---
title: "Memory Reconsolidation Imagery: What It Is, How It Works, Cited Research & Best Free Videos"
description: "Memory Reconsolidation Imagery is a guided practice that deliberately recalls a distressing memory and reimagines it with altered elements, drawing on the idea that a recalled memory briefly becomes open to change before it re-stabilizes."
canonical: "https://insighttimer.com/techniques/visualization/memory-reconsolidation-imagery"
category: "Visualization"
last_reviewed: "2026-07-28"
---

# What is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

Memory Reconsolidation Imagery is a guided practice that deliberately recalls a distressing memory and reimagines it with altered elements, drawing on the idea that a recalled memory briefly becomes open to change before it re-stabilizes (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016).

**Evidence: Promising Evidence.** This draws on genuine memory-reconsolidation science, and imagery rescripting performs comparably to established trauma therapies, with meta-analyses reporting moderate effects on PTSD and phobia symptoms. The evidence is indirect to this specific practice, the behavioural reconsolidation effect is smaller and mixed, and reviewers stress that older, stronger memories often resist updating and that reconsolidation itself remains contested in humans. Promising, not settled.

Last updated: 2026-07-28

We are still reviewing this page. Our research team checks every technique page for accuracy and evidence quality before final release. Details may change as that review completes. The evidence badge shows our current reading of the published research.

## Explore Memory Reconsolidation Imagery

- [Self Worth Healing Meditation: Increase Your Self-Worth](https://insighttimer.com/nickysutton/guided-meditations/self-worth-healing-meditation-increase-your-self-worth) — Nicky Sutton, Guided, 20 min, rated 4.8/5
- [Heal Limiting Beliefs Guided Meditation, Potential Enhancing](https://insighttimer.com/nickysutton/guided-meditations/heal-limiting-beliefs-guided-meditation-potential-enhancing) — Nicky Sutton, Guided, 15 min, rated 4.8/5
- [Healing From The Past](https://insighttimer.com/DavidGandelman/guided-meditations/healing-the-past-creating-the-future) — David Gandelman, Guided, 30 min, rated 4.9/5
- [Transform Your Financial Mindset](https://insighttimer.com/randilee/guided-meditations/transform-your-money-mindset) — Randi Lee, Guided, 12 min, rated 4.7/5
- [What If It's Safe To See The Beauty In Me? Havening Practice](https://insighttimer.com/alisonpottsinnatebeing/guided-meditations/what-if-it-s-safe-to-see-the-beauty-in-me-havening-practice) — Alison Potts, Guided, 8 min, rated 4.8/5
- [MIDL 16/36: Insight Meditation: Relaxing Frontal Lobes](https://insighttimer.com/stephenprocter/guided-meditations/midl-32-slash-52-softening-door-5-relaxing-frontal-lobes) — Stephen Procter, Guided, 30 min, rated 4.9/5

### Memory Reconsolidation Imagery effort level

#### How hard is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

**Hard** (3 / 4). You bring back a distressing memory and, while it is fresh and open, reimagine it with a different ending, a protector, or the help you lacked.

- **Mental Effort** (3 / 4): You have to hold the old scene precisely enough to rework its key moments, not just replay it, which takes concentration.
- **Emotional Depth** (3 / 4): Reaching back into a painful memory brings the original hurt into contact, so go slowly and stop if it becomes too much.
- **Physical Intensity** (1 / 4): The work is all imagined; you stay seated or lying down while the scene plays and changes in your mind.
- **Prior Knowledge** (3 / 4): Learn the retrieval-and-update method from a guide or therapist first, and have a specific memory and a resource in mind.

## Recommended dose: How Much Should You Practice?

### beginner

No direct dose evidence; editorial synthesis. The available references describe pharmacological doses and the biological memory-reconsolidation window rather than the session length or frequency of a self-guided imagery practice, so this introductory range is a conservative starting point for someone new.

- Session length: 10–15 minutes. How long each individual practice session should last from start to finish.
- Frequency: 2–3 days per week. The number of days per week to fit a session into your routine.

### intermediate

No direct dose evidence; editorial synthesis. Once the practice feels familiar, a modest step up in duration and frequency reflects general imagery/meditation practice conventions rather than any cited dose-response study for this technique.

- Session length: 20 minutes. How long each individual practice session should last from start to finish.
- Frequency: 3–4 days per week. The number of days per week to fit a session into your routine.

### extended

No direct dose evidence; editorial synthesis. This maintenance-level range is inferred from general practice consensus for imagery-based work and should be treated as a ceiling for committed practitioners, not a trial-validated protocol.

- Session length: 25–30 minutes. How long each individual practice session should last from start to finish.
- Frequency: 4–5 days per week. The number of days per week to fit a session into your routine.

*About this card.* No direct dose-response literature exists for the session length or frequency of this imagery technique; the cited body of work addresses pharmacological doses and reconsolidation biology, so all ranges here are conservative editorial starting points. These recommendations are not a substitute for personalised guidance from a qualified practitioner.

## Related techniques to Memory Reconsolidation Imagery

- [Inner Child Visualization](https://insighttimer.com/techniques/inner-child-work/inner-child-visualization)
- [Parts-Based Visualization](https://insighttimer.com/techniques/ifs/parts-based-visualization)
- [Forgiveness Visualization](https://insighttimer.com/techniques/visualization/forgiveness-visualization)
- [Schema Mode Awareness Practice](https://insighttimer.com/techniques/meditation/schema-mode-awareness-practice)

## Common questions about Memory Reconsolidation Imagery

### What does the research say about Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

*evidence*

Meta-analyses of reconsolidation-based therapies report meaningful reductions in trauma-related distress and PTSD symptom severity, though nearly all tested medications or laboratory procedures rather than guided imagery. Drug-assisted approaches showed a moderate benefit, while purely behavioural methods showed only a small, non-significant effect. Several controlled trials found no reliable advantage over placebo.

### Who is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery good for?

*good for*

Adults and children carrying a specific distressing memory that still feels vivid and charged may benefit most, alongside people with trauma-related distress, anxiety, phobia, or substance-use concerns. Memory Reconsolidation Imagery is not a substitute for professional care when trauma, mood, or anxiety symptoms are severe, and people with high everyday anxiety may respond less strongly.

### Is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery safe?

*safety*

Most healthy adults working with everyday difficult memories face low risk, though deliberately reactivating a distressing memory can briefly raise emotional arousal—quicker heartbeat, faster breath, rising feeling. People with elevated trait anxiety may respond more slowly. Anyone whose memory is trauma-related, living with PTSD, or currently in crisis should work with a trained clinician rather than alone.

### How does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery work?

*how it works*

Recalling a memory briefly reopens it to change, and pairing that reactivated memory with a new, calmer emotional experience is thought to let it re-settle in a softer form. Held inside a safe, guided frame, working with images gives raw feeling a shape you can view from a slight distance. This account comes from clinical theory, not direct trials.

## Memory Reconsolidation Imagery tracks & video

Explore guided sessions to deepen your Memory Reconsolidation Imagery technique.

- [Memory Break](https://insighttimer.com/andrewjohnson/guided-meditations/memory-break) — Andrew Johnson, Guided, 1 min, rated 4.6/5
- [Self Worth Healing Meditation: Increase Your Self-Worth](https://insighttimer.com/nickysutton/guided-meditations/self-worth-healing-meditation-increase-your-self-worth) — Nicky Sutton, Guided, 20 min, rated 4.8/5
- [Heal Limiting Beliefs Guided Meditation, Potential Enhancing](https://insighttimer.com/nickysutton/guided-meditations/heal-limiting-beliefs-guided-meditation-potential-enhancing) — Nicky Sutton, Guided, 15 min, rated 4.8/5
- [Healing From The Past](https://insighttimer.com/DavidGandelman/guided-meditations/healing-the-past-creating-the-future) — David Gandelman, Guided, 30 min, rated 4.9/5
- [Healing Your Love Wounds: Day 2](https://insighttimer.com/barrypaulprice/guided-meditations/healing-your-love-wounds-day-2) — Barry Paul Price, Guided, 9 min, rated 4.6/5
- [Improve Your Memory & Recall Meditation](https://insighttimer.com/nickysutton/guided-meditations/improve-your-memory-and-recall-meditation) — Nicky Sutton, Guided, 27 min, rated 4.8/5
- [Working With Agitation ](https://insighttimer.com/kimberlyallysejohnson/guided-meditations/working-with-agitation) — Kimberly Allyse Clements (Johnson), Guided, 10 min, rated 4.6/5
- [Heartbreak Cure Meditation](https://insighttimer.com/laitattis/guided-meditations/heartbreak-cure-meditation) — Lai Tattis, Guided, 26 min, rated 4.6/5
- [Inner Beliefs Meditation - Doing Vs Being](https://insighttimer.com/lindasimpson/guided-meditations/inner-beliefs-meditation-doing-vs-being) — Linda Simpson, Guided, 13 min, rated 4.7/5
- [Journey Through Shame](https://insighttimer.com/involumes/guided-meditations/journey-through-shame) — Roswell, Guided, 17 min, rated 4.6/5
- [Transform Your Financial Mindset](https://insighttimer.com/randilee/guided-meditations/transform-your-money-mindset) — Randi Lee, Guided, 12 min, rated 4.7/5
- [What If It's Safe To See The Beauty In Me? Havening Practice](https://insighttimer.com/alisonpottsinnatebeing/guided-meditations/what-if-it-s-safe-to-see-the-beauty-in-me-havening-practice) — Alison Potts, Guided, 8 min, rated 4.8/5

## What does a Memory Reconsolidation Imagery session involve?

A guided practice that recalls a distressing memory and reimagines it with key elements changed while the memory is briefly open to updating, drawing on memory-reconsolidation science (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016).

A session follows a set sequence. It begins with settling into a safe, resourced state, then deliberately bringing a specific distressing memory to mind, then reimagining it with key elements altered: a different outcome, added support, or a protective presence, often seen from a slight observer's distance rather than relived. A central instruction is to keep attention on the updated version and resist the pull back to the original. The same reactivate-and-reimagine structure appears in clinical approaches such as EMDR and Coherence Therapy.

Memory Reconsolidation Imagery is not the same as picturing a calm scene or a positive future; its focus is a specific real memory recalled in order to be updated. It also differs from exposure alone, where a memory is revisited to reduce fear through repetition, because here the aim is to pair the memory with new, altered content. It is a psychotherapeutic and self-practice technique rather than a drug-based reconsolidation treatment, even though much of the supporting research studies medications and laboratory tasks.

### Not to be confused with

- **Pharmacological reconsolidation blockade (e.g., propranolol):** Much of the reconsolidation research uses a drug such as propranolol given after recall to blunt a memory's emotional charge. Memory Reconsolidation Imagery uses no medication; it works through guided reimagining alone, and the drug-based trials do not test this imagery practice.
- **Memory erasure or deliberate forgetting:** This practice does not aim to delete a memory or make you forget what happened. The event remains; the intent is to change how it feels and how strongly it is later expressed, not to remove it.
- **General guided visualization or relaxation imagery:** Ordinary calming or goal-rehearsal visualization pictures pleasant or desired scenes to relax or motivate. Memory Reconsolidation Imagery deliberately reactivates a specific distressing memory in order to work with and reshape it, which is a more demanding and activating task.

## How does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery work?

The practice is thought to work by catching a memory in the brief, changeable window that opens when you recall it, then pairing that memory with a new and calmer emotional experience so it may re-settle in a softer form (Lane et al., 2014). Held inside a safe, guided frame, feelings that have been kept at arm's length can become easier to reach and let move through, an emotional release that practitioners often describe as something finally shifting (Högberg, 2011). Working with images and metaphor gives raw, shapeless feeling a shape you can look at from a slight distance rather than being pulled under. It is worth being clear that this account comes from psychotherapy theory and clinical description, not from trials that isolate these steps in the imagery itself.

### Possible mechanisms

**Affective Release**

Feelings you have held at a distance can become easier to reach and let move through when you revisit a hard memory inside a safe, guided frame (Högberg, 2011). Meeting an old memory alongside a new, calmer emotional experience is thought to give the feeling somewhere to go, which people often describe as a sense of release and lightness afterward (Lane et al., 2014).

**Symbolic Processing**

Working with an image or metaphor gives hard material a shape you can hold and turn over, rather than a wall of raw feeling. In Memory Reconsolidation Imagery, revisiting a memory in a safe frame and picturing a different, more resourced version of it lets meaning reorganise through symbolic processing, the mind's everyday habit of making sense of experience through images and story (Högberg, 2011).

**Observer Perspective**

Revisiting a hard memory from a witness's vantage point, rather than reliving it from the inside, can open a small but usable distance between you and the material (Högberg, 2011). From that step-back stance, difficult images and feelings keep moving but feel less all-consuming, which is part of what makes reimagining them possible.

**Cognitive Reappraisal**

An old memory that still stings can start to feel different once it is paired with a new, calmer emotional experience while you are actively recalling it. Cognitive reappraisal, reinterpreting what a memory means, is one proposed way the imagery may soften how the memory feels rather than change what actually happened (Lane et al., 2014).

**Extinction Learning**

Returning to a hard memory inside a calm, safe frame and then picturing it unfold with more support and a different outcome can let the old reminder stop signalling danger, so the body's automatic alarm response to it gradually quiets (Högberg, 2011).

## What does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery do to the body?

When an emotional memory is reactivated and updated, brain imaging in healthy adults shows involvement of the amygdala and hippocampus, the regions that tag experiences with emotional charge and stitch them into a storyline (Lars et al., 2012). In the body this may feel like a memory arriving with its old jolt of alarm, then, as the work continues, that surge gradually settling so the memory feels more like something that happened than something happening now. These measurements come from studies of reconsolidation in general rather than from this specific imagery practice, so they explain the proposed pathway rather than prove what a session does.

## What is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery used for?

Moderate but indirect evidence points to two main uses: easing trauma-related and intrusive memories, and reducing PTSD symptom severity and re-experiencing (Walsh et al., 2018), (Wright et al., 2021). The important caveat is that these findings come from the broad family of reconsolidation-based methods, largely medications and laboratory procedures, rather than from trials of this guided-imagery practice itself. It has not yet been tested head-to-head as a standalone imagery practice, and there is no support for claims that it erases a memory or replaces trauma treatment; several controlled studies found no benefit over placebo.

**Ease Traumatic Memories**

A memory that still carries a charge may feel less overwhelming after you revisit it in a safe frame and pair it with new, more resourced elements. Broad reviews of methods that update emotional memories during recall report reduced expression of threat-related memories, though the effects are mixed and the evidence is indirect for this specific imagery practice (Walsh et al., 2018).

**Ease PTSD Symptoms**

The intrusive memories and the sense of being yanked back into a traumatic event may loosen their grip through reconsolidation-based approaches, which reactivate a memory and pair it with safer information while it is briefly open to change. Broad trials of these memory-updating therapies suggest lower PTSD symptom severity and re-experiencing for some people, though this specific imagery practice has not been tested on its own (Wright et al., 2021).

## What does the research say about Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

The strongest finding is that therapies built on updating memories during recall can meaningfully reduce trauma-related distress, though nearly all of this evidence tests medications or laboratory procedures rather than guided imagery like this one. A meta-analysis of reconsolidation-interfering methods found a moderate benefit for drug-assisted approaches versus control on phobia and trauma symptoms, Hedges' g = 0.59, an effect where the average treated person fares better than about seven in ten untreated comparison participants, while purely behavioural approaches showed only a small, statistically non-significant effect, g = 0.32, in the small range and not reliably different from control (Walsh et al., 2018). A separate meta-analysis of randomized trials in children and adults reported a large drop in PTSD symptom severity for reconsolidation-based therapy versus control, a standardized mean difference of −1.42 that sits well beyond the usual threshold for a large effect, and about a third lower rate of developing PTSD when used preventively, a risk ratio of 0.67 (Wright et al., 2021). Directness is the real limitation here, since several careful controlled trials found no reliable advantage over placebo (Wood et al., 2014), (Elsey et al., 2020), (Guanyu & McNally, 2017), and whether a memory opens to change at all depends on conditions that not every memory meets.

- Meta-analyses: 2
- RCTs: 0
- Systematic reviews: 0
- Observational: 3
- Pilot: 14

### Studied populations

- people with anxiety, trauma or substance use
- children and adults
- healthy adults
- adults

### Outcomes measured

- amygdala and hippocampal activity during emotional memory reactivation/recognition
- ptsd/re-experiencing symptom severity and prevalence
- reduction of maladaptive threat-related memory expression
- reliving memory in safe setting plus imagined positive alternative
- updating emotional memory via new emotional experience during reactivation

### Effect sizes

| Outcome | Effect size | 95% CI | N | Comparator | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| phobia/trauma symptoms (pharmacological) | Hedges' g = 0.59 | — | — | retrieval + treatment vs control | Walsh et al., 2018 |
| phobia/trauma symptoms (behavioural) | Hedges' g = 0.32 | — | — | retrieval + treatment vs control | Walsh et al., 2018 |
| PTSD treatment severity | SMD = -1.42 | -2.25 to -0.58 | 372 | reconsolidation intervention vs control | Wright et al., 2021 |
| PTSD prevention (prevalence) | risk ratio = 0.67 | 0.50 to 0.90 | 2,821 | consolidation intervention vs control | Wright et al., 2021 |

The research is useful for setting expectations, but study methods and participant groups vary. Treat the findings as general guidance rather than a promise about any single session, and not a replacement for clinical care.

## Which studies have tested Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

**New avenues for treating emotional memory disorders: towards a reconsolidation intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder**

2016

Finding: This study describes how a fear memory can briefly reopen once it is recalled: retrieving the memory pushes it into a short, unstable state, after which the brain has to actively rebuild it to keep it stored. During that reopening, the memory can potentially be updated or weakened before it settles again, which is the window Memory Reconsolidation Imagery aims to use by bringing up a distressing memory and reimagining it with new details. Keep in mind this is a proposed mechanism rather than a settled, proven process in people, so it explains the reasoning behind the practice rather than showing that any specific memory is permanently erased.

**High Trait Anxiety: A Challenge for Disrupting Fear Memory Reconsolidation**

n = 107

Finding: Combining data from six earlier fear-learning experiments (107 people in total), this analysis looked at whether people who are naturally more anxious respond to reconsolidation-based fear reduction differently from those who are calmer by temperament. The practical takeaway is that how much this kind of memory work eases fear may depend partly on your baseline anxiety, so results seen in the general population might not apply evenly to everyone. Keep in mind this is a relatively small, pooled dataset drawn from lab-based fear studies rather than a real-world clinical program, so it points to a question worth watching rather than a settled answer.

`reported narratively`

**Modulation of naturalistic maladaptive memories using behavioural and pharmacological reconsolidation-interfering strategies: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical and 'sub-clinical' studies.**

2018

Finding: This review pooled many trials that tried to weaken painful or fear-linked memories by first bringing the memory to mind and then applying a treatment while it was briefly open to change. Across phobia and trauma studies, medication-based approaches produced a moderate reduction in symptoms, while purely behavioural approaches showed only a small effect that could have been down to chance. For someone drawn to memory-updating practices, the takeaway is cautiously encouraging: reactivating a memory before working on it may help loosen its grip, but the results varied widely between studies. Importantly, this evidence is about the broad idea of updating memories during recall, not about guided imagery specifically, so it points to a promising direction rather than proof that this exact technique delivers these results.

`Hedges' g = 0.59`

**Reconsolidation-based treatment for fear of public speaking: a systematic pilot study using propranolol**

n = 60

Finding: In a small pilot trial with 60 adults who got nervous about public speaking, people reported feeling less distressed and anxious after treatment, but the group given the active reconsolidation drug did not do reliably better than the group given a placebo, and physical stress markers like heart rate and cortisol stayed roughly the same. In practical terms, whatever relief people felt does not appear to come specifically from the drug reactivating and rewriting the fear memory as the theory predicts. This was an early-stage study in people with milder, everyday speaking nerves rather than a clinical anxiety diagnosis, and its main lesson is how hard it is to carry promising lab findings about memory reconsolidation into a real-world treatment.

`reported narratively`

**Clinical Translation of Memory Reconsolidation Research: Therapeutic Methodology for Transformational Change by Erasing Implicit Emotional Learnings Driving Symptom Production**

2018

Finding: This article examines two decades of laboratory research on memory reconsolidation, the brain's capacity to unlock an existing emotional learning and revise it, and maps out how that science translates into hands-on therapy. Rather than measuring outcomes in participants, it works out the practical steps a clinician can use to help someone surface an old emotional pattern and update it, drawing on approaches like Coherence Therapy and EMDR. For someone considering reconsolidation-based imagery work, it explains where the method comes from: not an ancient meditation tradition, but a clinical effort to put reconsolidation research to use. Keep in mind this is a conceptual translation paper, so it lays out the reasoning and technique rather than proving how well the practice works in everyday use.

**Human memory reconsolidation: A guiding framework and critical review of the evidence.**

2018

Finding: This review weighed the evidence for whether human memories, once recalled, briefly become open to change before they lock back in, the idea that Memory Reconsolidation Imagery is built on. It found that while many results in people fit this picture, inconsistent findings and other possible explanations mean the process has not been confirmed in humans, and clinical trials using it have produced mixed results. For someone considering the practice, that makes it a promising but still unsettled approach rather than a proven method, so it is reasonable to try with realistic expectations rather than treating the underlying science as established.

**The surprising subtleties of changing fear memory: a challenge for translational science.**

2018

Finding: This review points out that the "window" for updating an emotional memory does not open for every memory. Stronger and older memories tend to resist this kind of change and may never enter the temporarily changeable state the technique relies on, and even when they do, success hinges on getting subtle details of the reactivation just right. That matters in real life, because the difficult memories people most want to shift are usually the old, deeply ingrained ones, so this approach may work less reliably outside a controlled lab than early results suggest. Treat it as a promising but conditional method rather than a guaranteed way to reopen and rewrite any memory.

**Neural signature of reconsolidation impairments by propranolol in humans.**

2012

Finding: In this randomized brain-imaging study with healthy adults, researchers briefly reactivated emotional memories and then used a medication that blunts adrenaline's effects; afterwards, people remembered the emotionally charged images less well, while their memory for neutral images stayed intact. The dampened emotional memories tracked with shifts in activity in the amygdala and hippocampus, the brain areas that tag and store emotionally significant experiences. The takeaway for practice is indirect: it shows that a reactivated emotional memory can become changeable and that this window lives in specific emotion-memory circuits, which is the same principle reconsolidation imagery draws on. Importantly, the change here came from a drug, not from guided imagery, so this study does not test the technique itself, and it reports only the direction of brain changes rather than a measured size of effect.

**Neutral mood induction during reconsolidation reduces accuracy, but not vividness and anxiety of emotional episodic memories.**

2017

Finding: In an experiment with 72 undergraduates, bringing on a calm, neutral mood right after recalling a distressing memory made the details of that memory less accurate, but it did not make the memory any less vivid or any less anxiety-provoking. For anyone hoping that gently revisiting a painful memory will drain away its emotional charge, this is a useful caution: calming imagery may soften the factual particulars without dialling down the distress. Keep in mind the study was small, used college students rather than people seeking help for difficult memories, and worked with very recent memories, so it tells us more about the mechanism than about long-term relief.

**Breaking boundaries: optimizing reconsolidation-based interventions for strong and old memories.**

2017

Finding: This study looked at when a memory can actually be reopened and reshaped after it is brought to mind, and found that it only works under specific conditions. Stronger and older memories tend to resist this window entirely, and whether it opens at all depends on subtle details of how the memory is reactivated, details that are hard to control outside a lab. For someone considering memory-focused imagery work, the practical takeaway is that not every difficult memory will soften on cue; the long-standing, deeply set ones that most people want to change are also the ones least likely to budge, so results in everyday practice may fall short of what tightly controlled experiments suggest.

**Can Memories of Traumatic Experiences or Addiction Be Erased or Modified? A Critical Review of Research on the Disruption of Memory Reconsolidation and Its Applications.**

2017

Finding: This research maps out the "boundary conditions" that decide whether a memory can actually be reopened and reworked: older, stronger memories tend to stay locked in place and often refuse to enter the temporary changeable state the technique relies on. It also found that success hinges on subtle details of how the memory is brought back to mind, features that are hard to reproduce reliably outside a controlled lab. For a practitioner, this is an honest limit to keep in view: the very memories people most want to change, the old and deeply set ones, are the ones least likely to open to updating, so this approach should be treated as promising rather than guaranteed.

**Memory Reconsolidation Interference as an Emerging Treatment for Emotional Disorders: Strengths, Limitations, Challenges, and Opportunities.**

2017

Finding: This review of the science behind rewriting emotional memories found that while a lot of evidence lines up with the idea, researchers still can't confirm the process is actually happening in the human brain, and the treatments built on it have produced mixed results. In practical terms, the notion that you can revisit a painful memory and soften it is promising, but it isn't settled science yet. Someone considering this practice should treat it as a plausible and actively studied approach rather than a proven method, since alternative explanations for the observed effects haven't been ruled out.

**Memory reconsolidation, emotional arousal, and the process of change in psychotherapy: New insights from brain science**

2014

Finding: This paper lays out a neurobiological model of how many talk therapies may actually work: an old emotional memory gets reactivated, a new and different emotional experience is layered onto it while it's "open," and that updated version is then reinforced through repeated new experience. For anyone drawn to imagery-based reconsolidation work, it offers a plausible explanation for why simply recalling a painful memory alongside a fresh, contrasting feeling might gradually change how that memory feels, not just how you think about it. Keep in mind this is a proposed model rather than a test of guided imagery itself, so treat it as a framework for understanding the practice, not proof that it reshapes memories in a specific measured way.

**Consolidation/reconsolidation therapies for the prevention and treatment of PTSD and re-experiencing: a systematic review and meta-analysis**

2021

Finding: This review pooled randomised trials of therapies that work with how traumatic memories are stored and re-stored, and found a large drop in PTSD symptoms when memories were reworked after being reactivated (11 trials, 372 people), plus a smaller but real reduction in new PTSD cases when the approach was used soon after a traumatic event (12 trials, 2,821 people). For someone drawn to imagery work with difficult memories, this points to genuine promise in the underlying reconsolidation approach as a way to loosen the grip of re-experiencing symptoms. Two important limits: these trials tested reconsolidation methods as a broad family, not this specific imagery technique, and most carried a meaningful risk of bias, with only three protocols clearly outperforming their comparison, so the results are encouraging rather than settled.

`SMD = -1.42`

**Pharmacological blockade of memory reconsolidation in posttraumatic stress disorder: three negative psychophysiological studies.**

2014

Finding: In three randomized trials with adults who had PTSD, researchers gave a medication (either propranolol or mifepristone) at the moment a traumatic memory was reactivated, hoping to weaken the memory as it settled back into place. Compared with a placebo, this approach produced no reliable improvement in PTSD symptoms and no measurable drop in the body's stress responses, such as heart rate and sweating, when people later revisited the traumatic event in guided imagery. For anyone considering a memory-based practice, this is an honest caution: deliberately reactivating and trying to alter a traumatic memory did not dependably reduce trauma-related physiology in these controlled tests, so the technique should not be treated as a proven way to defuse difficult memories.

**Making Leaps and Hitting Boundaries in Reconsolidation: Overcoming Boundary Conditions to Increase Clinical Translatability of Reconsolidation-based Therapies.**

2023

Finding: This research looked at when a memory can actually be reopened and changed after it is brought to mind, and found that the window doesn't open for every memory. Stronger and older memories tend to resist this kind of updating, and whether the process works at all depends on subtle details of how the memory is reactivated, details that are hard to control outside a lab. That matters for practice because the difficult, long-standing memories most people hope to soften are often exactly the ones least likely to open to change, so this technique should be approached as promising but not a reliable way to rewrite any memory on demand.

**Affective psychotherapy in post-traumatic reactions guided by affective neuroscience: memory reconsolidation and play**

2011

Finding: This affective neuroscience paper proposes a therapy protocol in which a person revisits an emotional memory from within a safe, positive frame and then rehearses an imagined, more resourced version of the same event, with the goal of laying down new associations that carry less of the original fear. That structure closely mirrors how Memory Reconsolidation Imagery works, so it helps explain why deliberately reimagining a difficult memory with altered details might loosen its emotional grip. Keep in mind this is a proposed model rather than a controlled trial, so it describes a plausible mechanism rather than measuring how well the technique performs in practice.

**Memory reconsolidation: an update**

2010

Finding: This review lays out the case that a fully settled memory does not stay permanently fixed: when you recall it, the memory briefly returns to an unstable state and has to re-stabilize to last, and during that short window it may be open to being updated or weakened. For someone considering Memory Reconsolidation Imagery, this is the core idea the practice rests on, retrieving a distressing memory and then reimagining it differently while it is still pliable. Keep in mind this is a conceptual review of how the mechanism is thought to work rather than a test of the imagery technique itself, and much of the underlying evidence comes from laboratory research, so it points to a plausible basis for the practice rather than proof that a memory can be permanently erased.

**Tackling maladaptive memories through reconsolidation: From neural to clinical science.**

2017

Finding: This behavioral neuroscience study describes how a memory, once you deliberately bring it back to mind, briefly loosens into a changeable state and then has to re-stabilize to stick around. During that short window, the emotional charge of the memory appears open to being updated or softened, which is the exact principle Memory Reconsolidation Imagery works from: recall a distressing scene, then reimagine it with different elements while it is still malleable. Keep in mind this is foundational mechanism research rather than a trial of the practice itself, so it explains why the approach might work rather than proving how well it works for any given person, and reconsolidation in humans is still an area of active study rather than a settled fact.

## Where does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery come from?

Memory Reconsolidation Imagery grew out of clinical efforts to translate memory-reconsolidation neuroscience into psychotherapy, and its reactivate-and-reimagine sequence appears in approaches such as EMDR and Coherence Therapy (Ecker, 2018). These origins in laboratory science and clinical practice help explain the practice's form, the deliberate recall of a memory followed by a resourced reimagining, rather than proving that the imagery produces a clinical effect.

## Is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery safe?

For most healthy adults working with everyday difficult memories, this is a low-risk practice. Because it deliberately brings a distressing memory back to mind, it can briefly raise arousal, the body's alarm state. That may feel like a quicker heartbeat, faster breath, and emotion rising, so a few situations call for extra care. People with higher trait anxiety, a steady baseline of anxiousness that rarely fully settles, tend to see smaller effects and may do better with an adapted or supported approach; this caution comes from pooled fear-conditioning data rather than from trials of the imagery itself (Soeter & Kindt, 2013). Reactivating trauma-related memories can surface more intense material than expected, which is a practice-informed reason to work alongside a trained clinician rather than alone.

### Who should practise with care?

A few groups should take extra care with this practice. People with elevated trait anxiety, that steady hum of tension that rarely lets go, may respond more slowly and benefit from a clinician setting the pace. Anyone whose target memory is trauma-related, or who lives with PTSD, should approach this work with a trained clinician rather than practising unsupported, because revisiting such memories can bring back vivid, overwhelming feeling. And anyone currently in acute distress or crisis should stabilise with professional help before reactivating a painful memory at all.

#### Higher trait anxiety

*low* · *practice-informed*

If you carry a steady, everyday level of anxiousness that rarely fully settles, this method may work less well for you. Pooled human fear-conditioning data link higher trait anxiety to smaller fear-reducing effects, so an adapted or clinician-paced approach may suit you better than practising alone. This caution comes from reconsolidation research broadly rather than from trials of the imagery itself.

#### Trauma-related memories or PTSD

*low* · *practice-informed*

Because the practice deliberately brings a distressing memory back to mind, revisiting trauma-related material can surface more intense feeling than expected. If your target memory is trauma-related or you live with PTSD, work alongside a trained clinician who uses reconsolidation-based methods rather than practising unsupported. Reconsolidation-based therapies show potential for PTSD in controlled trials, but that evidence comes from clinician-delivered methods and does not show this self-guided imagery is safe for trauma or a replacement for professional care.

#### Acute distress or crisis

*low* · *practice-informed*

Reactivating a painful memory can briefly raise arousal — a quicker heartbeat, faster breath, and emotion rising. If you are currently in acute distress or crisis, stabilise with professional support first before attempting to reactivate a painful memory at all.

### How to practise safely?

This work is gentlest when you begin with something difficult but manageable rather than your hardest memory, giving yourself room to learn the sequence while your body stays within a range you can stay present with. A sensible starting format is a calm, unhurried session in a setting where you feel safe and supported, with room to pause and reorient to the present before you return to ordinary activity. If the memory is trauma-related or you find yourself in acute distress, this is best approached alongside a trained clinician rather than on your own.

1. **Choose a memory you can hold.** Begin with a difficult but manageable memory rather than your most overwhelming one, so you can learn the sequence while the intensity in your heartbeat and breath stays within a range you can stay present with.
2. **Build a safe, resourced frame first.** Before recalling anything hard, settle into a calm setting and call to mind supportive resources, a protective presence, or a place where you feel safe, so the memory is met from steadiness rather than raw exposure.
3. **Keep an observer's distance.** Watch the memory as a witness at a slight remove rather than reliving it from the inside. Seeing it from that distance keeps difficult images and feelings moving without pulling you fully under.
4. **Track your arousal and pause if it climbs.** If your heart races, your breath tightens, or the memory starts to feel like something happening now rather than something that happened, slow down, return to your safe frame, or stop for the day.
5. **Anchor to the updated version.** Once you reimagine the memory with a different outcome or added support, rest your attention on that reworked version and let the original recede, rather than being pulled back to it.
6. **Get professional support for trauma.** If the memory is trauma-related, tied to PTSD, or leaves you distressed afterward, pause self-practice and work with a trained clinician who uses reconsolidation-based methods.
7. **Close and reorient.** End each session by returning attention to the present — the room around you, your feet on the floor, your breath — before moving back into ordinary activity.

### Medical disclaimer

This information is educational and is not medical advice. This practice is not a substitute for professional care and should not replace prescribed medication or treatment for any medical or mental-health condition. If you are managing a health condition or taking medication, talk with a qualified health professional before changing your practice. If you are in distress or crisis, seek professional support.

## How does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery compare to similar techniques?

| Technique | Best for | Use with care | Distinction |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) | Trauma and PTSD where a structured, clinician-delivered protocol with an established treatment history is wanted. | Best delivered by a trained therapist; not a self-guided option for acute or complex trauma. | EMDR shares the core reactivate-and-update sequence but adds bilateral stimulation, such as guided eye movements, while the memory is held in mind, and is delivered as a structured clinician-led protocol. Memory Reconsolidation Imagery leans on guided reimagining of the scene rather than a dual-attention task, and is often framed as something a person can practice with support. Both are counted among reconsolidation-informed approaches. |
| Coherence Therapy | Long-standing emotional patterns or symptoms tied to underlying beliefs a person wants to surface and revise. | Relies on skilled guidance to locate and disconfirm the underlying learning; largely clinician-led. | Coherence Therapy works to surface the implicit emotional learning driving a symptom and then place it beside a contradicting experience so the old learning can update. It focuses on the belief or learning underneath the feeling; Memory Reconsolidation Imagery focuses on reimagining a specific remembered scene. Both are drawn from clinical efforts to translate reconsolidation research into practice. |
| Imagery Rescripting | Intrusive images, recurring nightmares, or memories where directly rewriting the scene is the goal. | Revisiting vivid distressing imagery can be activating; support helps when the memory is traumatic. | Imagery rescripting rewrites the imagery of an intrusive memory or nightmare so the scene plays out differently, often with the person intervening or being protected. It overlaps heavily with Memory Reconsolidation Imagery in method; the difference is mainly framing, with reconsolidation imagery foregrounding the labile-memory rationale for why revisiting-and-altering may reshape how the memory feels. |
| Exposure therapy (extinction-based) | Phobias and anxiety where repeated, graded contact with a feared cue can let the response quiet. | Involves staying with distress rather than reimagining it; structure and often clinician support matter. | Exposure therapy has a person stay with a feared cue or memory, without avoidance, until the alarm response fades. It works mainly through extinction learning, which forms a new competing memory that inhibits the old response rather than updating the original trace. Memory Reconsolidation Imagery instead aims to alter the original memory during its brief changeable window; the two processes are distinct and hard to separate in practice. |

## Other questions readers ask

### Does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery erase bad memories?

No. This practice is not designed to delete a memory or make you forget an event; it aims to change how a recalled memory feels and how strongly it later surfaces by pairing it with a calmer emotional experience while it is briefly open to change (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016), (Lane et al., 2014). The event itself remains.

No. The idea behind the method is that recalling a memory briefly reopens it, so a new, calmer experience introduced during that window may reshape how it feels rather than remove what happened (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016), (Lane et al., 2014). That is the practice's intent, not a proven outcome. Not every memory reopens this way, since strong or older memories may not destabilise and the effect is sensitive to how recall is done (Kindt & Merel, 2018), (Bui et al., 2023).

### Is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery just positive thinking about the past?

No. Unlike calming or positive visualization, this practice deliberately reactivates a specific distressing memory in a safe, resourced frame and reimagines it, drawing on the idea that recall briefly reopens a memory to updating (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016).

No. Ordinary positive or relaxation visualization pictures pleasant scenes to soothe or motivate, whereas Memory Reconsolidation Imagery deliberately recalls a charged, distressing memory and reimagines it with something changed, a different outcome, added inner resources, or a protective presence, held at an observer's distance (Högberg, 2011). Its defining feature is the reconsolidation rationale, the idea that recalling a memory briefly reopens it to change before it re-settles (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016). The practice grew from clinical efforts to translate this science into psychotherapy, including EMDR and Coherence Therapy (Ecker, 2018). That is how it is defined and distinguished, not proof it outperforms positive thinking, and evidence for the imagery itself remains indirect.

### Does Memory Reconsolidation Imagery actually work?

Partly, but not proven for this specific practice. The broader family of reconsolidation-based methods shows moderate promise for trauma and PTSD, yet almost all of that evidence tests drugs or lab tasks rather than this guided imagery, and several controlled trials found no benefit over placebo (Walsh et al., 2018), (Wright et al., 2021), (Wood et al., 2014).

Partly. The wider family of reconsolidation-based methods has shown moderate benefit for trauma and PTSD symptoms, but that evidence comes largely from medications and laboratory procedures, not from head-to-head trials of this guided-imagery practice itself (Walsh et al., 2018), (Wright et al., 2021). The underlying science shows early promise but is still debated, and clinical results have been mixed, with some controlled trials finding no reliable advantage over placebo (Elsey et al., 2018), (Beckers et al., 2017), (Wood et al., 2014). Realistically it may soften how a charged memory feels; it does not erase memories or replace trauma treatment, and not every memory opens to change (Kindt & Merel, 2018).

### How strong is the research behind Memory Reconsolidation Imagery?

Moderate but indirect. Meta-analyses show reconsolidation-based therapies can reduce trauma and PTSD symptoms, but almost all of that evidence tests medications or lab tasks rather than this guided-imagery practice itself (Walsh et al., 2018), (Wright et al., 2021). Read it as a promising rationale, not settled proof.

Moderate but indirect. Pooled data on updating memories during recall are encouraging, showing a moderate benefit for drug-assisted approaches and a large drop in PTSD symptom severity, yet these come from the broad reconsolidation family rather than head-to-head trials of the imagery (Walsh et al., 2018), (Wright et al., 2021). Directness is the real limit. Several controlled trials found no reliable advantage over placebo (Wood et al., 2014), (Elsey et al., 2020), (Guanyu & McNally, 2017), whether a memory reopens at all depends on conditions many memories don't meet (Kindt & Merel, 2018), and the science itself is still contested (Elsey et al., 2018). It does not erase memories or replace trauma care.

### Why does reimagining a memory change how it feels?

The proposed reason is timing. Recalling a memory briefly reopens it, and meeting it with a new, calmer emotional experience in that window may let it re-settle in a softer form (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016), (Lane et al., 2014). This is a hypothesised rationale, not a proven account of this specific imagery practice.

The proposed reason is timing. Recalling a memory is thought to return it to a brief changeable state before it re-stabilises, and pairing it with a new, calmer emotional experience during that window may reshape how it later feels rather than erase the event (Kindt & Emmerik, 2016), (Lane et al., 2014). Guided imagery adds two more proposed ingredients: an observer's distance, meaning you watch the scene from a slight remove rather than reliving it, and working through images and metaphor, which give raw feeling a workable shape (Högberg, 2011). This account comes from psychotherapy theory and general reconsolidation research, so treat it as a suggested pathway rather than a confirmed effect for this practice.

### Can Memory Reconsolidation Imagery calm the brain's alarm response?

Possibly, in theory. Reactivating and updating an emotional memory engages the amygdala and hippocampus, the regions that tag experiences with alarm, and pairing recall with a calmer experience may let that surge settle (Lars et al., 2012), (Lane et al., 2014). This describes a proposed pathway, not a proven session effect.

Possibly, in theory. Brain imaging in healthy adults shows that when an emotional memory is reactivated and updated, the amygdala and hippocampus are involved, the areas that stamp experiences with emotional charge and stitch them into a storyline (Lars et al., 2012). The idea is that pairing a freshly recalled memory with a new, calmer emotional experience may help it re-settle in a softer form, so the old jolt of alarm gradually eases (Lane et al., 2014). These measurements come from reconsolidation research in general rather than trials of this specific imagery practice, so they describe how it might calm the alarm response rather than prove what a session does.

### Is Memory Reconsolidation Imagery safe if I have PTSD or trauma?

Use care. If your memory is trauma-related or you live with PTSD, work with a trained clinician rather than practising alone, since reactivating such memories can surface intense material. Reconsolidation-based therapies show potential for PTSD in trials, but that is not proof this self-guided imagery is safe for trauma (Wright et al., 2021).

Use care. Because this practice deliberately reactivates a distressing memory, revisiting trauma-related material can bring back vivid, overwhelming feeling, so it is a reason to work alongside a trained clinician rather than practising unsupported. Reconsolidation-based therapies have shown potential for treating and preventing PTSD in controlled trials, but that evidence comes from clinician-delivered methods and does not show this self-guided imagery is proven safe for trauma or a substitute for professional care (Wright et al., 2021). Anyone in acute distress or crisis should stabilise with professional support before attempting to reactivate a painful memory.

### Can Memory Reconsolidation Imagery make a memory feel worse at first?

Yes, briefly. Because the practice deliberately recalls a distressing memory, it can raise arousal at first, a quicker heartbeat, faster breath, and the memory arriving with its old jolt, which usually settles as the work continues. If it climbs, slow down, return to a safe frame, or stop (Soeter & Kindt, 2013).

Yes, temporarily. Reactivating a hard memory can make it feel heavier before it eases, and that early spike in arousal is expected rather than a sign of harm. Take extra care if you carry high trait anxiety, a background level of anxiousness that stays elevated most days, since pooled human data link it to smaller effects and a harder time settling (Soeter & Kindt, 2013). Trauma-related memories can surface more intense material than expected, so work alongside a trained clinician and stop or ground yourself if the feeling starts to feel like something happening now.

### Can I practice Memory Reconsolidation Imagery on my own?

For most healthy adults, yes. Working with an everyday, manageable memory is low-risk self-practice when you use a safe, resourced frame, keep an observer's distance, and slow down if arousal rises. But if the memory is trauma-related, tied to PTSD, or you are in acute distress, work with a trained clinician rather than alone.

For most healthy adults, yes, provided you start with a difficult-but-manageable memory rather than your most overwhelming one, settle into a safe and resourced frame first, view the scene from a slight observer's distance, and pause or stop if your heart races or the feeling starts to feel like something happening now. This is practice-informed guidance rather than proof the imagery treats anything, and it does not replace clinical care. Self-practice is not appropriate when the memory is trauma-related, tied to PTSD, or you are in acute distress, which call for a trained clinician; people with higher trait anxiety, a steadier everyday level of anxiousness, may also respond more slowly and benefit from professional pacing (Soeter & Kindt, 2013).

### What's the difference between Memory Reconsolidation Imagery and EMDR?

They share a core move but differ in method. Both reactivate a distressing memory and introduce something new during recall, and both grew from efforts to apply reconsolidation science in therapy (Ecker, 2018). EMDR adds bilateral stimulation, such as guided eye movements, within a structured, clinician-led protocol; Memory Reconsolidation Imagery leans on guided reimagining of the scene and can be done with support.

They share a core move but differ in method. Both are reconsolidation-informed approaches that reactivate a memory and update it during recall, and both emerged from clinical efforts to translate memory-reconsolidation research into practice (Ecker, 2018). The main distinction is the vehicle: EMDR adds a dual-attention task such as guided eye movements, a form of bilateral stimulation, inside a structured, clinician-delivered protocol, while Memory Reconsolidation Imagery works mainly through reimagining the scene and is often framed as something practised with support. No direct head-to-head trial compares them, and EMDR is best delivered by a trained therapist for acute or complex trauma.

## Glossary

### Memory reconsolidation

The idea that recalling a stored memory briefly reopens it, so that during a short window it can be updated with new information before it settles again. This window is what the practice tries to work within.

A retrieval-dependent process in which a consolidated memory is destabilized upon reactivation and requires protein-synthesis-dependent restabilization to persist, offering a period during which the trace can be modified.

### Labile state (reconsolidation window)

The brief, changeable state a memory enters just after it is recalled, before it re-stabilizes. Adding new elements during this window is thought to be what lets the memory be reshaped.

### Boundary conditions

The limits on when a memory will actually reopen to change. Strong or old memories often do not destabilize, and how the memory is recalled matters, so this method does not work on every memory.

Constraints, such as memory age, strength, and reactivation parameters, that determine whether a reactivated memory destabilizes and becomes eligible for reconsolidation-based modification.

### Extinction learning

When a cue that once predicted something bad is met again and again without that bad thing happening, so the learned alarm response weakens. This forms a new competing memory rather than changing the original one.

A process, mechanistically dissociable from reconsolidation, in which repeated non-reinforced retrieval of a conditioned cue produces a new inhibitory memory that competes with the original association.

### Trait anxiety

Your usual, everyday baseline level of anxiousness, the kind that hums in the background across situations rather than spiking only under stress. Higher trait anxiety has been linked to smaller effects from memory-updating methods.

### Observer perspective

Viewing a memory as if watching from a slight distance rather than reliving it from the inside. The images and feelings keep moving, but they feel less all-consuming, which can make reworking them more possible.

### Hedges' g

A way of expressing how large an effect is, in standardized units, so results from different studies can be compared. Around 0.5 is usually read as a moderate effect and lower values as smaller ones.

### Standardized mean difference (SMD)

Another standardized measure of effect size used when studies pool their results, showing how far apart two groups are in shared units. Larger absolute values indicate a bigger difference between the treatment and comparison groups.

## Full references

1. Merel Kindt, Arnold van Emmerik (2016). New avenues for treating emotional memory disorders: towards a reconsolidation intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder. https://doi.org/10.1177/2045125316644541 (observational)
2. Marieke Soeter, Merel Kindt (2013). High Trait Anxiety: A Challenge for Disrupting Fear Memory Reconsolidation. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0075239 (other peer reviewed)
3. Katie Walsh, Ravi Das, Michael E. Saladin, Sunjeev K. Kamboj, Walsh Katie H, Das Ravi K (2018). Modulation of naturalistic maladaptive memories using behavioural and pharmacological reconsolidation-interfering strategies: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical and 'sub-clinical' studies.. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-018-4983-8 (meta analysis)
4. James W. B. Elsey, Anna I. Filmer, Harriet R. Galvin, Jennifer Kurath, Linos Vossoughi, Linnea S. Thomander (2020). Reconsolidation-based treatment for fear of public speaking: a systematic pilot study using propranolol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-020-0857-z (other peer reviewed)
5. Bruce Ecker (2018). Clinical Translation of Memory Reconsolidation Research: Therapeutic Methodology for Transformational Change by Erasing Implicit Emotional Learnings Driving Symptom Production. https://doi.org/10.12744/ijnpt.2018.0001-0092 (other peer reviewed)
6. James W. B. Elsey, Vanessa A. van Ast, Merel Kindt (2018). Human memory reconsolidation: A guiding framework and critical review of the evidence.. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000152 (other peer reviewed)
7. Merel Kindt, Kindt Merel (2018). The surprising subtleties of changing fear memory: a challenge for translational science.. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2017.0033 (other peer reviewed)
8. Schwabe Lars, Nader Karim, Wolf Oliver T, Beaudry Thomas, Pruessner Jens C (2012). Neural signature of reconsolidation impairments by propranolol in humans.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.10.028 (observational)
9. Liu Guanyu, McNally Richard J (2017). Neutral mood induction during reconsolidation reduces accuracy, but not vividness and anxiety of emotional episodic memories.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2016.05.001 (observational)
10. Elsey James W B, Kindt Merel (2017). Breaking boundaries: optimizing reconsolidation-based interventions for strong and old memories.. https://doi.org/10.1101/lm.044156.116 (other peer reviewed)
11. Treanor Michael, Brown Lily A, Rissman Jesse, Craske Michelle G, Michael Treanor, Lily A. Brown (2017). Can Memories of Traumatic Experiences or Addiction Be Erased or Modified? A Critical Review of Research on the Disruption of Memory Reconsolidation and Its Applications.. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691616664725 (other peer reviewed)
12. Tom Beckers, Merel Kindt, Beckers Tom, Kindt Merel (2017). Memory Reconsolidation Interference as an Emerging Treatment for Emotional Disorders: Strengths, Limitations, Challenges, and Opportunities.. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-032816-045209 (other peer reviewed)
13. Richard D. Lane, Lee Ryan, Lynn Nadel, Leslie S. Greenberg (2014). Memory reconsolidation, emotional arousal, and the process of change in psychotherapy: New insights from brain science. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0140525x14000041 (other peer reviewed)
14. Laurence Astill Wright, Louise Horstmann, Emily A. Holmes, Jonathan I. Bisson (2021). Consolidation/reconsolidation therapies for the prevention and treatment of PTSD and re-experiencing: a systematic review and meta-analysis. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-021-01570-w (meta analysis)
15. Nellie E. Wood, Maria L. Rosasco, A. Surís, Justin D. Spring, Marie-France Marin, N. Lasko (2014). Pharmacological blockade of memory reconsolidation in posttraumatic stress disorder: three negative psychophysiological studies.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2014.09.005 (other peer reviewed)
16. Uyen T.D. Bui, Amy Milton, Bui Uyen T D, Milton Amy L (2023). Making Leaps and Hitting Boundaries in Reconsolidation: Overcoming Boundary Conditions to Increase Clinical Translatability of Reconsolidation-based Therapies.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.03.013 (other peer reviewed)
17. Göran Högberg (2011). Affective psychotherapy in post-traumatic reactions guided by affective neuroscience: memory reconsolidation and play. https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s10380 (other peer reviewed)
18. Karim Nader, Einar Örn Einarsson (2010). Memory reconsolidation: an update. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.2010.05443.x (other peer reviewed)
19. Elsey James W B, Kindt Merel, James W. B. Elsey, Merel Kindt (2017). Tackling maladaptive memories through reconsolidation: From neural to clinical science.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nlm.2017.03.007 (other peer reviewed)

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