New Employment Ended Prolonged Amnesia

A 40-year-old Japanese man developed generalized dissociative amnesia amid severe stress caused by his bookstore's bankruptcy and his inability to find new employment. He suddenly lost his autobiographical and episodic memories, even forgetting his own name, although tests found no structural brain damage. After 6 years and 10 months, his memories returned naturally when he secured stable new employment, while previously reduced blood flow in his right medial temporal lobe also returned to normal. The researchers linked his recovery to relief from the psychological conflict that had triggered his amnesia.

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