On January 1, 2012, Alpha Kabeja was found unconscious on a road in Camden, London. No witness, no video surveillance image made it possible to clarify the circumstances of the accident. What he knows is that he was about to join his partner after an evening spent without her.
Immersed in a coma for three weeks following a head trauma, Alpha keeps the diffuse memory of a van emerging on his right. He also remembers that he was not wearing a helmet that evening.
Invented memories, but well anchored
Since this accident, the young man has lived with a rare neurological condition: conformulation. He evokes precise, detailed memories – but entirely manufactured by his brain. Among them: an interview with the British secret services of the MI6, an ultrasound of fictitious twins with his partner or the idea that he would have a private jet.
“”It’s not like a dream that fades“He says.”It’s like a film that we just saw. The images remain, even if they are false. “
An unknown and complex phenomenon
At first glance, these stories could be taken for lies. However, reality is much more complex. These memories are created involuntarily by the brain, which tries to fill the gaps left by the trauma.
Dr. Wilfrid Pouton, a neurologist in Aix-en-Provence, confirms the possibility of such a case.
“”It would of course have to analyze this story with more details, see any patient imaging, because this type of case is very rare, but can exist“He explains.
“”I myself have never encountered a patient of this type, but in the event of ruptures of certain connections between the brain structures responsible for our memories-in particular the frontal cortex and the hippocampal structures-this can lead to this type of amalgam.“”
A memory that does not erase
Today, Alpha Kabeja has resumed his life in hand. He has forgiven the person responsible for his accident and now lives with consciousness that some of his memories are illusions created by his own brain.
Will these memories disappear one day? Uncertainty remains. “”To understand the underlying mechanisms, a number of similar cases should be studied in depth. But unfortunately, not all are the subject of scientific publications“, Concludes Dr. Pilleon.