COUN502 Essay 2 Angela Phillips
Trauma and Development Trauma can happen at anytime and anyone. The suddenness and intensity of certain traumas can take root in people’s lives and can have adverse effects lasting a few months or possibly the rest of their life. Trauma is considered the second leading cause of death in infants under the age of one year (Quin, Waldron, and Pages, 2010). There are many determining factors that lead to delayed development when a child is exposed to trauma. Neglect and abuse are labeled the most common and are reported to be the single most import public health challenge within the United States (Van and Bessel, 2005). Child abuse may lead to emotional, physical, and/or neurological developmental issues. In infants and small children, due to the extreme pliability of their bones if trauma causes skeletal injuries such as fractures or breaks it may lead to impairment of future skeletal development (Quin, Waldron, and Pages, 2010). Children who experience some sort of significant childhood trauma may result in long-term effects of cognitive emotional and social development, such as having difficulties regulating emotions or understanding how to properly express their feelings. Emotional trauma in childhood can lead to the development of emotional disorders, most commonly depression, anxiety, or even drug abuse (Purtscher, 2008). Childhood trauma is also linked to a higher prevelance of mental illness. Neuropsychological research has stipulated evidence that changes in catecholamine levels after a traumatic experience can hinder brain region development, which in turn can compromise later cognitive functioning and leave a person susceptible to mental illness. This understanding forms the basis of the theory of developmental traumatology (Cook, Ciorciari, Varker, And Devilly, 2009). Clinical Neurophysiology Journal states, “If the brain undergoes a prolonged state of hyperarousal during the maturation of limbic system areas, it can develop inappropriate and