Understanding Developmental Trauma:
Causes, Effects and Healing.
Not all wounds are the same.
Developmental and childhood trauma refers to the psychological and emotional wounds inflicted on a child due to adverse experiences during their formative years.
These traumas can have profound and lasting effects on a person’s mental, emotional, and physical health. In this early and most vulnerable time of our lives, trauma can have a more severe and long lasting impact on our growing minds and bodies.
In this article, we will explore the causes, effects, and healing processes associated with developmental and childhood trauma, while incorporating insights into how these early experiences impact brain and body development.
What is Developmental Trauma?
Developmental trauma is a term used to describe the impact of early stressful events on the maturation and development of the brain and body systems. This type of trauma typically occurs from conception to the age of five, a critical period of vulnerability when the brain and body are rapidly developing. Understanding how developmental trauma affects the brain and body is essential for accessing effective treatment.
During this early and most vulnerable time of our lives, trauma can have a more severe and long-lasting impact on our growing minds and bodies. Events such as early separation, abuse, neglect, health and medical issues, and loss can profoundly disrupt the normal developmental processes, leading to significant challenges later in life.
Trauma is the invisible force that shapes
our lives.
Gabor Mate
Understanding the Impact of Early Trauma
Trauma during the earliest years of life can cause a complex mixture of symptoms that disrupt an individual’s life on multiple levels.
Often, the impact of developmental trauma is global, meaning it affects a person in all areas of their life experience.
Sensory Development
1.
In our earliest years, our experience is primarily sensory. Traumatic experiences during this period can cause a person to become stuck in 'danger mode,' where they are continuously receiving signals from their body telling them that they are unsafe.
This heightened state of alertness often results in somatization, where trauma manifests as physical symptoms such as chronic pain or digestive issues.
Attachment
2.
Early attachment plays a critical role in the developing brain. The relationship between a child and their caregiver sets the stage for adult experiences of relationships and intimacy.
Individuals who experience early ruptures in key attachments may struggle with forming close, safe relationships later in life.
Emotional Regulation
3.
Feeling chronically emotionally overwhelmed is a hallmark symptom of developmental trauma. Trauma interferes with the brain circuits involved in emotional control, making it difficult for individuals to manage their emotions effectively.
Coping Behaviours
4.
People who have experienced developmental trauma often develop coping behaviours to manage the overwhelming emotions and physical sensations they experience. These behaviours may include addiction, eating disorders, and dissociation. A person with developmental trauma may exhibit a mixture of these coping mechanisms.
Mental Functioning
5.
Developmental trauma can leave a person in a chronic state of stress and danger, creating powerful beliefs that affect how they view themselves, others, and the world. This ongoing state of stress not only changes their worldview but also impacts cognitive functioning, as the emotional parts of the brain take precedence over higher-level thinking processes.
Causes of Developmental Trauma
The causes of childhood trauma are diverse and can vary in intensity and impact. Some common sources include:
Early Separation Trauma
Early separation trauma occurs when a child loses a caregiver relationship, a loss that can be profoundly traumatic. Caregivers are essential for a child’s safety, emotional regulation, and overall survival. The sudden absence of this bond can trigger intense feelings of abandonment and insecurity, leading to a chronic state of internal overwhelm. Consequently, the child's brain adapts to a constant state of survival mode, remaining hypervigilant and emotionally on edge. This prolonged stress response can have lasting effects on the child’s ability to trust and feel secure in future relationships.
Pre and Perinatal Trauma:
Pre and perinatal trauma involves stress or trauma experienced by a child before, during, or immediately after birth. This can include pregnancy complications, traumatic birth experiences, or early medical interventions. Such trauma can disrupt the infant’s developing nervous system, resulting in heightened sensitivity to stress and challenges in self-regulation. These early traumatic imprints can carry over into later life, leading to chronic anxiety and hypervigilance as the brain becomes wired to perceive the world as unsafe from the outset.
Abuse:
Abuse, whether physical, emotional, or sexual, has a deep and lasting impact on a child's sense of safety and self-worth. Experiencing abuse forces the child’s brain into a chronic state of survival, constantly on alert for potential threats. This hypervigilance can lead to long-term emotional and behavioural issues, as the brain becomes conditioned to expect danger and betrayal. Trusting relationships become difficult, and the child may struggle with fear, shame, and feelings of powerlessness that can extend well into adulthood.
Neglect:
Neglect occurs when a child’s basic emotional, physical, or psychological needs are consistently unmet. Without adequate care and attention, the child’s brain may develop in a state of deprivation, leading to difficulties with emotional regulation and attachment. The lack of nurturing and responsive caregiving can leave the child feeling isolated and unworthy of love, often resulting in low self-esteem and challenges in forming healthy relationships later in life.
Health and Medical Trauma:
Health and medical trauma refers to the distress a child may endure due to serious illness, surgeries, or prolonged hospitalizations. These experiences can be terrifying, especially when they involve separation from caregivers or painful procedures. Such trauma can leave the child feeling helpless and vulnerable, triggering a heightened stress response. Over time, this can manifest as anxiety, medical phobias, or a generalized fear of bodily harm, impacting the child's overall sense of security.
Relational Trauma:
Relational trauma occurs when a child’s need for safe and secure relationships is disrupted, often through betrayal, manipulation, or emotional unavailability by primary caregivers. This type of trauma can severely impair the child’s ability to trust others and form secure attachments. The brain adapts by becoming overly cautious or defensive in relationships, leading to difficulties with intimacy, a fear of abandonment, and ongoing struggles to feel safe and connected in social situations.
“Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside in the absence of an empathetic witness.”
Peter A. Levine
Healing from Developmental Trauma
Developmental trauma affects people in complex ways and so requires a treatment approach which is holistic, combining multiple therapeutic approaches.
For someone who has experienced trauma at such an early age, often they are stuck in a state of chronically physiologically responding to threat.
This means that a person's foundation is built in a state of stress, which we know changes the way in which the brain develops and matures.
While people may benefit from different approaches, it is essential that a somatic focused therapy is being used as part of the treatment plan.
Due to the age when the trauma occurred, which is often pre-verbal, we cannot address the underlying foundational dysregulation in the body through talking alone.
This is where Trauma-Informed Somatic Therapy can be lifechanging.
Somatic Experiencing:
A body-orientated approach that helps people process trauma and other stress disorders. It is based on the idea that traumatic experiences can cause nervous system dysfunction that prevents people from fully processing them. Read More Here
Transforming Touch:
This is a healing method that uses gentle touch or intentional touch to help clients regulate their physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual selves. It's based on neurophysiological principles and is designed to help clients heal from developmental trauma and early stress. Read More Here
Polyvagal Informed Therapy:
This is a type of therapy that considers the body's physiological responses to stress and how the nervous system functions. It's based on polyvagal theory, which was developed by psychologist and neuroscientist Dr. Stephen Porges. Read More Here