Figure 2. Process of Memory Reconsolidation.

Schematic diagram of the primary phases of memory consolidation, reconsolidation, and extinction after a traumatic event. Shortly after the fear conditioning process (conditioned stimulus–unconditioned stimulus pairing illustrated in Figure 1), a memory is in an active state in short-term memory until it gets consolidated and stabilized into long-term memory. As short-term memories are immediately available to conscious awareness, these memories are temporarily available to working memory as they are also being consolidated. At later time points, the retrieval of a consolidated memory returns the memory from an inactive state in long-term memory to an active state in working memory from which it needs to be stabilized anew. The process during which reactivated memories are stabilized again is called reconsolidation. Reconsolidation occurs most readily after brief reactivation, which strengthens the long-term memory. During reconsolidation, the active memory traces are potentially vulnerable to modification. Repeated reactivation of a memory without adverse consequences creates an extinction, or safety, memory which inhibits the original fear memory. Reconsolidation and extinction are opposing processes that act to strengthen or inhibit, respectively, fear memory expression over time.