In this video,  we focus on healing developmental trauma in children and teens. Understanding and addressing intergenerational trauma is crucial for improving family dynamics and overall mental health.

Understanding Developmental Trauma in Children and Teens

Developmental trauma occurs from conception to about 21 years old and includes a traumatic event and attachment disruptions. These traumas during a critical development period impact brain development, behavior, and relationships. It also affects attachment, biological development, affective regulation, dissociation, cognition, and self-concept. Common signs of developmental trauma include insecure attachment strategies, academic struggles, social relationship issues, and emotional dysregulation. Untreated developmental trauma continues the cycle of intergenerational trauma, affecting future generations.

Introduction to the Intergenerational Resilience Method

Developed by Dr. Barbara Woods, the Intergenerational Resilience Method offers an efficient and effective framework for treating intergenerational trauma. It addresses the root causes and transmission of trauma across generations. The method involves four key steps: improving autonomic regulation to calm the family nervous system, increasing attachment to create earned secure attachment in both parent and child, addressing developmental needs to minimize their impacts, and building connection and family resilience by enhancing family system connections and integrating resilience from previous generations. Addressing trauma at both individual and family system levels is essential, as individual interventions alone are not comprehensive enough to impact the entire family system and its resilience.

Improving Autonomic Regulation in the Family System

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is crucial for stress and trauma responses. Dysregulation in the ANS can lead to defensiveness or shutdown, negatively impacting emotional regulation and attachment. Improving autonomic regulation is vital for secure attachment, emotional stability, and mental health. The Intergenerational Resilience Method aims to calm the family nervous system through polyvagal interventions, creating a more stable and supportive environment for healing that is primed for secure attachment.

Increasing Earned Secure Attachment

Attachment disruptions are a primary mechanism for transmitting intergenerational trauma. Increasing earned secure attachment in parents and children is critical for stopping this transmission. The Polyvagal Parent Coaching in Phase 1 of the Intergenerational Trauma Program  focuses on coregulation and increasing secure attachment, and these skills are reinforced in Phase 3, which focuses on children and teens. Improved attachment stops the compounding impact of intergenerational trauma, providing space to address developmental impacts effectively.

Addressing Developmental Impacts

Trauma affects cognitive, emotional, and social development, impacting domains such as attachment, biological development, affective regulation, dissociation, behavioral control, cognitive skills, and self-concept. Untreated developmental trauma can significantly affect relationships, educational and employment opportunities, and increase the risk of incarceration. Interventions that improve autonomic regulation and attachment allow for reassessing developmental impacts, and some problematic behaviors may decrease with stable autonomic regulation and attachment.

Increasing Family Resilience

Family resilience is the ability to remain connected, endure stressors, and avoid chronic dysregulation or attachment disruptions. Integrating resilience from previous generations strengthens the current family system. Improvements in the family system, such as decreasing split loyalties and cutoffs from family members when safe, and identifying unconscious loyalties that create repeated family patterns, contribute to building connection and resilience within the family.

Conclusion

In this episode, we covered the importance of understanding developmental trauma in children and teens, introduced the Intergenerational Resilience Method, and discussed improving autonomic regulation, increasing earned secure attachment, addressing developmental impacts, and building connection and resilience in the family. 

Resources

Five Domains Checklist for Therapists: https://www.fivedomainschecklist.com/

Interested in specializing as an Intergenerational Trauma Therapist? Apply here: https://apply.barbarawoodsphd.com/intergenerational-trauma-program-full-course