Déjà vu, Have You Ever Experienced It?

Introduction:

It is generally accepted that healthy individuals experience déjà vu much because of a memory error brought on by the incongruity between sensory input and memory recalling output. This explains why, although we occasionally experience déjà vu, these feelings are not as strong as a completely recalled memory.

Have you ever had a strange experience in life when you glance at something and think in your mind that “Hey! It seems that I have seen this before in my life”. But this feeling that has just surpassed your mind, could be something that you’re watching for the first time in your life, even the place you have never been before. But still there is a strange tickle that remains back in your mind that makes you feel as though you are already familiar with the circumstance before. Nearly everyone in the world has experienced ‘déjà vu’ at some point in their life, even if they didn’t know what it was called for. This feeling can be a little unsettling as well as fascinating.

What is Déjà Vu?

Déjà vu describes the sensation of having a familiarity with something that you have most likely never seen before. To put it another way, déjà vu is the unsettling feeling that our present experience keeps on reminding us that something has been done before but we can’t figure out or remember exactly when it happened. For a very long time, déjà vu has baffled philosophers, neurologists, and writers.

What causes Déjà Vu?

Many theories on what can trigger déjà vu, which means ‘already seen’ in French, started to surface in the late 1800s. People presumed that it might have been caused by mental illness or some form of brain disorder. Or perhaps it was a temporary hiccup in the smooth working of human memory. But it took a long time for the subject to enter the world of science.

Déjà vu is also connected to the beginning of the seizure in epilepsy. The sensation of déjà vu could indicate that an elliptical patient is starting to lose consciousness. 

Clinical neurologist Adam Zemen and his team in the UK conducted the study to ascertain how elliptical déjà vu differs from the common déjà vu felt by healthy people. Except for the higher frequency of incidence in the case of elliptical individuals, the difference between the two was negligible.

Using electrodes in the medial temporal lobe of the brain, it was possible to create the artificial déjà vu in the 1970s. Even specific regions of the medial temporal lobe have been identified to the prevalence of déjà vu in recent studies.

Difference Between ‘Familiarity’ and ‘Recollection’:

Let’s use an illustration to try to understand the difference between ‘familiarity’ and ‘recollection’. Imagine your father enters your room, and you turn to look at him. You are now experiencing a “familiarity” reaction. That differs somewhat from ‘recollection’. “Recollection” would be something like asking oneself, after that glance, “Who is that man? Someone I saw last weekend in a café?”

Present Theory of Elliptical Déjà vu:

According to present theory, abnormal electricity discharges in the brain’s “familiarity” region causes elliptical déjà vu. When this area is hyperactive, the person experiences a sense of familiarity, but there is no accompanying memory, which makes the experience unreal.

The main question that now arises is why a supposed seizure warning sign, déjà vu, occurs in people who do not have epilepsy. According to one theory, déjà vu is a mild form of a seizure that even healthy people occasionally experience. According to renowned Canadian neurosurgeon Wilder Pentfield, a “small seizure” is déjà vu.

Different Kinds of Déjà Vu:

Déjà vu has certain types, and each has their own peculiar traits. The following types of déjà vu are as:

i. Déjà vécu

ii. Déjà reve

iii. Confabulation  

i. Déjà vécu:

Déjà vécu translates as “the moment has already been lived”. When someone has deja vécu, they don’t just feel familiar; they also feel as though the previous moment has already been lived. They even have the feeling that they know what will happen next. 

ii. Déjà-rêvé:

Another type is Déjà-rêvé. One can experience a vivid recollection of their dreams when they have déjà-rêvé. According to studies, the brains of individuals who suffer from epilepsy get electrical stimulation as a result of déjà-rêvé.

iii. Confabulation:

Confabulation is a condition that is sometimes confused with déjà vécu and déjà-rêvé. Usually when déjà vu happens, we are aware whether consciously or unconsciously that something is wrong with our perception. Although we quickly disregard our false sense of familiarity, some people do not. They are so seduced by this feeling of similarity that they attempt to find the justifications of familiarity. As a result of this process, people end up creating fictional stories as a part of past experiences which are simply false and not true. This is a memory disorder that is medically called confabulation.

Who is most prone to déjà vu?

According to research, about two-thirds of the people have had an experience of déjà vu at some point in their lives. It was discovered that scene, location, or conversation is the most typical trigger of déjà vu, although it typically lasts for only a few seconds. It may also be triggered by physical and emotional exhaustion.

Young adults in their 20s and 3s are more likely to suffer déjà vu than children, who rarely do. After that, your chances of experiencing déjà vu decrease. It is believed that epilepsy and seizures are connected to déjà vu in old age.

Additionally, research indicates that longer-term students may experience more déjà vu. The likelihood of experiencing déjà vu increases at night compared to daytime. Regular travelers are also far more likely to suffer déjà vu because they can remember their dreams for longer.

Conclusion:

Finally, for those still reading this blog who have never experienced déjà vu, it can be challenging to understand what it is. It’s a strong, irrational feeling that’s hard to explain and even harder to study. Because of this, it is difficult for scientists and researchers to properly quantify this experience to determine its causes.

In fact, some researchers are doubtful about the existence of déjà vu because they haven’t had the experience. For them, other researchers working on déjà vu may seem like they are doing research on ghosts.