Strange phenomenon makes many people feel like they 'lose their memory' after watching a concert

Transient global amnesia leaves many people with no memory of concerts or important events they have long been looking forward to.

"If I had to describe the feeling after watching the Taylor Swift concert, I could only say that I forgot everything, as if it had never happened," Guenaëlle, 22, shared after returning from La Défense Arena stadium, Paris, on May 9.

She waited nearly a year to get her hands on a ticket to the event. However, when the event took place, Guenaëlle could not remember the order of the songs, the color of Taylor's outfit, or the choreography.

“On the other hand, I remember every detail of the way to and from the hotel,” she explained.

Guenaëlle is not the first person to have had this strange experience. Many music fans have said they felt “hypnotized and mind-blown” after attending a performance by their favorite singer – an event they had been looking forward to for months, even years.

"A lot of my clients have been to Taylor's concert in New Jersey. The next day, they don't remember anything, like there are blank spots in their brain. I think this is a phenomenon that can be explained scientifically," said Nathan Carrollary, a psychiatrist at Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

He said this was a "transient global amnesia" (TGA), characterized by short-term memory loss. The phenomenon occurs when the human brain experiences extreme feelings such as being too excited, too stressed, too scared, affecting the ability to encode memories.

“Our memory is extremely sensitive to stress, whether it comes from positive or negative experiences,” Carrollary stressed.

Taylor Swift performs in Tokyo, Japan, on February 7. Photo: Reuters

Increased adrenaline and cortisol

Transient global amnesia is common in people between the ages of 50 and 80, according to a study of 200 volunteers published in the journal Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria, a Brazilian neuroscience institute. Yann Humeau, a researcher at the French National Center for Scientific Research, Institute of Neurosciences (IINS), said the phenomenon closely resembles post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Memory intensity, amygdala overload, and the mechanism of action for encoding emotional memory have similarities.

Increased levels of adrenaline (a hormone produced by the body in response to fear, anger, or pleasure) and cortisol (a stress hormone) contribute to this phenomenon. Over the past 20 years, research on post-traumatic amnesia has focused on the hippocampus, an area of ​​the brain particularly involved in stress.

In fact, transient global amnesia is quite common. Carrollary says that musical performances are not the only events that can affect memory. Sports games, weddings, graduations, and any other moment that can create excitement, pressure, fear, or stress can all cause memory loss.

“You will experience it many times in your life,” says Carrollary.

Moderately pleasant events create memories that become generalized memories, says Robert N. Kraft, professor emeritus of cognitive psychology at Otterbein University in Ohio. But as feelings of excitement increase, attention narrows, and people remember fewer details and contexts.

'Live in the moment'

The experience of memory loss after a concert varies from person to person. People with anxiety or depression are more likely to experience it than others. Guenaëlle, for example, suffered from anxiety since childhood and “slept very little for four or five nights before the concert.” According to Humeau, sleep plays a “fundamental role in the consolidation of encoded information.” But excitement can disrupt this encoding process.

People who forget about a long-awaited important moment often feel guilty afterwards.

"I felt so guilty, because I couldn't remember anything about the concert, as if I hadn't enjoyed it enough," Guenaëlle said.

However, Professor Kraft explains, having difficulty remembering means the brain has fully registered the emotional diversity at the time of experience.

“Not remembering the concert is a testament to being in the moment and truly enjoying the experience,” Kraft says.