BT18 Speech 05 - The Living Legacy of Traumatic Experience - Janina Fisher, PhD

Description:

Neuroscience research has established why it is that trauma results in a fragmented narrative along with a ‘living legacy’ of enduring effects. The survival responses that preserve life and integrity under threat do not diminish once safety is obtained. Meant to warn us of impending danger, these easily re-activated survival responses continue to re-evoke the events of long ago decades after they are over. Once baffling and frustrating to treat, the evolution of new neurobiologically-informed treatments offers new, hopeful answers to the aftermath of trauma: the chronic fear of danger, dread of impending doom, loss of hope or energy, the longing for human connection, and self-destructive and addictive behavior.

Educational Objectives:

1. Define five common cognitive, affective, and somatic effects of trauma.
2. Differentiate spontaneous emotion from trauma-related implicit memories.
3. Describe the effects of trauma-related autonomic dysregulation.

*Sessions may be edited for content and to preserve confidentiality*

Outline:

The Living Legacy of Trauma

• Trauma and Memory

  • Traumatic memories feel as vivid today as when they first occurred.
  • Freud and Breuer (1893) noted that traumatic memories are intense and hard to recall in a normal state.
  • Clients often fear remembering trauma, as highlighted by Kafka and Apple.

• Impact on Mental Health

  • Trauma is linked to depression, PTSD, anxiety, substance abuse, and eating disorders.
  • Childhood trauma strongly correlates with borderline personality disorder, self-harm, and dissociation.
  • A psychoeducational flip chart helps clients recognize trauma symptoms, offering relief.
  • "Survival symptoms" (e.g., depression as a “cave”) show how trauma responses once served a purpose.

• Implicit Memory and Trauma

  • Implicit memory includes emotional, sensory, and habit-based memories.
  • Trauma survivors experience past emotions as present realities.
  • Brain scans show traumatic memories activate implicit memory areas, causing unintegrated sensory recall.
  • Clients often misinterpret triggered memories as responses to current events.

• Dissociation in Trauma Treatment

  • Dissociation is a normal response to trauma, not a disorder.
  • Structural dissociation theory explains the split between logical (left brain) and emotional (right brain) processing.
  • Helping clients recognize implicit memories fosters healing.

• Transformational Trauma Treatment

  • Focuses on repairing trauma’s impact rather than reliving events.
  • "Feeling flashbacks" help clients recognize emotions as past memories.
  • Encourages new experiences to reshape emotional responses.
  • Treating clients with respect enhances healing.

• Language and Healing

  • Finding new language for trauma symptoms aids understanding.
  • Naming implicit memories provides relief.
  • Reframing experiences fosters personal growth.

• Final Thoughts

  • Trauma work should prioritize healing and resilience.
  • Clients must be treated as capable of growth, regardless of past trauma.