28/05/2025
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Why Time Feels Like It Flies as We Get Older?
Have you ever felt like each year passes faster than the last? You're not imagining it, this common experience has a psychological explanation. As we age, our brains tend to process fewer new or novel experiences. This reduction in novelty makes time feel like it’s moving more quickly.
When we’re young, everything is new. Our brains are constantly recording fresh experiences, which creates a rich, detailed memory bank. The more memories we form, the longer that period feels in retrospect. But as we grow older and settle into routines, fewer new experiences are logged. Days blur together, and our perception of time speeds up.
Neuroscientific research supports this idea. A study by Eagleman (2008) from Baylor College of Medicine suggests that time perception is heavily influenced by the amount of information our brain processes. Novel experiences demand more attention and neural resources, effectively “stretching” our sense of time. Another study by Friedman and Janssen (2010) found that people recall periods filled with new or emotional events as longer than those filled with routine.
So, what’s the takeaway? If you want to slow time down, seek novelty. Try new activities, change up your daily routines, or learn something unfamiliar. Your brain, and your sense of time, will thank you.
Sources
Eagleman, D. (2008). Human time perception and its illusions. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 18(2), 131-136.
Friedman, W. J., & Janssen, S. M. J. (2010). A Model of Event Memory. Psychological Review, 117(3), 864–882.
