Childhood Trauma and the Brain | UK Trauma Council
Brain development is much more than a
story about biology from the earliest years relationships
with others play a key role in shaping how our brain grows and develops
early relationships where there is abuse and neglect have a long-term impact on
children a brain that has adapted to survive in a
threatening or unpredictable world may not work so well in an ordinary
environment this can create what is called latent
vulnerability where early abusive or neglectful experiences with carers put
children at greater risk of experiencing mental health problems in the future
for these children compared to their peers common experiences like moving to
a new school can feel more daunting and stressful
[Music] new faces can appear threatening
while positive social cues can be missed it can be harder to negotiate new social
situations and learn to trust new people even fun experiences like joining a new
sports team can be challenging too much focus on potential threat cues
can mean missing out on positive social cues such as a playful nudge
or it causes an overreaction which leads to an increased risk of conflict and
sometimes violence [Music]
these reactions can increase the likelihood of generating new stressful
events it’s harder to deal with everyday
challenges when you feel unconfident and anxious inside
and harder to build and maintain relationships
over time this can mean a child loses friends and the support of adults and so
misses out on opportunities to grow and develop
this social thinning can increase the risk of mental health problems in the
future neuroscience research is beginning to
shed new light on how vulnerability unfolds over a child’s life
all children need care and stimulation from adults who value them and who show
them attention and love these experiences shape a child’s brain
development when children face traumatic experiences
like abuse and neglect their brain adapts to help them cope
we know of changes in three different brain systems the reward memory and
threat systems experiences of domestic violence or
physical abuse can lead to hyper vigilance where the brain reacts more to
threat this might help a child stay safe in an
early adverse environment but it can cause problems in more ordinary
environments hypervigilance can best be understood as
a pattern of adaptation rather than a sign of damage abuse and neglect can also mean a world
where a child’s basic needs for care and attention are not met
[Music] this can shape the brain’s reward system
the part of the brain that helps us learn about positive aspects of our
environment and motivates our behavior over time the brain’s reward system can
learn to respond differently to things like positive social cues
neuroscience studies have also pointed to changes in the autobiographical
memory system our memory of everyday past experiences
following trauma negative memories appear to become more salient which
means they become more prominent than positive ones and everyday memories can
also become less detailed this is a problem because we need to
draw on past experiences to help us deal with new social situations
neuroscience research is showing how childhood trauma can create latent
vulnerability increasing the risk of later mental
health problems like anxiety and depression
this vulnerability is not just located in the child but arises through their
relationships helping children who have experienced
trauma still requires ordinary boundaries and consequences but it also
requires us to step back and reflect and see behaviour that we find challenging
in a different light a child may simply be doing their best
to survive now with brain adaptations from the past
we know a child’s brain has the capacity to continue to adapt for this to happen
they need our help to build and maintain trusted relationships manage everyday
stresses and prevent new ones from happening
we need to encourage them to try again and believe things can be different
this is far from an easy task and takes time
[Music] science is helping reframe our
understanding of childhood trauma seeing children’s behaviour in a new
light can mean we respond differently but there is much still to learn
working together we can develop more effective approaches that promote
resilience and recovery we can help children build trusting
relationships and create opportunities for their brains to adapt in new [Music] ways you
A general introduction to what happens in the brain after children face traumatic experiences in childhood, like abuse and neglect.
This animation was developed by Professor Eamon McCrory and is a part of the Childhood Trauma and the Brain resource. Learn more about the science and how to apply it to practice on the UK Trauma Council website: https://uktraumacouncil.org/resources/childhood-trauma-and-the-brain
Eamon McCrory is Professor of Developmental Neuroscience and Psychopathology at UCL, Co-Director of the Developmental Risk and Resilience Unit and Co-Director of the UK Trauma Council. He is also Director of Education and Training at the Anna Freud Centre in London. His research uses brain imaging and psychological approaches to investigate the impact of childhood maltreatment on emotional development and mental health. The long-term aim of his work is to understand how and why mental health problems can unfold following early adversity, and how we might intervene to promote more resilient outcomes for children.
About the UK Trauma Council:
The UK Trauma Council (UKTC) is a group of leading experts, drawn from a variety of disciples across all four nations of the United Kingdom (UK). We are the first UK-wide platform bringing together expertise in research, practice, policy and lived experience in the field of childhood trauma. The UK Trauma Council is hosted and supported by the Anna Freud Centre.
Creating a world that nurtures and protects children and young people following trauma
This video was generously funded by the Economic Social Research Council.