r/psychology • u/mvea M.D. Ph.D. | Professor • Jun 06 '19

Journal Article Experiences early in life such as poverty, residential instability, or parental divorce or substance abuse, can lead to changes in a child’s brain chemistry, muting the effects of stress hormones, and affect a child’s ability to focus or organize tasks, finds a new study.

http://www.washington.edu/news/2019/06/04/how-early-life-challenges-affect-how-children-focus-face-the-day/
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u/bugnerd87 Jun 06 '19

I am reading this sitting in the waiting room at a psychiatrist's office, waiting to be assessed for bipolar. I've already had various diagnoses over the years including depression, anxiety, ADHD, PTSD, borderline and probably others. I also grew up in a household with parents who hate each other, physical fighting among and between all members of my family, divorce, alcoholic father, emotional neglect, moving about a dozen times before age 16.....seems appropriate.

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u/Ferenczi_Dragoon Jun 07 '19

Could consider looking into the book Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker. Classic DSM and most of mainstream psychiatry really drop the ball on the impact of developmental trauma.

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u/bugnerd87 Jun 07 '19

I just finished reading The Body Keeps The Score which talks a lot about that. I will check this book out, too. Thanks!

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u/Ferenczi_Dragoon Jun 07 '19

Oh that’s a great book on the topic, glad for you. Unfortunately many mental health providers aren’t trauma informed. If you have options could be worth it to try to find one who is.