How Depression Affects Memory: Why You Can’t Remember Being Happy

When you’re depressed, it can feel like you’ve always been depressed — like joy is just something you imagined. This article explores how depression warps memory through state-dependent and mood-congruent recall, making it difficult to remember positive emotions. Drawing on both personal experience and scientific insight, it explains why sadness seems permanent and how some joyful memories — especially from before illness — can break through the fog. If you’ve ever wondered why you can’t remember being happy, this is for you.