimics an aspect of a memory, the brain mistakenly recognizes it as familiar, giving that peculiar déjà vu sensation. This often involves the hippocampus and temporal lobe, critical for memory storage and retrieval. Essentially, déjà vu develops because the brain is trying to integrate newly acquired knowledge with existing memories, underlining the complicated and sometimes faulty nature of memory processing.
• Memory and its relationship with déjà vu
Involuntary autobiographical memories (IAMs) and déjà vu are spontaneous phenomena in everyday life. IAMs are unexpected recollections of personal events, while déjà vu is a sensation of deceptive familiarity, when you feel like you recognize a moment but realize the familiarity isn’t true.
Coping with Frequent Déjà Vu
Experiencing déjà vu regularly may give rise to anxiety and bewilderment. It could make you doubt the trustworthiness of your recollection or feel distant from reality. Knowing that déjà vu is often innocuous can help relieve some of these fears. Because déjà vu is a subjective and vague phenomena, it might easily escape the attention of clinical investigators who concentrate on reliability and validity. One of the aspects that make déjà vu essential is its possible adaptive function in lowering unpleasant feelings, acting as a psychological protection mechanism. Discussing this function with a patient can help comprehend the psychological aspects of their personality disorder. This method offers a better insight into how their thoughts work and can be vital for effective treatment. Whether it’s frequent déjà vu or infrequent occurrences, knowing the function of psychology in dream analysis and subconscious processes is crucial to handling this curious phenomenon.
Coping strategies for déjà vu
When déjà vu comes, remind yourself that it’s a common phenomenon.
• Take long breaths and concentrate on the moment to relax your mind.
• Creating a journal of your déjà vu encounters can help you find patterns and triggers. Note the time, place, and how you felt during each occurrence for better insights.
• The practice of meditation and deep breathing techniques can lessen anxiety linked with recurrent déjà vu, helping you remain grounded and relaxed.
• Keeping track of stress and exhaustion is key, as these might heighten déjà vu experiences.
• Make sure you get sufficient exercise and appropriate sleep, and practice relaxing techniques.
•If déjà vu continues to cause problems with your daily life, get expert advice from a psychologist or neurologist. They can offer recommendations and undertake tests to figure out any underlying issues. Embrace these techniques in order to handle your déjà vu efficiently and keep your well-being.
