What is nostalgia

This article was developed under the heading: Psychology.

Section: Feelings.

From time to time, each of us, alone with ourselves or among friends and relatives, indulges in memories. Memories can be joyful, sad, which you want to return to or, on the contrary, forget completely. However, not all memories in a row are called nostalgia. In this article, we will figure out what memories are called “nostalgia”, and how does it arise in a person?

Let's figure out how to deal with moments of nostalgia

Nostalgia has been known to mankind since the 16th century. At that time, the feeling of nostalgia was attributed to a number of diseases such as melancholy and depression. Some doctors have conducted studies on people susceptible to nostalgia. Jean Jacques Rousseau noted that city residents experience a similar feeling towards nature and the countryside, especially in cases where they spent their childhood and youth in such areas.

And, for example, the Swiss doctor Johann Hofer noticed that young people and students are characterized by a feeling of nostalgia at the time when they left for study. Being far from home, the students experienced some sadness and memories of home and family, however, upon returning home, their condition almost instantly returned to normal. It was Hofer, based on his observations and research, who identified three stages of the disease “nostalgia”:

The person becomes distant, avoids society and other people. Strives to remain alone with himself and indulges in memories and thoughts about home;
Ceases to feel positive emotions regarding events occurring in reality. Sleep and appetite disturbances occur.
In situations where it is not possible to return home or to another object of sad memories, a person experiences nervous tension, falls into melancholy, and his body is exhausted. This condition was observed, as a rule, among soldiers at the front, who understood that there was practically no chance of returning to their family.

A little nostalgia is normal in everyone's life.

But what is nostalgia in our time? The concept of nostalgia in modern society is viewed somewhat differently than in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The word nostalgia comes from the Greek nostos - returning home and algos - pain, suffering, that is, literally nostalgia for the past is a longing for home, past events.

Many people believe that the feeling of nostalgia is only sad, however, this is not entirely true. In the modern understanding, nostalgia is a feeling that covers a wide range of emotions, and the objects are not only native lands, but also other moments of life: childhood, loved ones, favorite activities, significant events, and so on.

Nostalgia is a state when a person remembers some events from life that he would like to return to; most often they are accompanied by light sadness and longing for the past, for that time. Therefore, for the most part, there is no need to struggle and cope with this condition.

What is the term nostalgia from the point of view of modern science?

The feeling of nostalgia, known to almost every person, is explained not only by the desire to be in the past, to remember events that happened earlier, but also by the work of the brain and nervous system. Therefore, we will further find out what nostalgia is from a scientific point of view. Modern science explains the emergence of a nostalgic mood with a person’s emotional state.

In psychology, it is believed that this emotional state is a protective mechanism of the brain and the body as a whole. For example, when you are nostalgic for events from childhood, games with friends, the memories that come, as a rule, are of a positive nature. That is, we remember pleasant events, regardless of whether we experienced any negative emotions - we simply do not remember them. Thus, a substitution or “filter” of memories occurs in a person’s memory, thanks to which we remember only pleasant emotions when remembering, which are accompanied by light sadness due to the inability to return to that time.

Where is nostalgia born in the brain?

There is no doubt that nostalgic feelings originate in the brain. This has been proven by scientists through studies of brain activity. Japanese scientists recorded the state of a person and the functioning of the brain in people at the moment when they looked through their childhood photographs. The strongest feeling of nostalgia appeared among older people remembering their childhood and youth.

Areas of the brain called the hippocampus and ventral striatum are responsible for the emergence of nostalgic memories. The hippocampus is the area of the human brain that stores memories. The ventral striatum is responsible for human reward, encouragement for certain actions, reactions and processes of the body. Thus, as an emotional state for a healthy person, nostalgia can even be useful. And in the case of mental disorders and depressive states, it can worsen a person’s well-being.

Moments of nostalgia can cause both negative and positive emotions

Is nostalgia a good or bad feeling?

Many psychologists who study the state of nostalgia clearly cannot answer the question whether this feeling is good or vice versa. Many similar processes that occur in the human brain have different effects on his nervous system, mental state and general well-being. Therefore, experts do not dare to talk about unambiguous benefits or harm, since in each specific case this happens in its own way.

The state of nostalgia is considered completely normal when a person remembers his past and pleasant events with warmth. Sometimes nostalgia can be like reflection. Reflection is a state in which a person is able to analyze his actions, ongoing events, and processes the experience gained. Of course, with pleasant memories of places and times where you had a good time, you want to return to them. However, a person clearly understands that it is impossible to return to the past and accepts this without plunging into deep sadness from the unreality of returning to those times.

In other situations, when a person is immersed in memories and “stuck” in them for a long time, so deeply immersed in suffering from the impossibility of returning that such a state begins to harm him. In cases of mental disorders, prolonged bad mood, depression and nervous exhaustion, nostalgic memories can drag him into that pool and hinder recovery. That is, a person literally becomes fixated on the past, does not want to return to real life and replaces it with memories, fantasies and illusions.

Thus, nostalgia can cause both harm and benefit to a person. It all depends on the ability to control your thoughts and emotions, as well as on the mental and psychological characteristics of each individual person.

Nostalgia does not always imply the development of problems in a person’s psychology or mental health

The role of nostalgia in human life

All people have a past, it is impossible to get rid of it, unless, of course, we are talking about individual cases when amnesia (memory loss) occurs.

What role does nostalgia play in a person’s life? If we talk about nostalgia as a way of a defensive reaction, then nostalgic states can largely protect mental states from past experiences or failures. This happens because in most cases, memories are processed, that is, negative emotions and unpleasant memories are eliminated and replaced with positive and pleasant ones. Thus, it is easier for a person to survive any stage of life without being subject to constant regret about what was done.

Nostalgia allows you to move on, live life to the fullest and not look back at past failures and problems that cannot be changed, but can be avoided or prevented in the future.

Nostalgia is one of the mechanisms of reflection. Thanks to memories, a person is able to draw conclusions based on them and analyze his actions. In this way, people can understand what skills they lack and engage in self-education, or learn to control their emotions, realize themselves and even find new goals in life.

Nostalgic moods allow a person to gain new motivation in achieving desired goals or improving their standard of living. For example, remembering how it was not easy for their parents to provide for them in childhood, a person works hard and strives to earn as much as he considers necessary to provide for his family. Or they understand how much work it took to provide for a family for their parents and they want to thank them, for example, by providing them with everything that their parents refused for a long time for the sake of their children. There are a large number of such examples; in different cases, nostalgia can have different effects on people and encourage them to commit certain actions and make decisions.

Appreciate the past, but look forward to the new.

If we dwell on the past, we risk missing the beauty of what is happening now. Isaiah 43:18-19 says, “But you do not remember the former things, neither do you think about the old things. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it will appear; Don’t you really want to know that too? I will make a road in the desert, rivers in the desert.”

If we cling to the past, hoping to return to it, we miss the miracles God is doing now. There is no need to focus on the past - we need to move forward, go through this transitional period in life, knowing that “the best, of course, is yet to come.”

Pastor Daniel Darling wrote: “The gospel is not nostalgia. In the Gospel we are instructed to look back, not to some mythical golden age, but to the cross, where sin and death were defeated.”

The gospel does not call us back, it calls us forward. When I graduated from college, I was afraid of the future because I wasn't sure what lay ahead of me. And yet, even though I loved studying there, I don’t want to go back. After all, how many people I would not have known, how many friends I would not have made, if I had remained who I was in college. So as we look forward to the New Year, I am grateful for the past but excited for the future.

Thank you, passing year, for the tears that made us stronger, for the laughter that made us deeper, for the people who helped us become better people, and for God's gifts in big and small. And to you, coming New Year, I will say: “Be cool and wonderful, filled with good stories that only God can write.”

What is nostalgia like?

Many sources identify only three types of nostalgia regarding the object of memory. Let's look at these types of nostalgia in more detail.

Nostalgia for home and homeland

Most people who have ever moved or had to leave their homes for a while experience nostalgic feelings for them. The occurrence of longing for the past does not depend on how well they are now in another place, that is, even in those cases when, having left their native places, a person has achieved great success, public recognition and financial wealth.

Homesickness is a common type of nostalgia, especially nowadays, when many people are looking for a place where they will be better off. At the same time, memories of their native lands remain forever and, as a rule, people remember them with warmth and try to visit these places.

People who can feel nostalgia for home are:

students who went to study in another city;
people who decided to change their place of residence. Nostalgia is possible even in cases where a person did not leave the city, but moved to another house, area, street, and so on;
people who are on long business trips or work on a rotational basis (that is, they leave, for example, for several months to their place of work);
military personnel, soldiers who serve in military units;
were forced to migrate to another country;
other categories and life situations.

Nostalgia for past events and the past

This type is most often experienced by those people who are dissatisfied with current events in life or insufficiently bright life events. Emotional impressions in the past attract and, as a rule, with age, the attitude towards events changes, as well as our impressionability. Often a person may feel that his life has become gray and boring, unlike his youth, so people return to those events with the help of nostalgia.

The feeling of nostalgia is directly related to human feelings and emotions

Nostalgia for an individual or group of people

People are capable of feeling nostalgia for a specific person, especially in cases where this person was their loved one, relative, lover or friend. Situations often occur in life when you have to part with dear people for various reasons - death, separation, breakup, quarrels and others. Communication with other people is an important part of our life, during which we experience a large number of positive emotions and feelings. This is why a person returns to memories of a loved one who is no longer with him. She remembers his words, joint activities, pleasant moments and other things. When we remember or replay a particular situation, the body produces hormones of happiness, the same ones that the person experienced in that real situation.

Other types

In addition to the above types of nostalgia, only a few sources highlight several more:

Nostalgia as a habit of denial

This type occurs in situations where a person is acutely lacking in what happened or happened in the past. When remembering past events, the human mind accepts only positive events. Therefore, there is a feeling that now everything is happening much worse, without taking into account and remembering all the negative aspects of the past

Collective nostalgia

Collective nostalgic moods arise in situations when a group of people remembers the events that happened to them together. This often happens when people get together and spend time together; such meetings are also sometimes called nostalgic evenings. They are united by something in common, for example, joint projects, vacations, trips they went on together and many other situations. As a rule, this is precisely that bright sadness for the past and is perceived positively by everyone

Removing dental plaque at the dentist

Dentists have enough products in their arsenal to help clean soft plaque on teeth and stubborn tartar. Before the procedure, the specialist can use indicators to help the patient see areas where daily hygiene is insufficient. Cleaning will then be carried out in three stages.

Ultrasonic scaler treatment. The device creates vibrations that break up mineralized deposits. And with a stream of water they are washed away from the tooth surface. The method is absolutely safe, does not heat, scratch or injure the enamel.
Air Flow cleaning. The doctor uses a sandblaster in which water and cleaning powder are mixed. Under air pressure, the flow is directed to contaminated areas. Soft deposits, pigmentation, and biofilm are removed under pressure.
Polishing. The procedure is completed by treating the enamel with a special polishing paste, which makes the surface absolutely smooth and prevents food particles and biofilm from adhering to it. After the procedure, the feeling of cleanliness and freshness lasts for a long time.

The stone in the interdental spaces is removed with a special tape - a strip. It can have different degrees of roughness and is selected by the doctor depending on the type of deposits. Finish cleaning the interdental areas by polishing with a smooth strip, which makes them smooth and resistant to plaque accumulation.

Why do we feel nostalgia

The emergence of nostalgic memories occurs in each person due to different circumstances. Experts identify several of the most common human conditions in which people become more prone to nostalgia:

Dissatisfaction with oneself, what is happening, the present reality;
Own uncertainty, self-doubt;
Loneliness, feeling of uselessness and helplessness;
Severe fatigue, excessive physical and mental stress;
Non-acceptance by society, loved ones, misunderstanding;
Feeling of vulnerability of any nature (emotional, financial, etc.).

In such states, which have a negative impact on mood, emotionality and mental stability, a person is prone to nostalgic experiences in order to fit into a comfortable environment. Memories of pleasant events have a positive effect on the production of happiness hormones, which a person so lacks in moments of vulnerability.

Scientists have proven that a feeling of nostalgia helps a person regain self-confidence, increases self-esteem and helps a person feel important again.

Thus, well-being and mental state improve, mood improves and the person gets rid of those factors that oppressed him. That is, nostalgic memories are a tool that a person uses in order to regain mental and psychological balance.

Benefit for health

Over time, attitudes towards nostalgia have improved. It is now believed to have many positive mental effects. Psychology professor Christine Batcho found that nostalgia can increase positivity and creativity. The calming feeling of nostalgia can also reduce stress. Nostalgia may even help with depression, as memories can prevent feelings of loneliness and anxiety. What's more, nostalgia also helps strengthen social skills and personal relationships.

When can nostalgia appear?

When exactly can people feel nostalgia? Experts primarily correlate the occurrence of a nostalgic state with mental causes, the mental and psychological state of a person. For example, in moments when a person experiences stress for a long time and is exposed to stressful situations, he tries to psychologically escape from what is happening. There are many ways to get away from stress, for example, doing what you love, taking a walk and listening to music. Other people try to immerse themselves in a nostalgic state, which makes their souls feel warm and calm, as if they are trying to escape from reality.

Sometimes our memories emerge unexpectedly, such as seeing an object, smelling a familiar smell, or hearing a song. There are times when you smell a familiar smell from childhood and by chance memories from childhood arise from this smell. For example, the well-known smell of autumn leaves or freshly cut grass can remind a person of childhood walks with his parents, which brought a lot of joy and happiness. Or the taste of your favorite sweets from childhood and even porridge prepared by your grandmother.

As for music, well-known and familiar songs and individual sounds can also awaken memories of moments in life where the song was played. Sometimes such songs are also called iconic or in a group of people they consider it “their” song and associate it with shared pleasant memories and events from the past.

Some psychologists associate the emergence of memories of smell, taste or music with emotional anchors. An emotional anchor is the object with which the occurrence of a certain emotion or mood is associated. That is, a person’s state seems to become attached to a specific thing and in subsequent meetings with this object it arises again. In extremely stressful situations, a person may even feel déjà vu.

Nostalgia can be caused by different triggers

Nostalgia of modern society

In modern society, nostalgia is perceived differently by each person. However, experts identify several eras, periods of time, about which modern people are nostalgic much more often. Of course, the object of nostalgia largely depends on the person’s age. We will consider these periods further.

Many people whose childhood was in the 90s remember this time with warmth, even despite the fact that this period of time was very difficult. At that time, children's entertainment was walking on the street and inventing all sorts of active games, for example, Cossack robbers.

It was then that the first games and items appeared that all the children of the 90s dreamed of - Tamagotchi, Tetris, Dandy consoles and others. And now adults, when they see these toys, involuntarily associate them with their childhood and that time period, their friends and other memories.

This period of time is best known for the fact that the Olympics were held in Moscow, and new technical means appeared that were previously inaccessible to people. The Olympic bear, tin badges and the first bouncy balls - all this allows people to plunge into nostalgic memories.

USSR

The period of the Soviet Union is remembered by many people with particular nostalgia, mostly due to the fact that people were united by a special atmosphere of unity, brotherhood and sincerity. Such landmarks are valued by many people even now, although in modern society they are much less common, according to some people. This is why people tend to be nostalgic for those times when everything was so simple and sincere.

(h2) Is nostalgia good or bad?

Many people are concerned about whether this is a good thing or not. For each person, the nostalgic mood is felt differently. For some, this literally becomes a salvation from life’s difficulties, which is confirmed by many psychologists. Others experience negative emotions, associating bright sadness for the past with weakness and excessive daydreaming. It all depends on the character and psychological characteristics of people.

Nostalgia is a controversial phenomenon. So, for example, in the event of the loss of a loved one or his death, a person falls into nostalgia. He remembers what united them, what his favorite dishes were, words of encouragement that are so necessary in difficult life moments. Thus, with the help of nostalgia, a person better experiences separation and psychological shock after what happened.

In other situations, with constant memories of one’s loss, obsessive and excessive nostalgic states, the mental state can collapse and the person becomes susceptible to mental disorders. The inability or difficulty in experiencing loss to stop nostalgic attacks can cause serious harm to a person, up to the emergence of suicidal thoughts and the desire to leave for someone who is no longer around.

Can nostalgia hurt you?

Excessive nostalgia can be dangerous and harmful to humans. First of all, nostalgia is an illusion and it is worth remembering that our memory is capable of erasing negative moments that would bring nostalgic memories closer to real ones.

Immersed in exclusively pleasant memories, a person stops reacting positively to reality with all the small problems that can happen in our lives. This makes the person himself regret that he is in this time and cannot return everything back. Such thoughts cause uncertainty, helplessness and dissatisfaction with life.

There are situations when a person’s psyche seems to have blocked some negative memories, and excessive nostalgic memories can activate them again. These could be childhood mental and psychological traumas, situations that have already happened once in the past. As a result, a person again plunges into those experiences that can cause even greater harm to his psyche and lead to the development of mental illnesses that have a detrimental effect on his health and condition as a whole.

Excessive occurrence of memories of the past can develop a higher level of infantilism in a person. Infantility is a condition in which childish behavior patterns are preserved, that is, a person is considered psychologically immature.

Such a phenomenon as excessive infantilism leads to the fact that a person loses the ability to bear responsibility, make independent decisions and exist among adults.

Who shouldn't indulge in nostalgia?

As we have already told you, nostalgia is not always a positive thing. But for some people it can be destructive.

For example, the tendency for people who are depressed to remember the past can worsen their condition significantly. Depressed people get stuck in a fantasy world and do not want to leave this state, thus losing the ability to exist in reality. With nostalgia, people with depression become more emotional and more often indulge in sadness and sadness, which aggravates their condition.

Excessive memories make a person more conservative. Sometimes to such an extent that he begins to deny everything new, including the appearance of technical means and objects that in our time greatly simplify people’s lives. Elderly people are most often susceptible to excessive conservatism against the background of nostalgia. Older people deny many things that have come into our lives over time.

Strong longing and sadness for past events can also be harmful for those who are overly emotional. In such a situation, a person is able to think that present reality is a complete torment with constant problems and failures, which, according to his memories, did not exist at all in the past.

There are also situations in which a person seems to lose himself, remaining faithful only to his memories. There is an inability to live in the present reality, to develop and have the knowledge and skills that are necessary for life in modern society.

For emotional people, it’s best not to indulge in excessive nostalgia.

Sediment color

By the color of the plaques, the dentist can judge the patient’s health status and habits.
Usually the surface of the teeth is covered with a yellow, loose mass, but sometimes its color can change. It becomes brown as it mineralizes - hardens, when it turns into tartar. The same color is characteristic of smokers: with constant contact with tobacco smoke, yellowish plaques darken. They can also be colored by red wine, black tea, coffee.

It is important to understand that healthy enamel cannot be painted, since there are no pores in its surface where dyes penetrate. If the enamel is damaged or has become porous due to demineralization, it may darken when in contact with dyes

Plaque is always porous; it accumulates and retains coloring pigments from foods and drinks. Therefore, removing dark or brown plaque instantly returns attractiveness to your smile and whiteness and healthy shine to your teeth.

10 Tips to Overcome Excessive Nostalgia

To overcome excessive nostalgia, experts advise following a few simple tips. However, in cases where you cannot overcome your excessive tendency to nostalgia, and this really worsens your life, then you should consult a psychologist to solve your problem.

How to overcome excessive nostalgia?

Try to find a new passion, hobby, or activity that can distract and keep you busy.
Engaging in new activities has a beneficial effect on a person, lifts your mood and broadens your horizons.
Try to communicate more with your friends and make new acquaintances.
Pleasant meetings and interesting conversations will create new memories, perhaps much better than those left in your memory from the past. And you will want to receive new emotions from people and live in reality, not in illusions.
Remember that the past cannot be changed and you need to act in the present moment. This is the only way you can achieve success, improve your standard of living and enjoy what you have now.
If you are going through a separation or have moved to another place and miss the people who are there, there are now a large number of technological devices and applications created. This way you can stay in touch with loved ones, share photos, incidents and stories from your life and maintain communication despite the distance between you.
Remember that any changes are normal.
Create comfort around you so that you can feel protected and enjoy what is happening and what kind of people are next to you now.
Be mindful of changes in your life.
Accept new phenomena in life as a new stage in which you will be even happier and more successful.

Why do generations think it was better in their time?

Adults and older people often say that everything was better in their time. And this is considered a completely normal phenomenon, because perhaps young people in the future will say the same thing to their children.

This is also explained by the fact that our memory filters negative events and leaves in memory only those memories that bring warm emotions and feelings. Perhaps adults believe that the past was much brighter due to the fact that they were younger, perceived things more simply and were full of strength and energy. Therefore, among psychologists, such an opinion is not considered erroneous or harmful to the human psyche. Moderate nostalgia is a normal state for a person.

The power of memories

Nostalgia can make you happier, friendlier, and your body warmer. So the next time you're feeling cold, why not sit back, relax, and experience some nostalgia? Look through your childhood photo albums, listen to a few songs - from your youth or childhood. Or watch your favorite movies. Let the warm, fuzzy feelings take over. And don't forget to share this warmth using social networks.

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