The Impact of Trauma on the Brain: Understanding PTSD and Emotional Brain Regulation

Understanding Emotional Brain Regulation

Being traumatized means continuing to organize your life as if the trauma were still going on – unchanged and immutable – as every new encounter or event is contaminated by the past. This is because our brain responds in a way that continuously seeks to protect us and fulfill our primary need for survival.

The Triune Brain: A Structure for Survival

The brain is divided into three distinct parts, often referred to as the Triune Brain, which is composed of:

The rational/cognitive brain (pre-frontal cortex): responsible for logical thinking and decision-making.

The reptile brain (fundamental physiological management): handles basic bodily functions.

The limbic brain (identification of comfort, safety, threat, hunger, fatigue, desire, longing, excitement, pleasure, pain): processes emotional and memory information.

The limbic brain is shaped in response to our experiences. The reptile and limbic brain, together, are considered the emotional brain, which gets all its sensory input first through the thalamus and then to the amygdala – the part of the brain that determines whether something is a threat. The amygdala can trigger cortisol and adrenaline, which are essential for survival.

Neurological Responses to Trauma

Messages about our surroundings make it to the rational brain (pre-frontal cortex) last. Therefore, it's hard to filter for things that aren't really a threat to us since our emotional brain has already reacted. This is particularly significant in the context of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which leads to a breakdown of the power balance between the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and the amygdala. This imbalance creates a hair trigger, sending the individual into a tailspin.

The Conflict Between Emotional and Rational Brains

When the emotional and rational brains are in conflict, as in situations of enraged love, frightening dependence, or unattainable longing, a tug-of-war ensues. This war is played out in the visceral experience, leading to both physical discomfort and psychological misery. PTSD can trigger irrational or out-of-control physical responses, leading to feelings of shame, which become a dominant emotion.

Physiological Responses to Reliving Trauma

There is a variety of physical responses to reliving trauma, such as sweating, heart palpitations, and breathing difficulties. These responses can lead to feelings of shame, a primary emotion, which can be difficult to manage. Being anchored in the present while revisiting the trauma can help in deeply knowing that the terrible events belong to the past.

Treatment and Coping Strategies

Therapy is essential for treating PTSD, but it often fails if the individual is stuck in the past. People with PTSD may avoid the past by closing down their field of vision, looking down a narrow tunnel through life, and focusing only on what they need to, at the cost of shutting everything else out, including joy and pleasure.

Depersonalization and Alexithymia

Two possible responses to trauma are repeatedly reliving it or depersonalization, where the individual cannot handle what is happening and shuts down completely. Depersonalization can significantly interfere with daily life in numerous ways, including difficulty connecting with others, which is a key part of our human nature. Our brains are built to help us function as members of a tribe, and we are part of that tribe even when we are by ourselves.

Therapeutic Reconnection

Depersonalization involves losing the sense of self completely, including the connection to the body. In therapy, individuals can slowly reconnect with their physical sensations, which is a crucial step in the healing process. The default state network, the network that activates when we are not engaged in any specific task, can help by focusing on ourselves and our physical and emotional states.

NeuroScientific Insights

Neuroscientific research shows that the brain can be significantly modified by later experiences, leading to better or worse emotional and memory structures. Emotional abuse, which is often as damaging as physical abuse and sexual molestation, can leave long-lasting effects on the brain, particularly in the amygdala.

The default state network, which is the brain's resting state, can activate the brain areas that work together to create our sense of self. After trauma, this network is deactivated, leading to a loss of our sense of self.

Alexithymia and Emotional Regulation

Alexithymia, a condition where an individual has no words for their feelings, is a significant challenge for emotional regulation. People with alexithymia may experience muscle pain, bowel problems, and other apparently causeless symptoms. They often avoid seeking professional help, believing that it's better to keep visiting doctors and treating ailments that don't heal than to face the demons of the past.

Conclusion

Understanding the impact of trauma on the brain, particularly the emotional brain, is crucial for addressing and treating PTSD and other related conditions. By recognizing the structural and functional changes in the brain, we can develop more effective therapeutic interventions and support mechanisms to help individuals regain their sense of self and emotional regulation.