Table of ContentsIntroductionConclusionReferencesIntroductionIntroduction: This essay will explore how trauma during childhood can potentially cause mental health problems later in life adult life. It is now widely accepted that distressing and traumatic events during childhood can lead to mental health problems and often very serious disorders. These disorders include depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and borderline personality disorder. The NSPCC (2018) estimates that more than half a million children are abused in the UK, meaning it is an urgent problem. However, new arguments are emerging that there may be too much focus on childhood trauma when there are other possible causes of mental health problems in adults that are currently being investigated . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayBackground: Mental illness is becoming an increasingly prevalent health problem, which is becoming a huge pressure facing the NHS. The NHS ambulance service helped more than 30,000 more patients with mental health problems in 2016-17 than in 2014-15. Thesis Statement: The essay question is: “Can childhood trauma cause mental illness in adulthood?” » my secondary research conducted on the subject from a range of reliable and reliable sources, such as Psychology Today, which is written by recognized psychiatrists, and other authentic journals such as the Journal of Affective Disorders and the American Journal of Psychiatry, will help answer this question. . These publications are aimed at people of various qualifications in the profession and therefore contain relevant and informative information. These sources are quite recent and some include both qualitative and quantitative data. Childhood Trauma and Mental Health Disorders Topic Sentence: When a child experiences trauma, it can shape their brain development in several ways. This can impair the nucleus accumbens, which is the pleasure and reward center of the brain, and altering this area can lead to an increased risk of substance abuse. Trauma can also overstimulate the amygdala, where your fear responses are controlled. So when this area becomes highly triggered, it can cause children to avoid situations that are not normally distressing. The prefrontal cortex, which manages impulse regulation and the ability to perform basic functions such as decision-making, may also be inhibited. Commentary: Trauma essentially reshapes children's neuroplastic brains, leaving them 3 times more likely to develop depression and 15 times more likely to commit suicide. The insula is a part of the brain that helps control how much attention your body pays to sensory information. Thus, changes in the insula due to trauma could potentially worsen PTSD and its progression. Evidence and Citations: A study from Stanford University School of Medicine and the Early Life Stress and Pediatric Anxiety Program found that there are differences between the male and female brains of young people. people who have experienced trauma and have symptoms of PTSD. They found that men who experienced trauma had greater insula volume and surface area than those who did not experience trauma or PTSD, and that in women, the insulawas smaller in volume and surface area than those which had not undergone it. In normal healthy individuals, the insula becomes smaller with aging, so the smaller insula in women with PTSD symptoms would suggest that the insula ages prematurely due to traumatic stress. If these issues are not addressed in childhood, they can manifest into serious mental health problems in adulthood, such as depression, PTSD, and borderline personality disorder. Topic sentence: Depression is described as a constant, prolonged feeling of hopelessness lasting weeks or months and is linked to thoughts of self-harm and/or suicidal behaviors, including many other psychological, physical, and social symptoms that can be found in Appendix A. PTSD is an anxiety disorder in which individuals relive trauma in the form of flashbacks and nightmares. A complete list of symptoms can be found in Appendix B. Finally, borderline personality disorder is the most commonly recognized personality disorder and is classified by individuals who think, perceive, feel, and interact differently with others. Its symptoms can range from emotional instability to impaired thinking and impulsive behavior. Evidence and Citations: Babbel, S. (2011) describes how “at its core, any type of child abuse constitutes an exploitation of the child's dependence and attachment to the parent. », while referring to Finkelhor, D. (2008) who spoke of it as “interpersonal victimization”. Commentary: This term can be extended to children and adults and refers to any harm inflicted on an individual due to the actions of someone else that does not correspond to societal norms. This definition distinguishes child abuse from childhood trauma because trauma can include accidents or illnesses that are not intentionally inflicted by another individual. Evidence and Citations: Babbel, S. (2011) then describes how child abuse can develop into PTSD during childhood, which, if left untreated, continues into adulthood. Although gender plays a determining role in that women are more likely to develop this condition than men, there are other important factors that can determine the likelihood of developing PTSD. The developmental state of the child is an important factor because it is theorized that the younger the child, the less intellectually developed they are, so they are less likely to understand what is happening and perceive the level of threat. This abuse continues and can lead to problems with brain development, as noted previously. Topic sentence: The relationship with the abuser is also important because they are often individuals with power and influence over the child, and the level of care and support they receive is important because if the abuser is the only source of support in their life, it can be incredibly conflicting for the child. Evidence and Citations: Finally, the child's reaction to abuse in the short term is crucial, as Babbel, S. (2011) explains how an increase in heart rate after experiencing abuse is thought to increase the risk of developing PTSD later in life. It is not necessary for all of these factors to come into play, the trauma or abuse inflicted must simply exceed the victim's tolerance and in turn make them too overwhelmed for their body to cope, resulting in is more likely in children because they lack the necessary coping mechanisms. cope with such trauma. If the child is unable to controlThese emotions, symptoms of PTSD may appear, including nightmares, extreme emotional reactions, and increased dependence mirroring that of a younger age. This may persist into adulthood, but the symptoms become less obvious. PTSD can sometimes mimic or be confused with other mental health disorders such as anxiety or depression. If these issues are left untreated, they can lead to substance abuse, sleep problems, or eating disorders. Topic Sentence: A study by Brodsky, B. et al (2001) explored the link between childhood trauma and suicidal behavior in adulthood by examining individuals with personality disorder borderline, major depression and impulsivity problems. There is a strong correlation between childhood abuse and borderline personality disorder. The study therefore also aimed to examine the possibility that past trauma could influence development and psychological traits such as impulsivity. The study included patients diagnosed with major depressive episodes and individuals who had or had not been abused before the age of 15. They found that 58% of patients had experienced physical or sexual abuse before the age of 15 and that those individuals were more likely to be female and/or African American or Hispanic. Abuse patients were also more likely to have borderline personality disorder and had higher scores on impulsivity and aggression and had made at least one suicide attempt. This also corresponded with the likelihood of attempting suicide before age 17, which was 27% higher among patients who had experienced child abuse than among those who had not. Evidence and Citations: These findings led Brodsky, B. et al (2001) to conclude that a history of childhood maltreatment is associated with elevated impulsivity and suicidal behavior in adults with major depressive disorder. However, the possibility that abuse, an environmental factor, is the sole contributor to the influence of traits such as impulsivity, may not be the case. As reviewed by Higley, JD et al (1993), impulsivity may be a hereditary trait. They studied a range of primates and found that it appeared to be a combination of genetic and environmental factors such as maternal deprivation that led to impulsive characteristics. Which leads to the idea that impulsivity is a hereditary trait that can be made worse by environmental factors such as childhood abuse. Topic Sentence: Chapman, D. et al (2003) details how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are linked to disorders such as PTSD. , borderline personality disorder, dissociative symptoms and depression. ACEs are often studied only as a single individual trauma, but many traumas fall under this title. Emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, as well as having a "battered mother," living in a home with substance abuse, or being a criminal family member and living with someone suffering from an illness mental health are all classified as adverse childhood experiences. They conducted a study to evaluate the association between ACEs and depressive disorders and therefore sent questionnaires to people meeting the criteria for depressive disorders. Evidence and Citations: The results of their study revealed that there are differences between men and women, although this was not the main focus of the study. They found that there was a higher percentage of women (28.9%) than men (19.4%) with a history of depressive disorders during their lifetime, and that 7.3% more women than men reported recent depressive disorders. They discovered that women who had suffered ACEs were 5 times more likely to suffer from a depressive disorder than those who had not suffered trauma. Topic Sentence: The presence of mental health issues in a household was an interesting point of discovery. They hypothesized that if there was a person with a mental illness in the household, genetic factors could possibly be responsible for the onset of depressive disorders later in adulthood. Evidence and Citations: From their data, they established that ACEs had less influence on patients who lived with a household member with mental illness than on those who did not live with them. However, the household member in question may not have a similar illness nor be a blood relative, so the relationship between genetics and depressive disorders could not be concluded from these results. The ACE that had the strongest association with depressive disorders was psychological abuse in both men and women, and this is supported by Roy, A. (1999) who also found that psychological abuse had an impact significantly on children, which then developed into mental health problems. problems later in adulthood. Although Chapman, D. et al (2003) explain in more detail that emotional abuse is often associated with other forms of violence. Topic Sentence: There is a strong belief that overcoming childhood trauma can help alleviate mental health problems, even though there is evidence that says otherwise. Evidence and Citation: O'Connor, L. (2012) argues that there are other causes of mental illness and that there may be other causes as well. Much attention is paid to childhood trauma. Jaroslav Flegr led a study on how the parasite Toxoplasma gondii might be responsible for some cases of schizophrenia, as it is thought to influence the personality of genetically susceptible people by causing dopamine imbalances. There are also mental illnesses previously thought to be caused by childhood abuse, but later research has found otherwise, such as autism and maternal deprivation, nicknamed "refrigerator mother." Schizophrenia was also thought to be caused in the same way. Evidence and Citation: O'Connor, L. (2012) proclaims that blaming parents for a child's mental illness can have a detrimental effect on them and their families. Topic sentence: Mental illness can be partly hereditary, and some children are born at greater risk of developing disorders due to their genetics. Evidence and Citation: There is also an argument that identical twins may have different experiences while in the womb, which may lead to the expression of different genes or epigenetic changes, meaning that twins identical may not be completely identical and why one can develop a mental illness that the other does not develop even if they experienced the same childhood. O'Connor, L. (2012) also described how we are often led to believe those in authority. So when we talk to professionals, the focus is usually on the trauma, which can lead individuals to probe old memories looking for an abuser or a memory that might satisfy as the "cause" of their problem. Although O'Connor, L. (2012) suggests other causes of mental illness, it is still recognized thatAdverse childhood experiences can have a negative impact on brain development. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.Get a custom essayConclusionConclusion Paragraph: All data collected from these sources is valid because it accurately reflects the reality of society, for example Brodsky, B. et al. (2001) and Chapman, D. et al. (2003) conducted studies to examine the impact of childhood trauma and ACEs and their manifestations later in adulthood. These were carried out using questionnaires sent to patients who had been diagnosed with depressive disorders or who met the criteria for major depressive episodes. From these studies and Babbel, S.'s (2012) knowledge of PTSD, conclusions have been drawn about how childhood trauma can cause mental health problems later in life. Babbel, S. (2011), Brodsky, B. et al. (2001), Chapman, D. et al. (2003) and O'Connor, L. (2012) all recognize the relationship between childhood maltreatment and mental illness later in life. , and how there is a difference between men and women. Babbel, S. (2011) uses prior knowledge to reach this conclusion while Brodsky, B et al (2001) and Chapman, D. (2003) have conducted studies. O'Connor, L. (2012), however, discusses some of the other possible causes of mental illness in adults and the possibility that individuals are being led to believe that it was childhood trauma when in reality it could be a range of possibilities. Babbel, S. (2011) and Chapman, D. et al. (2003) both discuss how childhood trauma can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder, the latter also agreeing with Brodsky, B. et al. (2001) that trauma can also lead to borderline personality disorder. A hypothesis was also put forward by O'Connor, L. (2012) and Chapman, D. et al. (2001) that there is a relationship between genetic makeups, with the former providing a more detailed possibility.ReferencesBabbel, S. for Psychology Today (2011) The Lingering Trauma of Child Abuse. Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/somatic-psychology/201104/the-lingering-trauma-child-abuse (accessed 12/10/18). Bostan, SN (2017) Comment le Trauma in childhood affects the brain. Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/greater-the-sum-its-parts/201703/how-trauma-in-childhood-affects-the-brain (accessed 10/01/19 ) Brodsky, B., Oquendo, M., Ellis, S.,Haas, G., Malone, K., John Mann, J. (2001) “The relationship between childhood maltreatment, impulsivity and suicidal behavior in adults with major depression,” American Journal of Psychiatry, 158 (2001) 1871-1877. Chapman, D., Whitfield, C., Felitti, V., Dube, S., Edwards, V., Anda, R. (2003) “Adverse childhood experiences and risk of depressive disorders in adulthood” , Journal of Affective Disorders, 82 (2004) 217-225Finkelhor, D. (2008) Childhood victimization: violence, crime and abuse in the lives of young people. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Flegr, J. (2007) “Effects of toxoplasma on human behavior”, Schizophrenia Bulletin, 33 (3), pp. 757-760. Higley, JD, Thompson, WW, Champoux, M., Goldman, D., Hasert, MF, Kraemer, GW, Scanlan, JM, Linnolia, M. (1993) “Paternal and maternal genetic and environmental contributions to fluid monoaminergic metabolites cerebrospinal in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)”, Archives of general psychiatry, 50 (8), pp. 615-623.Knight, C. (2008) Introduction to working with adult survivors of childhood trauma: techniques and strategies. :.