Childhood trauma M2.1 discussion

Review the concept of the triune brain in chapter 4 of the Levine & Klein book.

Next, take a few moments to do the exercise found on pg. 94 of Levine & Kline. You might want to have a trusted friend or family member read the text below aloud to you (slowly and in a calm voice) while you follow the prompts. Or you can record yourself reading the text and play it back as you do the exercise. Once you have completed the exercise, be prepared to write down your experiences immediately in as much detail as possible.

Once you have completed this exercise, create a post in which you describe the following:

How did your sensations, emotions, and thoughts change during the exercise? Describe specifically what you experienced.
What parts of the triune brain were activated during each part of the exercise. Again, be specific.
Describe an example (real or imagined) in which a child might go through the stress response. How would the child feel? In what ways might it be similar or different to what you just experienced during this imaginary exercise?
Based on what you have learned in this module, explain how a child’s brain development could be impacted by repeated and/or long-term stress and trauma.
After your initial post answering the questions above, provide thoughtful responses to at least two classmates’ posts.
Discussion Participation Tips

Your initial post should be a reflective response that answers all questions, is adequately detailed, and cites outside sources when necessary to support your post. Typically, a post should be at least 250 words to allows you to answer and ask follow up questions, provide supplemental information, and to share views and experiences that draw us into an in-depth and meaningful conversation. Your first response should be posted by midweek and then you should return to respond to at least two other students during the remaining week(s) of the module. Be sure to use APA format to cite sources when putting forth the ideas, opinions, and facts of others.

ANSWER

Childhood Trauma M2.1 Discussion

Throughout the experience, my sensation, emotions and thoughts changed from unpleasant to pleasant and back. At first, after realizing I could not get my wallet, I experienced unpleasant sensations, emotions and thoughts due to the fear of losing my wallet. The negative emotions and thoughts were feelings that caused me to feel sad and miserable. I felt frustrated after realizing that I could not find my wallet. This contributed to feelings of sadness and anxiety. I got stressed, felt nervous, angry and frustrated since losing my wallet sucked the joy of my birthday out of my life. However, my situation changed from unpleasant to pleasant sensations, emotions and thoughts after receiving a call from my friend telling me that I had left my wallet at their place (Levine and Kline 2006). I got a sudden feeling of pleasure and excitement. I was happy and satisfied after finding out that I had left my wallet at her place. When I found that she was not at her place, my feelings and emotions changed slightly since her absence affected my satisfaction. However, after the surprise, I felt excited and happy that I would enjoy my birthday with my friends. This resulted from the feeling of love and belonging that I would no longer be lonely on my birthday.

The parts of the triune brain consist of the neocortex, limbic brain and reptilian brain (MacLean, 2019). The limbic brain, neocortex and reptilian brain were activated during situations during the exercise. The reptilian brain was activated after realizing that the wallet was lost. This led to vital functions such as increased body temperature, heart rates and fast breathing. The limbic brain was involved in varying emotional and behavioural responses while searching for the wallet, realizing that the wallet was at my friend’s place and the surprise party. The neocortex was the response for the neuronal computations of thought attention, episodic memory and perception. An example is when a child could undergo the same stress response after losing an item. When a child loses an item, they have different behavioural and emotional reactions. At first, they encounter unpleasant emotions and feelings due to the loss, but once they access the item, they become happy and satisfied, thus shifting to pleasant emotions and feelings.

Long term stress and trauma among children lead to functional impairments which influence their brain development. Trauma and stress lead to disrupted and delayed cognitive development, which alter a child’s brain (Bremner, 2022). The human brain is structured to process, sense, perceive, store, and act on information from the internal and external environment during brain development. Therefore, long term traumatic experiences tend to affect the neural pathways which regulate brain functioning.

References

Bremner, J. D. (2022). Traumatic stress: effects on the brain. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience.

Levine, P. A., & Kline, M. (2006). Trauma through a child’s eyes: Awakening the ordinary miracle of healing. North Atlantic Books.

MacLean, P. (2019). A triune concept of the brain and behaviour. In A Triune Concept of the Brain and Behaviour. University of Toronto Press.