Adults: What are your earliest memories?

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Also, what are they mostly of? Places? People? Events?

I ask because we had a discussion on this in class, and many of my classmates were able to recall events in detail from as early as 5 years old. I have some visual memories (buildings and video games) from around 7-8, but I don't really recall anything that happened before 12-13. I'm wondering if others find this unusual or might have a similar experience, and also if anyone has any insight as to whether this could be related to Asperger's or ADHD. Thanks.

My 2nd birthday cake, I keep remembering weird emotions from then too, almost fearish. Maybe at the candles?

I can remember from 2 onwards, only certain events / experiences and just random memories.

My first memory is from when I was 2 and I was taken to the hospital for an operation. I remember the ridiculously bright lights and (scary) men in masks taking me from my favourite auntie who I was clinging to as hard as I could. I remember the injections and the gas mask etc. I also remember waking up afterward and not being able to see anything properly, I was seeing 4 of everything for the next week or so. Not very pleasant.

I remember riding a horse for the first time with my auntie when I was 2 and a half, she had me in front of her holding me there. I think I liked being so high and of course the horse seemed huge to me which only made it more awesome.

Most of my other memories are of people, places, animals, events although I have an extremely good and detailed long term memory, I remember quite a lot actually. Pity I can't say the same for my short term memory, that's like teflon.

Last edited by Kjas on 29 Mar 2012, 5:25 am, edited 2 times in total.

Wow, that's really way back I can imagine seeing a flame for the first time would be frightening. I wonder if we're conditioned to accept it by the delicious cake that's underneath... (Mmm, cake...)

I know I have some memories from when I was 5 or younger because we moved when I was 5 and I have some memories of the old house.

I remember going to hospital when I had fever I was 3. the doc was amazed I was so active with high fever and everything. I dont have an eidetic memory but I can recall feelings and smells from memory well.

I remember events and what I did a lot from two. My best memory from that far back is my father spilling a pot of boiling water over my head. I also remember the home decor very well at my grandparents house, then our apartment after we moved out. I have many clear memories from early childhood. It is fun to replay them.

I can remember sitting in my buggy (stroller) and peering at my Mum, through a metal button or stud (I don't know what they're called, hole through the middle thingy you see on fabric). I would have been two, as the buggy was no longer used after I was about 2 1/2.

My oldest memory is something that happened a number of times. That is probably why it stuck in my memory all this time. I am in my early 50s now, but I remember being back in my crib, somewhere around the age of 2-3, in the middle of the night, in my sleeper thingy with feet on it. I would be standing up holding the top cross bar on the side of the crib, swaying back and forth, chanting "Mommy, Daddy, I want wawa", over and over again, until one of my parents would come and bring me water. This happened on a frequent basis, so it is engraved on my memory.

Another old memory from that far back is of a spooky night mare I had on a number of occasions back then. There was a spooky horse in the night mare, and spooky night scenes.

I have a few dim memories of doctor visits from around that time, too.

I also have some dim memories of nursery school, and of the house we lived in until I was almost 5. I also remember a neighbor from across the street there, who occasionally baby sat me at her house. She had two boys somewhat older than me, who were in school already. I would sometimes play with their toys, including the Mouse Trap game, although there was no one to play with. Their mother's name was Lilian, but I couldn't handle it at that young age, so I called her Lala. She and her family moved back to Norway decades ago, but she and my mother wrote a couple of times a year until my mother died. I tried writing her after my mother died to let her know, but my letter came back undelivered. Apparently there was either something wrong with the address in my mother's address book, or they had moved, or Lala had passed away. I do know that she and her husband had health problems in the last few years that my mother wrote to them.

I also remember a neighbor diagonally behind us, who kept bees, and the lot right behind us, and next to the bee keeper was undeveloped, so the bees got a lot of pollen and nectar from the wild flowers growing there. I remember the wasps that kept making nests in the porch eaves, and also tried to make nests in the dog house. Neither the dog, nor I liked the wasps. I remember we occasionally used the fireplace at that house, and toasted marshmallows there. I can remember the basement. Part of it was a workshop, and the other part had the laundry, and some unused room, until that part was turned into a recroom. My father put some large black and white patterned tile or linoleum down in that area, with some seating and a second black and white TV. I remember watching cartoons, like Felix the Cat, and bugs bunny down there. I remember we had orange sofas up in the living room and I remember sitting or lying on them with my sister once when we had a stomach virus.

I have a lot of early memories. Unfortunately, my school memories were all bad, so I won't go there.

My first memory's from when I was a little younger than 1 year old. But I only have one memory from that early. The next memory I have is from when I was 3 and broke my arm (on my 3rd birthday). From 3 onwards I have quite a good and detailed memory.

[Not sure if I should really participate in this thread as using the term "Adult" for me is somewhat debatable...]

One of my earliest memories was when I was about nearly 3 I think, and I remember I had a Humpty Dumpty rattle that I liked, and I was playing with it one day and it somehow went under the sofa but I didn't tell anyone I had lost it because I didn't talk then. I never saw it again. It's all very vague though but I remember the image of the rattle quite well.

I remember some events that happened when I was at pre-school age, but I can't tie them to a specific age. Sometime between age 3 and 5 I guess.

One thread says it's an ''Aspie thing'' to have early memories, another thread says it's ''an Aspie thing'' to not have early memories....

Anyway, my earliest memories were mostly at preschool, when I was 3 years old. And when I was 16 I went back there to do work experience, and the inside of the building was exactly how I remembered it, so it must've been stuck in my mind as clear as daylight.

I also have lots of memories all through my childhood. Often when my cousins come round (who grew up with me) we often sit and play the ''do you remember when...?'' game, where we remember different things we did together in our childhood.

Most of my memories of my early age are pictures. I remember a few from nursery school, from around the age of 2-3. The playground, a sleeping session inside the house when I rubbed and pushed my eyes to see the black spot appear on the opposite side, the singing of the birds, the place where our clothes were changed, food (the first time I ate paprika), some toys. I don't remember people, other than I know there were people... I guess I also remember my first day at preschool, I felt lonely and uncertain.

I must have been 3 when I remember I was in the hospital waking up, possibly from anesthesia, and there were blood spots here and there on the clothes. I also remember a time when pictures of me and my twin sister were taken at around the age 2 (judging from the pictures). I was asked to go out of the room while photos were taken of her, I remember asking why.

This is an account of a couple of my earliest memories that I had posted on another thread similar to this one.

Here is the earliest memory that I clearly have. It was late evening and growing very dark. My parents placed me on the center section of the sectional couch. Dad was on one end, and Mom on the other. And I lay there listening to the strong claps of thunder as lightning illuminated the house. The lightning became the only lights in the house as the electricity went out. Then there was a tremendous rushing of wind outside as Mom and Dad secured me between them.

That event happened during the spring of 1965 when I was six months old. There was a tornado only a few miles away from our house. It is still a vivid clear memory.

I also have very clear memories of a tornado that struck our community in 1968 when I was three years old. I remember what we were doing before it struck, during the wind, and what we did afterwards---we went to the grocery store (there was hail everywhere and a lot of our house's paint had peeled off along with several shingles).

One of my earliest memories is of me when I was about 2 years old. I got lost in a grocery store and I walked up to one of the guys who worked there. I told them my full name, "My name is _________ _________ _______ and I can't find my mommy." My mum had always told me to say that if I ever got lost. He then proceeded to walk me around the grocery store until we finally found my mum. I have vague memories of when I was 2, like potty training...my potty was in the kitchen. lol I remember watching E.T and crying when he died. I was also slightly scared of that movie. I remember watching "You Can't Do That on Television" and "The Muppet Show" every Sunday night. I remember the little Muppet yogourt cups with the different characters as well that you could buy from the grocery store.