Intergenerational trauma can be passed down via genes(epigenetics) and via learned behaviors. Rakoff, MD, and colleagues where they documented high rates of psychological distress among children of Holocaust survivors ( Canada’s Mental Health, Vol. The earliest origins of the term intergenerational trauma were seen documented in 1966 by Canadian psychiatrist Vivian M.
And the families affected by catastrophes such as the 2004 tsunami in Asia will have traumatic reactivity for generations to come.” People in countries that have endured years, even decades, of war may also have generational trauma.” DeSilva explained, “African Americans in the United States and around the world are particularly vulnerable. Unfortunately, specific races and events are more prone to transgenerational trauma. Gayani DeSilva stated“Being systematically exploited, enduring repeated and continual abuse, racism, and poverty are all traumatic enough to cause genetic changes. Trauma and shared experiences that are passed down from one generation to the next.ĭr. I have seen clients display the effects of intergenerational trauma as it has been transmitted to them from one generation to the next. Bentonīelow you will learn a little more about this complex, yet shared experiences by individuals, families and generations all across the world. One cannot live without the other, each is the other’s hope, meaning & strength.”― Gemma B. One generation carries the pain so that the next can live and heal.
“Our Ancestors knew that healing comes in cycles and circles.