As you know, the brain has many functions. However, its primary function is to ensure your survival. Your brain is tasked with this job even when the situation seems bleak, and even under the worst of conditions. There are a few things that need to occur in order for your brain to do its job well.
- Internal signals need to be generated that determine what your body needs. Examples of this would be food, water and shelter.
- Your brain needs to point you in the direction of how to get these most basic needs met.
- Your brain needs to create the energy that is necessary to help you meet those needs.
- It needs to warn you of any dangers that might be along the way.
- Finally, it needs to be able to make adjustments based on what happens in the moment as your needs are in the process of being met.
Problems occur within the brain when these steps are not followed, and even meeting just one need requires communication and coordination within the brain. For someone who has lived through a traumatic event, that trauma consistently interferes with the brain’s process.
The Way the Brain is Designed
The human brain is actually built from the bottom to the top. It develops over time, starting in the womb. The most primitive section of the brain is often referred to as the reptilian brain, and it is located in the brain stem. It is responsible for everything that babies do when they are born. They sleep, wake up, cry, breathe, etc. The hypothalamus sits on top of the brain stem, and the two work together to control the energy levels within the body. They also control the heart, lungs and other basic bodily functions to ensure that they always work as they should.
The limbic system is located right above the reptilian brain, and it houses the emotions. It also monitors danger, frightening situations, happy situations and judges between what is and what is not necessary for survival. As the limbic system grows and matures, it is shaped by experience and influenced by inborn temperament and genetic makeup. The reptilian brain and the limbic system make up the emotional brain.
The rational, cognitive brain is the youngest part, and its function is to determine how the world works. It takes care of your actions, helps you understand people and things, and aids you in accomplishing your goals.
The top layer of the brain is the neocortex, and the frontal lobes are a part of this layer. This is the part of the brain that makes us unique as humans. It allows us to use language to communicate with one another, and it provides us with the ability to have abstract thoughts. The frontal lobes are also responsible for allowing us to empathize with others.
The Brain’s Response to Trauma
In his book, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk describes how the various parts of the brain must work together in order for events to be processed properly. Danger is something that everyone faces at one point or another, and the brain organizes our response to it. When processing in the brain breaks down, it can result in an inability to process memories properly. When this occurs, in a sense, time freezes, and it can feel as though the danger will last forever. As the brain senses danger, powerful stress hormones are triggered, which increase heart rate, blood pressure and breathing rates. In someone who has been traumatized, the slightest trigger can result in reliving this response over and over again, even when no danger is present.
Working with a trauma therapist is the best way to find the freedom you’re looking for from the traumatic event that is holding you captive. As someone who has been working with trauma clients for a long time, can help you understand even more about how your brain processes trauma, and in the process, provide you with the tools you need to heal.
If you would like to make an appointment, please contact me.
