It’s common knowledge that caring for someone with PTSD sometimes leads to secondary trauma. But researchers at the University of Utah wondered just how bad that secondary trauma could be. Could the partners of veterans with PTSD suffer just as much, if not more, than the veterans themselves? Catherine Caska, a graduate student in clinical […]
PTSD and gene expression: What can we learn about treating trauma?
Is there a “trauma gene”? Well, let’s back up a bit. We know that genetics can have something to do with vulnerability to trauma. But what if we could find a specific gene that led to PTSD? That’s just what Ya-Ping Tang, MD, PhD, a professor of cell biology at LSU, tried to do. Joined […]
Could simply writing about trauma reduce PTSD symptoms?
People sometimes privately express in a diary thoughts that they don’t feel comfortable sharing with others. But does this process actually contribute to healing? A recent study led by Gail Ironson, MD, PhD, from the University of Miami, investigated whether a written trauma disclosure intervention would be effective with populations of HIV infected individuals. Dr. […]
Do stress and emotional trauma affect child development?
Can trauma pass from parent to child? It’s an interesting question. Some leading-edge research suggests that it’s possible – trauma felt by survivors might even affect their children’s gene expression. But we don’t need epigenetics to study how trauma strikes across generations. For example, researchers at Auburn University studied a more mundane form of intergenerational […]
How PTSD changes children’s brains
Trauma can change the brain . . . . . . but it doesn’t just change the survivor’s brain. In fact, it can actually change the brains of the survivor’s children – in some pretty insidious ways. Ruth Lanius, MD, PhD explains how traumatic experiences can affect a mother’s children, even if the children themselves […]