Lecture 14: Historical Trauma & Mental Health Flashcards
what is historical trauma?
- A collectively experienced trauma in an ancestral generation that is collectively associated with poor mental health and physical health outcomes in descendent generations
- A cumulative emotional and psychological wounding over the lifespan and across generations, emanating from massive group trauma
- Historical unresolved grief accompanies that trauma
- One generation’s experiences can impact the health of future generations
examples of historical trauma
colonization, the Holocaust, genocide, Apartheid
examples of populations affected by historical trauma
- Japanese (WWll internment)
- Jewish holocaust survivors
- Prisoners of the Yom Kippur War
- Indigenous Canadians and Indigenous Americans
- Mexican Americans
- African Americans (slavery)
- Rwandans (genocide)
historical trauma responses
- Survivor guilt
- Depression
- PTSD symptoms
- Psychic numbing
- Fixation to trauma
- Somatic (physical) symptoms
- Low self-esteem
- Victim identity
- Anger
- Self-destructive behaviour
- Suicidal ideation
- Hypervigilance
- Intense fear
- Dissociation
- Compensatory fantasies
- Poor affect (emotion) tolerance
historical trauma is associated with:
- Poorer physical health (cardiovascular, immune, and metabolic systems, increased BMI, accelerated biological aging)
- Psychiatric disorders (PTSD)
- Psychological symptoms (anxiety, depressive symptoms, stress reactivity)
- Poor health behaviours (alcohol and substance abuse)
DNA Methylation
a chemical reaction that results in a gene being turned on or off
Epigenome
a collection of chemical marks that modify cellular DNA and proteins, and control how genes are expressed
epigenetic sensitivity
- The epigenome is sensitive to environmental stressors, including trauma
- The timing of epigenetic sensitivity to the environment extends across the life course
intergenerational changes in the epigenome
- Changes can be inherited across generations
- Parental stress can modify the epigenome and stress physiology in both the parent and offspring and these changes can impact both mental and physical health outcomes
2 biological pathways for historical trauma to affect health
pathway 1: individual experience
pathways 2: intergenerational effects
Pathway 1 Individual Experience
Members of historically traumatized populations also experienced an increased risk of stress/trauma in their daily lives in 4 ways
4 ways historically traumatized populations experience increased risk of stress/trauma
- low SES
- discrimination
- historical loss
- exposure to aces
low SES in pathway 1
associated with gene methylation, leading to poor mental health
discrimination in pathway 1
discrimination is rooted in harm against people’s ancestors, making it extra harmful
historical loss in pathway 1
- Represents feelings of loss directly resulting from historical trauma. Studies have found associations between historical loss and health disparities that tend to manifest in Indigenous people
- ex. Land, culture, language, family ties
exposure to aces in pathway 1
stressful childhood events can lead to poor mental health incomes
Pathway 2: Intergeneration Effects
- Environmentally-induced epigenetic modifications in parents can influence offspring biology and health
- Prenatal and early life exposures are key
3 types of environmentally-induced epigenetic modifications in parents
- intrauterine signalling
- breastfeeding/milk composition
- parental care
intrauterine signalling in pathway 1
when fetuses are in utero, it’s a period of epigenetic malleability. Aspects of the intrauterine environment can shape offspring’s epigenome
Breastfeeding/milk composition in pathway 2
a lack of breastfeeding can have adverse effects on offspring health. Women who are part of populations that have been exposed to historical trauma are more likely to have stressors in their lives, making them less likely to breastfeed.
Parental care in pathway 2
there is increased DNA methylation in infants whose mothers experienced high postpartum depression
implications of historical trauma
- Historical trauma results in a greater frequency of trauma and stressor experience for the affected population, which can directly impact the epigenome
- Epigenetic modifications resulting from environmental exposures, such as early stress or adversity, are not necessarily permanent
Historical Trauma and Unresolved Grif Intervention (Brave Hart, 1998)
- A resolution for mastery of trauma that has been demonstrated to be effective on small segments of the American Indian population who are demonstrating elevated levels of mental health symptoms
- Involves reconnecting people with culturally relevant ways of healing
premise of the Historical Trauma and Unresolved Grif Intervention
parents who have been wounded by historical trauma will need support to address their trauma before they can be fully emotionally present caregivers
results of the Historical Trauma and Unresolved Grif Intervention
Before the intervention, Indigenous people reported high levels of anger, sadness, guilt, shame, and low levels of joy. The intervention increased a sense of personal power, purpose, and joy while reducing anger, sadness, guilt, and shame
gene expression and historical trauma
- Just because you have a gene, doesn’t mean that it will be expressed
- Usually, you must also experience a stressor for an epigenetic change to be expressed
