Trauma can have a profound impact on a person’s
memory . . .
. . . and traumatic memory can affect not only the brain, but also the body and nervous system as well.
But conceptualizing how trauma can impact the different types of memory can be challenging, so we created a free tool for practitioners that breaks down this process.
Click the image to enlarge
(If you’re sharing this infographic, please attribute it to NICABM. We put a lot of work into creating these resources for you. And if you’re sharing this digitally, please link back to this page in your attribution. Thanks!)
Explicit Memory
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Semantic Memory
How Trauma Can Affect It Trauma can prevent information (like words, images, sounds, etc.) from different parts of the brain from combining to make a semantic memory.
Related Brain Area The temporal lobe and inferior parietal cortex collect information from different brain areas to create semantic memory.
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Episodic Memory
How Trauma Can Affect It Trauma can shutdown episodic memory and fragment the sequence of events
Related Brain Area The hippocampus is responsible for creating and recalling episodic memory.
Implicit Memory
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Procedural Memory
How Trauma Can Affect It Trauma can change patterns of procedural memory for example, a person might tense up and unconsciously alter their posture, which could lead to pain or even numbness.
Related Brain Area The striatum is associated with producing procedural memory and creating new habits.
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Emotional Memory
How Trauma Can Affect It after trauma, a person may get triggered and experience painful emotions, often without context.
Related Brain Area The amygdala plays a key role in supporting memory for emotionally charged experiences.
If you’d like to print a copy, you can use one of these links:
You can hear more about how trauma affects the brain, body, and nervous system in the Treating Trauma Master Series.
You’ll get insights from Bessel van der Kolk, MD; Pat Ogden, PhD; Dan Siegel, MD; Stephen Porges, PhD; and Ruth Lanius, MD, PhD.
Now we’d like to hear from you. How could this help you in your work? Please leave a comment below.
This is such a great resource – thank you for sharing
It’s one thing to say trauma impacts these memory types. It’s another thing to describe what that impact might look like in the lived experience. It’s another to note which areas of the brain are associated with those types of memory function. But it’s something else to 1) explain *how* trauma generates those effects (as the title implies), and 2) *prove* that trauma causes those effects. I would be interested in both those clarifications, even if that means linking through to research articles that verify trauma impacts memory and clarify the mechanisms involved.
I have been trying like h*** for years to get some type of answer or guidemce on what is wrong with me and who I am..was ..both. I’ve experienced childhood trauma, sexual abuse , physical abuse, DV, epilepsy, schizophrenia affective disorder, vitamin deficiencies, hormone inbalance, vertigo, head traía and drug induced psychosis, disassociation and the list goes on i can’t remember where I came from or how to do basic functions or what happened 15 mins ago …i don’t know if I be having a hallucinations or it’s reality halfthe time . I can’t trust anything. and no doctors will test me they think I’m paranoid.
where can I get emergency om the spot help?
(CPTSD & dissociative amnesia) This helps explain how, after yet another traumatic event, I lost all memories related to my learned skills overnight: cooking, playing piano, writing, gardening, etc. as well as lost many memories of events not even related to trauma, but were good memories. Nobody could explain it to me. There is no occupational or other therapy offered to help me recover. They said the memories/skills would come back; they haven’t after 6 years. I have to relearn as if I were a child again, on my own. There is nothing offered to help me.
Have you tried searching on Google for: Brain Biohacking — Focus. Memory. Think faster. Increase your brain power
There is may be some special on occasion…haven’t tried this myself. So won’t be able to say if brain biohacking is something new.
Oh how I wish just one qualified person would help me. I’ve been chasing that dream since I was a small child. Of course I realize now, that is all so pointless. I’m not going to get better. I know it, and the Privileged know few know it as well. It’s very sad for me to know I will never get better because of the class I was born into.
There are ways to access help. I don’t know what your situation is but keep researching how you can get trauma-informed care.
Thank you. I am a clinician in several AFC specialized living homes and visuals help residents to understand.
I have been looking for information on Trauma caused by electromagnetic fields as in the case of occupational exposure to EMF’s example: Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists (MRI).
I have also been looking into the effects of something called Zersetzung which was a tactic of psychological games used by East German Police on politcal opponents to destroy them. Today in America it is called networking, mobbing and gangstalking.
If you have any information where a person can get help for these types of trauma contact me at t.williams_mri@hotmail.com
Thank you so much for the whole amazing work you do sharing different kind of material related to mind and body healing!
It’s a great and helpful mission!
This infographic doesn’t appear to have alt text, and I am blind. Can you update it, or append a description below or something? Thanks!
This is helpful for me as a quick reference didactic when training others, but I would be hesitant to share it with a client – it’s a rather overwhelmingly negative message, despite the color graphics. I would want my clients to see the treatment modalities and possible outcomes for healing as well to provide hope.
Brian Shiers MA CMF LMFT
Thank you so much! As a therapist and someone with trauma history, these materials are very helpful in understanding how trauma impacts our brains and bodies. Thank you so much!
I have been listening to the Treating Trauma Master Series. It is amazing! I’m a psychologist and EMDR therapist. I noticed EMDR covers all main areas affected by trauma: thoughts, emotions and body, and follows the same principles and guidelines the experts say are crucial for a respectful and successful treatment results. Thank you for expanding my knowledge about how trauma affects a person, and thank you for giving me more empirical resources I can use with my clients.
Thank you and blessings Ruth for sharing this infographics. I suffer from ptsd and shaming in my life and trying to heal myself on my own with lots of fantastic help from you and what you have to offer! It has made a huge impact in my life and how I function now and how I perceive the world. Thank you and immense gratitude for all your hard work.
As a pastor, I have met, supported and referred various people for help over the years. The info graphic is helpful in further understanding some of the underlying physiological conditions that influence human behaviors.
In addition to blocking memories, trauma can also lead to hyper remembering every single detail of an event.
Thank you very much for this and other infographics – they are very useful. You are extremely generous with you materials.
You are so generous!!
I feel so grateful that I found you 15 years ago 💎
Thank you for the work you do
All generalizations are false, including this one.
Mark Twain
That infographic relys on one, who sustained a Tbi – Traumatic brain injury – to have maintained, sense of balance.
A Tbi is not a ‘One size fits Most’. I live with one and sustained a massive bleed on my cerebellum.
I loved longboarding and made numerous attempts to use one. My aha moment came in Rarotonga, when I stood up on a paddle board.
10 minutes, I had to go lay down for the afternoon.
If, you have got to this point. I humbly thank you. I may act and look “normal” however, GCS 4, not supposed walk again walked out of rehab – with aid of a walking stick – Two months later. Three months after the event.
I love your infographics. They make things so clear and easy to remember. I’m not a therapist, but very interested in the workings of the brain – in how our inner world connects with the outer world.
I shared this on LinkedIn with this link. Thank you, you have so many good resources!
Thank you! This is very helpful. As an abuse survivor with c-ptsd, I have felt the effects of emotional memory the most. I know it is possible to heal from trauma because I am living that.
Thank you for a wonderful picture with explanation.
I am a physiotherapist and i want use these two picture in my power point.
my email is
bayramianali@yahoo.com
I show the source of pictures.
Thank you
regarding
Ali Bayram
Thank you for this. I have a client who feels ashamed that her memory is poor, and I think this will help her see that it happens to many people, she is not alone.
This is going to be very helpful. Thank you so much for the resource.
As an ESOL teacher I can provide clear anecdotal evidence for this especially working with learners with a traumatic migrant experience. Most notably to start with my experience working in the Somali community in late 90s… Learners often remained in pre entry bracket with clear short term memoryand processing analytical difficulties in imposing new cultural context. Tory policy of connecting communities via integration policy misguided in this respect. Interesting document by SPOC walthamforest connecting communities does however support your view.
Thank you for sharing the infographic about the four different regions of the brain which directly people who have been expose to traumatic experiences. It has help me to understand some of my granddaughters behavior possibly.
⁴thankyou Kathy, I love all you say and feel I share a lot of your feelings.good luck Victor.
Hi Robyn Miller, AU
Being 76 years now; trained in CISM (Critical Incident Stress Mgmt);
and having worked with many trauma patients, I completely get what you’re going thru. “The Doctors” business is surgery they do not specialize in healing Trauma patients so they can be flippant. Recommend classes in Chi Gung (Qui Gong) and Tai Chi Chuan and of course your personal psychotherapist will help you. Best,
Alex Cohen, PhD, MSW in NZ
Hi there.
Sorry to hear about your struggle. There is a treatment called EMDR Therapy and it’s used on trauma victims. It re- alines your negative memories into positive ( plus more) Maybe try and source a Therapist and give it a try.
Good luck.
Very helpful visual description! Makes sense of things, a MAP of symptoms!
Yep spot on, couldn’t have explained it any better.. waves of feelings surge on just by reading this…?
As a Grief Share facilitator, we have many people with all sorts of traumatic incidents in their grieving, including me. This type of information is invaluable and deepens my understanding and compassion. I have learned so much that is included in my talks with the attendees. Sincerest thanks!
Well said!
As humans I think we all have some type of trauma. Whether it be past or present.
More information I gather and observe my own
trauma… body, mind and spirit…this concrete
information is enlightening.
Losing my oldest son only 19 months ago has pushed me to understand my trauma. How it affects every cell in my body. There is no perfect treatment for our traumas, but information is power.
Thank you all for sharing.
Dear Kathy Phillips ,
I only just read your comments on sending my personal ones off…
My life’s story is rather different and yet , you and I overlap in so many “similarities” .
I just like to send you an immensely LOVING ? HUG ? .
Let’s just carry on together in working for
MORE POSITIVE CHANGE .
Sincerely ,
Xxx .
Liesbeth (a Belgian ?? , living in Wales ??????? / U.K.)
This infographic is so helpful. Thank you very much.
I am a Community Psychiatric Nurse working with people daily who, unfortunately have endured trauma
I am a sexual assault nurse examiner. My patients are impacted by the neuro-biological effects of trauma. Many self-blame for not responding in the way they thought they should. I am better able to explain why they had the response they did thanks to your chart.
Thank you . I like how the infographic breaks down memory into four types. But it would be more helpful if – in the reference to how trauma affects that sort of memory, an examples were included. I don’t know how to translate the info about trauma “shutting down” episodic memory, for instance, into what I will see in a trauma survivor.
ETC
Thankyou so much for this information, Ruth.
It has confirmed how Trauma not only impacts the CNS but parts of the brain that affects memory.
As a Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist this information gives me an insight and better understanding how I can support those who are experiencing such trauma.
The visuals are simple to explain to my clients, so they can have a better understanding and give them confidence to know they are not alone in this.
Thank you Andrew. Makes sense. I came here looking for info on how to handle past-life trauma. It seems that you know what that is all about.
This is a great visual! Thank you!
Ortho-Bionomy can unwind physical trauma when the practitioner takes the client slowly back into the position, holds them there for 5 minutes, and slowly lets go. It’s as though the brain got stuck in the instant of trauma and is holding the muscles, etc. stuck in place.
Emotional Freedom Technique (Tapping) is also very powerful to help with physical and mental trauma. Combined with talk therapy, it facilitates and greatly speeds the time needed for recovery.
Hi, Deborah
I am so happy to hear this. I have always believed that EFT and Tapping are powerful tools and helps greatly my PTSD clients. Talking about their emotion helps them to reconnect with the past and the present in their feeling in the here and now.
great easy way of explaining it!
who is the author of this infographic? I love the information, and I need to cite it when I talk about it.