‘Dentist Trip’ Tops List of Earliest Childhood Memories

July 12, 2011 - PRLog -- Whilst many would consider their first childhood memories to be based around happy events, new research from a website specialising in creating bespoke photographic memorabilia has found that, for the average Briton, this may not be the case.

In a new poll by www.MyMemory.com, it has been revealed that a ‘trip to the dentist’ has topped the charts as the most common first childhood memory; pipping memories of ‘birthday parties’ and ‘holidays’ to the post.

The study was conducted by MyMemory.com, as part of research into the favourite memories of Britons, with 1, 671 men and women aged 18 and over taking part.
MyMemory.com aims to help consumers turn their memories into bespoke photographic keepsakes, so the site was keen to discover more about the childhood memories of people around the UK.

Respondents to the study were asked to state what they believed their earliest childhood memories were and were able to choose multiple answers, if they believed they had more than one. According to the results, the top 10 results were as follows:

1) Trip to the Dentist- 35%
2) Birthday Party – 33%
3) Holiday- 28%
4) First day of School- 25%
5) Trip to the Doctor- 24%
6) Day Out- 23%
7) Childhood Accident/ Injury- 17%
8) Tooth Falling Out- 16%
9) Receiving Present- 14%
10) Playing with Friends- 12%

All respondents who chose ‘trip to the dentist’ as one of their earliest childhood memories were asked to explain why they felt that the trip had stuck in their memory. The vast majority, 86%, of respondents explained that they believed ‘fear’ of the trip had made it stick in their minds; whilst just 7% explained that it was because the trip had been ‘enjoyable.’

When asked what age they believe that they were when their earliest memory occurred, the average respondent, when taking all responses into account, believed that they were ‘4.3 years old’.

Rebecca Huggler, co-founder of MyMemory.com, commented on the findings:

“Memories are something that we all treasure, so with this research we really wanted to look into what people believed their earliest memories were. It was certainly amusing to see that a ‘trip to the dentist’ was the most common memory, particularly given that many felt they remembered the event through ‘fear’; but it just goes to show how powerful an effect emotions can have when it comes to holding on to memories.”

She continued:

“We certainly encourage people to keep their memories alive through photographs, as they are a great way to keep fond reminders around the house. However, when it comes to a trip to the dentist, I’m not sure how many people would have taken a snap!”

ENDS

LINK: http://www.MyMemory.com

For more information please contact Emma Kent of 10 Yetis Public Relations on emmak@10yetis.co.uk or 01452 348211.

Editor’s Notes

MyMemory.com is a website specialising in bespoke photographic memorabilia and gifts.

The site was launched in 2010 by Rebecca Huggler and Karl Moss.