What is deja vu and why do we often experience it?

Thursday 14 April 2022

We may already be familiar with the term deja vu, then why do we actually experience deja vu and what causes us to experience deja vu in our daily lives.

Deja vu itself is a term created by a psychologist named Emilie Boirac in 1876. Deja vu itself comes from French which means "ever felt" or "ever seen". The definition of deja vu itself is the feeling that what we are experiencing now, has happened in the past and we can even guess what will happen next.

This feeling can last for 10-30 seconds. And many people who experience déj vu are associated with mystical things, but in fact deja vu itself can be explained scientifically.

Here are some theories that can cause dejavu

The events of déj vu have been studied by several scientists for years. Therefore, deja vu is explained through several theories as follows:

1. The theory of split perception

This theory explains that déj vu can occur when people see the same thing at different times. So the brain will form memories in one glance even though in a very short time.

For example, when we take public transportation, we pass a building, because we are not focused while playing on cellphones, the next day we take the same vehicle and pass that building and suddenly in your mind you say "hah, I seem to have seen this building before". So, at this moment, deja vu occurs.

2. The theory of memory recall

If the split perception theory occurs in the same location, the memory recall theory takes place in a different place but with a similar atmosphere. Suppose you go to a Japanese-style cafe in the Blok M area and suddenly in your mind you say "It seems familiar with that building". It turns out that the interior of the building is similar to the cafe in Japan that you have visited before.

Recall memory theory says dejavy is caused by the brain's response to events that have been passed before. For example, childhood memories, vacations, and even the smell of food or the smell of perfume can bring you back to those days.

3. Brain circulation disorders

Deja vu can also be caused due to brain circulation disorders or minor brain circuit malfunctions. We have 2 stores in our brain, believe in short term memory and long term memory. Deja vu occurs when the brain incorrectly responds to events that are taking place.

Supposedly, what you see now is stored in short-term memory but at that time the brain brings it to long-term memory. When the incident repeats itself, you feel like it happened in the past. In fact, you just felt a few minutes ago.

4. Temporal lobe seizures

This is generally only experienced by people with epilepsy, stroke, tumors or abnormalities of blood vessels in the brain. The temporal lobe of the brain is responsible for processing emotions and storing short-term memories.

Temporal lobe seizures cause a person's response to the surrounding environment to be decreased and it can occur repeatedly. When seizures occur, they may be hallucinating and feel deja vu.

Those are some theories about deja vu which are explained by several scientists.

But if someone asks whether deja vu is dangerous?

According to research, déj vu is more common in teenagers because their schedule of activities is more crowded, which triggers stress and affects the work of the brain.

But it's not dangerous, because like our brain is a computer, there will be errors from time to time in processing information.

Some people have experienced déj vu maybe 1 or 2 times in a few years. However, if you experience déj vu every day and it is already interfering with your activities, it is better for you to go to the hospital for a consultation with a doctor.

• Lead image from unsplash

Thank you for reading hopefully useful.