‘Trauma and the Brain’ sounds like a children’s book title.
I imagine a small curly-headed girl (indulge me) walking around on a lead, a brain which is pink and has stick legs. Maybe this isn’t such a bad image.
Trauma does do amazing things to our brain, and like it or not, Distance Education and shops closing and parks and social distancing and new societal rules are a form of trauma that we all are going through and adjusting to.
I have been reading lots of resources about the effect of trauma on the brain and, other than proving once again to me that we have been divinely created, it is all quite amazing.
To understand completely we need to understand a little bit about our brains, their physiology and the role each part plays.
Ultimately we have three main sections of our brain.
The brain stem: controls all the functions of your body to stay alive. Respiration, circulation, digestion etc. It is also at the base of the brain and receives all the messages from the rest of your body via our spinal cord.
The limbic region: this area is above the stem and consists of the thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus and other bits (very scientific word there Annie, bits!). These structures regulate emotions, behaviour, motivation and memory.
The cortex: this is the uppermost part of the brain and allows a person to reflect, concentrate, learn and think.
When trauma occurs the functioning of our brain is changed. It is harder to think and react. The brainstem and limbic system keep us functioning but the cortex can be hard to access. Children are more vulnerable to trauma than adults.
The amygdala, part of the limbic system, controls the release of stress hormones that can keep us in fight, flight or freeze. The hippocampus has the job of filing memories for later storage, but when the amygdala sends off the stress signal our hippocampus stops filing and starts pumping cortisol to help us deal with stress and can actually stop us feeling pain, like a safety mechanism. But, if we stay in a stress state for prolonged periods of time, this can affect our ability to remember things and therefore learn new information.
If we are in stress for extended periods of time our cortex functions of our brain are impaired and we find it harder to think, process and learn anything. We have disorganised minds, are forgetful and can seem to be ignoring instruction.
So, back to the dog brain on a lead scenario. Our curly-headed girl still can function, but she may need help controlling her dog. She needs positive and gentle adults in her life affirming her and keeping good healthy routines for rest and play in her life. She needs kind and caring teachers who gently lead her to good decisions. She needs time to adjust to the new normal and understanding if she gets a bit scattered or emotional, clear and fair boundaries to make her feel safe.
Annie Joy - Primary Cordinator