Do you remember being a child?

[Eatyourbanana]

I have absolutely no memories until the age of about 9 or 10. Even memories I have of that age are few and far between.

My nan always tells me stories of ‘when I was 3 my mum blah blah...’ she thinks there’s something wrong with me I don’t remember anything?!

YABU - I have memories from a young age 3,4,5...

YANBU - I cant remember much, if anything from childhood.

Not really an AIBU, but generally intrigued.

I remember being toilet trained (and being afraid that crocodiles might live in the sewers, bite me in the bum and drag me out to sea ) at age 2.5. My dad remembers a significant event at age 1.5. My mum remembered nothing from before the age if 8. So I'm not sure if early memories are hereditary or that it depends on how much of an impact it made.

Those who DO remember, would you consider your upbringing a happy stable one?

Happy, yes; stable, no. My early life was very eventful and I did feel scared at times but that was due to circumstances of where I was at the time. I was very happy with our family life however and felt loved.

I remember being in a cot and needing a poo. I did it in my nappy but I must have been being potty trained to remember being unsure what to do.

I also remember being left alone with the family dog aged about 3 while my mum went shopping. I made a mess with my toys and was told off when she got home 🙄

I remember something from about 18 months. Also the day my brother was born (3), first day at school (5). How Lever it’s now more that I remember remembering things, if you get me.

I remember things fairly clearly from 2 , my first memory is of getting a pup from Battersea on my sisters 3 rd birthday at which point I was 18 months old . We moved house when I was 4 and I remember loads from the previous house / area .

I remember breaking my arm at about age 7 but nothing what really before 9-10. I used to think I remembered things then realised I actually remember photos I've been shown!
However I have a crap memory now, and forget lots of things so that's probably related!

My earliest memories are when I was crying in a cot when waking one morning wanting my mum and my brother appeared and handed me a cocopops toy... not sure why that sticks out! I also remember being pushed along our street in a buggy singing (the type that's not words but just sounds) and my mum saying "are you singing me a song?" I don't remember anything else from that young. I can't really remember anything from nursery. All the rest of my memories come from school years from around age 4.

I don't think it's that strange that you don't remember a lot. I think it depends on whether any real big events happened during those years. Some of my young memories are things like when a girl at school cut her hair and blamed me and when the teacher took me aside and told me off, I was in tears as I didn't do it. So it's mostly embarrassment or big holidays/events that stick out for me in those early school years.

From starting primary school onwards I have a lot of memories. The earlier ones than that are just flashes, smells, places. DH has far fewer. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that my family always talk about our earlier days and things we did together. Telling the same jokes about the same events over and over, so much so that we all know what's coming but we genuinely laugh along every time. we could all finish our family anecdotes with our eyes closed. I'm sure that in some way keeps that time alive and fleshes our the bones of what I remember. It does give rise to the question of biased or even false memories though I guess. Am I remembering the time I insisted on wearing my roll neck jumper upside down on Xmas day, won the county sports prize, wee'd behind a neighbours tree etc etc because I really remember it or because I've heard the story so many times. Not sure!

I used to think I remembered things then realised I actually remember photos I've been shown!

Yep, if you take out remembering photos, remembering stories you've been told, and false memories, I probably wouldn't have any left.

My earliest memory is from about 5, I have a small handful of memories from before 8.

Earliest memories are from around age 3 before my sibling was born
Early 80’s
My mum had a kind of funnel thing she would put on her tummy to let me hear my baby sibling

I remember the layout of the house too
Open staircase with wooden treads and fuzzy carpet in each stair tread
The staircase was in the living room

Weird little memories

I have several memories aged 2 or 3 or perhaps a little earlier, but don't know what order they are in chronoligically. I remember trying to get out of my cot and not being able to. My cousin falling in a boating lake and having to go home in my spare knickers. Standing up on the seat on a coach trip with my Nanna and singing to the whole coach. Going to nursery and being made to eat rice pudding! These are visual memories mainly, except that I can still hear that song. I cannot recall any new memories of my early life now, just keep re-remembering the old ones. I think early talkers might make earlier memories, not sure.

First memory is moving into our new home when I was 2.5, I remember my mum helping me walk up the front step, and I'd to really lift my leg because it was so high.

nannie that makes sense about early talkers , I have the memory and remember speaking in it - along the lines of “ let me “

i also sometimes find it difficult to distinguish if something is a true memory or whether i’ve been told the story so many times or seen a photo and that i have convinced myself i have remembered it.

I remember my mum bringing my baby sister home and her supervising me holding her when I was 4. Also remember her turning blue coloured and my mum nursing her through pneumonia a few months later.

On the other hand, my DS (27) has no memory at all of his traumatic accident and fracture of femur at age 4.

I remember going to a children's club at a holiday camp and not being able to see anything but a gigantic teddy bear. I was 3 and shortly after was found to be very short sighted!

I have very strong and vivid memories of things from childhood (easily 3yrs +). Silly things like being half asleep in a car on holiday and waking up as we got back to the cottage we were renting because some chicks were in the drive way. I also remember wetting myself on the way to the loo when I was about 4 haha! The shame has obviously stuck with me.
My DH however has no memories from about 9 and younger. (He's 2years older). Whenever I bring stuff up he's never got a clue.

DB not DH!

I remember going to the vets with my dad to have our cat put to sleep, I was about 3.

I think sometimes you have remembered something through out the years and always seem to hold on to that memory so you don't loose it.

Loads of times I've had school friends say "do you remember x" and I don't but remember y instead.

Sometimes I don't even remember a month ago, so it's a bit in peaks & troughs at times.😆

I remember very little. I know of things from my childhood but don't actually remember them. But I don't remember much from adulthood either. I just seem to delete stuff.

I have many memories from 3 and under. Someone broke down out the front of the farm where we lived and had a pony with them. From that moment on, all i wanted was a horse. Finally bought my own at 30 LOL. I remember getting milk straight from the dairy, my favourite bikini for swimming in the creek, playing where mum said not to play and putting a big nail through my foot, melting the soles of my sneakers because I was too close to the heater, our turtle getting stolen from kindy while we were on a day trip to the park - lots of things.

I don't remember my sister badly burning me under the hot water tap - no scars fortunately.

Some from as young as 2. A lot from 3 and onward. The early stuff tends towards intensity. My boot coming off in a snow drift. Tasting a radish.

Nothing before 7, then only incidents that reasonated, like going back to my classroom after an eye test and it was empty, I cried, my class had been taken elsewhere to watch TV and my teacher found me and took the piss. My younger cousin can’t remember anything before he was 17, which is weird, I helped bring him up and remember lots of memories.

I'm 28 and can say i have blocked out a lot of my childhood and teenage years. They were full of emotional abuse and some twisted mixed up. İ still have flash backs of random things. But I think i have unconsciously blocked a lot out as it actually is best i dint remember as i would make myself crazy. But if i think hard enough i remember loads. The brain is weird

Yes I do from being as young as a toddler BUT they are all very random and not in much detail . Like I might remember 1 or 2 Things from being say roughly 5or 6and then a handful more at age 11 or 12 . It never fails to amaze me when I read autobiographies etc how much detail they remember about school days for example , I appreciate they probably pad it out a bit in order to tell the story but still

It worries me sometimes how little I remember infact just recently I was thinking about a relationship I had between age 17-22 (So it ended just over ten years ago ) and how I could barely recall any of our time together