#Harley Therapy™ Blog » Feed Harley Therapy™ Blog » Comments Feed Harley Therapy™ Blog » Nostalgia – is Missing the Past Good or Bad for You? Comments Feed alternate alternate alternate -- Find a Therapist Nostalgia – is Missing the Past Good or Bad for You? Last reviewed by Dr. Sheri Jacobson Dr. Sheri Jacobson May 16, 2022 Depression, Relationships nostalgia photo by Andrea Rico -- Often think about your past? Or wish you could go back in time and have the life you had? Or the world we all once had before the coronavirus pandemic? Nostalgia has direct implications on our mental health. What is nostalgia? Nostalgia is a longing for our past, albeit a possibly romanticised version. -- even for a version of ourselves we once were. Nostalgia is different from homesickness, where we want to be in another existing space than the one we are in. And it’s not the same as fantasy, where we seek to substitute reality. With nostalgia, we know we are in the here and now. We are just indulging in a trip down memory lane, while wearing our ‘rose coloured glasses’. -- When being nostalgic is a positive In the last century, researchers focussed on nostalgia as something negative. It was seen as an inability to accept the past or what we’ve lost, and something that stopped us from being in the present. But a flurry of more recent research now claims nostalgia as a mental health positive. The newer perspective on nostalgia is that it can help us feel: * more connected (we can remember good times with loved ones and feel -- a past, who belongs). Researcher Krystine I. Batch, creator of the ’Nostalgia Inventory’, analysed memories of resistance fighters in WWII next to current empirical research on the subject. This highlighted how nostalgic -- helped with accepting a new homeland. Nostalgia’s dark side nostalgia So where does nostalgia go wrong? It’s now thought that there is more than one kind of nostalgia, and that not all kinds are helpful. Personal nostalgia is when we miss what we experienced in the past. It’s the type that leaves us connected and inspired to recreate such happy moments in the present and future. But we can miss things too soon. This is called ‘anticipatory nostalgia’. We miss and long for something before it’s even over, and it leads to sadness, worry, and anxiety. An American study released in 2020 shows that, as well as affecting our reaction, poorly timed nostalgia can also affect our ability to learn from our reminiscing. -- Another 2020 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology concluded that nostalgia can also be negative if it’s random and unconscious. Consciously making an effort to recall the past was found to elevate our moods. But everyday moments of nostalgia were found to be more likely to have a negative effect. Can’t stop reminiscing? Are you the type who has daily random nostalgia? Always comparing the present unfavourably to the past? Can’t enjoy it when good things happen because you are so worried about how much you’ll miss things when it’s all over? Research and theory aside, you have to look at how nostalgia is making you feel. Constantly being caught up in nostalgia that leaves you feeling low can be a sign of other issues. -- There are unhealthy thought patterns that can be related to, or seem like, a form of nostalgia, but are actually signs of a mental health issue. -- Anxiety means we constantly worry about the future in a way that makes us feel fearful, and becomes increasingly illogic. If anticipatory nostalgia has started to make you tense and panicky, it might have become anxiety. -- __________________________________________________________________ Have a question about nostalgia or want to share your own experience with being nostalgic? Use the comment box below. -- Leaving a Relationship – How Can You Keep It Sane? Choose Your Actions, Choose Your Mood – CBT Behavioral Interventions 12 Responses to “Nostalgia – is Missing the Past Good or Bad for You?” 1. Chris Longley I have always been quite a nostalgic person. During my life from -- think to myself, soak up these feelings of happiness, recollect the thoughts and sounds of the moment because nothing lasts forever and I know I will look back with nostalgia once it is all gone. Its like putting all in a bottle to open up at a later date. I suppose I`m acknowledging the happy situation I am in and that it can -- Is it possible that during addiction, you become more nostalgic? I was an addict, and ever since I’ve been clean, I’ve been anxious and I think that nostalgia has a lot to do with it(or at least some of it). I’ve been doing a lot of meditation including techniques for mindfulness, which helps tremendously. Honestly, I feel like a -- Hi Derek, we aren’t quite sure we understand the question. Do you mean nostalgic for the time before you were an addict, or for the time when you were an addict? Nostalgia can be for any time of our life, as every period of life has positives and negatives. Nothing is either all good or all bad. When we are an addict the positives -- that can feel like a family. There is nothing wrong with missing the good bits. that’s normal. But the thing that matters is not letting nostalgia blind us from remembering the hell addiction is as well. If it helps, keep a journal and write it all out. Perhaps write a list of all the positives you miss, but then all the -- your head tell you otherwise….Best, HT. 7. Diego Im trying to figure out how to deal with the “anticipaty nostalgia” im feeling right now. Every Olympics games I try to watch every sport cause I really enjoyed it, but sometimes I catch myself