IndexIntroductionConclusionReferencesIntroductionIntroduction: This essay will explore how trauma in childhood can cause mental health problems later in adult life. It is now widely recognized that painful and traumatic events in childhood can cause mental health problems and often very serious disorders. Such disorders include depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and borderline personality disorder. The NSPCC (2018) estimates that there are over half a million children who are victims of abuse in the UK, meaning this is an urgent issue. However, arguments are emerging that perhaps too much attention is being paid to childhood trauma when there are other possible causes of adult mental health problems that are now being investigated. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Context: Mental illness is becoming an increasingly prevalent health problem, which is becoming a huge pressure that the NHS is facing. 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?” this question will be answered through my secondary research conducted on the topic from a number of reliable and reliable sources, such as Psychology Today, which is written by established psychiatrists, and other authentic journals such as the Journal of Affective Disorders and the American Journal of Psychiatry. These publications are aimed at people with different qualifications in the profession and therefore contain relevant and in-depth 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, their developing brain can be shaped in many ways. It can alter 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, which is where fear responses are controlled, so when this area becomes highly activated it can lead children to avoid situations that aren't normally distressing. The prefrontal cortex, which is concerned with regulating impulses and the ability to carry out basic functions such as decision making, may also be inhibited. Comment: 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 or how little attention the body pays to sensory information. Thus, changes in the insula due to trauma could potentially increase 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 who have experienced trauma and post-stress disorder symptoms. traumatic. They found that males who had experienced trauma had greater insula volume and surface area than males who had not experienced trauma and PTSD, and in females the insula was smaller in volume and area superficial compared to those who did not havesuffered trauma. In normal, healthy individuals the insula becomes smaller with aging, so a smaller insula in women exhibiting PTSD symptoms would infer that the insula is aging 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, post-traumatic stress disorder, and borderline personality disorder. Topic sentence: Depression is described as a constant and prolonged feeling of hopelessness for weeks or months and is linked to thoughts of self-harm and/or suicidal behavior, including many other psychological, physical and social symptoms which can be found in Appendix A. The Post-traumatic stress disorder 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 relate to others differently . Its symptoms can range from emotional instability to disturbed thinking and impulsive behavior. Evidence and citations: Babbel, S. (2011) describes how “essentially, any type of child abuse constitutes exploitation of the child's dependence and attachment to the parent,” referring to Finkelhor, D. (2008) who discusses this as "interpersonal victimization". Comment: This term can be extended to children and adults and refers to any harm inflicted on an individual due to someone else's acts that fall outside of social norms. This definition distinguishes child abuse from childhood trauma, as trauma can include accidents or illnesses that are not intentionally inflicted by another individual. Evidence and Citations: Babbel, S. (2011) goes on to describe how child abuse can develop into PTSD in childhood, which if left untreated continues into adulthood. While gender plays a determining role as females are more likely to develop the condition than males, there are other important factors that can ascertain the likelihood of developing PTSD. The child's developmental status is an important factor as it is theorized that the younger the child, the less intellectually developed he or she is, so he or she is less likely to be able to understand what is happening and perceive the level of threat. However, when this abuse if continued it can cause developmental problems in the brain as mentioned above. Topic Sentence: The relationship with the abuser is also important as they are often individuals with power and influence over the child, and the level of care and support they receive is significant 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 response to short-term abuse is crucial as Babbel, S. (2011) states how an increase in heart rate after experiencing abuse is believed to increase the risk of developing child abuse disorder. post-traumatic stress later in life. All of these factors do not need to be in play, the trauma or abuse inflicted simply has to exceed the victim's tolerance and, in turn, make them too overwhelmed for their body to cope, which is more likely in children because they do not they have the coping mechanisms to deal with the situation. deal with this trauma. If the child is unable to control these emotions, symptoms of PTSD may occur, including nightmares, extreme emotional reactions, and increased dependency thatreflect those of a younger age. This can continue into adulthood, but the symptoms become less noticeable. PTSD can sometimes mimic or be confused with other mental health disorders such as anxiety or depression. If these issues are not addressed, they can lead to substance abuse, sleep problems, or eating disorders. Topic Sentence: A study conducted by Brodsky, B. et al (2001) explored the connection between childhood trauma and suicidal behavior in adulthood by observing individuals who suffered from borderline personality disorder, major depression, and impulsiveness problems. There is a strong correlation between childhood abuse and borderline personality disorder, so the study also aimed to examine the possibility that past trauma could influence development and psychological traits such as impulsivity. The study used patients who had been diagnosed with episodes of major depression and individuals who had and had not experienced abuse before the age of 15. From this they found that 58% of the 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. Patients who had suffered abuse were also more likely to have borderline personality disorder and had higher scores on impulsivity and aggression, as well as having made at least 1 suicide attempt. This also corresponded to 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 experienced child abuse. Evidence and Citations: These findings led Brodsky, B. et al (2001) to conclude that a history of childhood abuse is associated with high impulsivity and suicidal behavior in adults with major depressive disorders. However, the possibility that abuse, an environmental factor, is the sole contributor to the influence of traits such as impulsivity may not be true. As studied by Higley, JD et al (1993), impulsivity can be a hereditary trait. They studied a number 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. This leads to the idea that impulsivity is an inherited trait that can be worsened 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 post-traumatic stress disorder, borderline personality disorder, dissociative symptoms, and depression. ACEs are often studied only as an individual trauma, however there are many traumas that fall under this heading. Emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, as well as having a “battered mother,” being in a family where substance abuse occurs or a criminal family member, and living with a mentally ill individual are all classified as experiences adverse infants. They conducted a study to evaluate the association between ACEs and depressive disorders, then sent questionnaires to individuals who met criteria for depressive disorders. Evidence and Citations: The results of their study found that differences exist between males and females, although this was not the primary focus of the study. They found that there was a higher percentage of women (28.9%) than men (19.4%) who had a lifetime history of depressive disorders, and 7.3% more women than to men he reported recent depressive disorders. From this they found that women who had experienced ACEs were 5 times more likely to suffer from a depressive disorder than those who had not experienced trauma.Topic sentence: The presence of mental health issues in a family was an interesting point of discovery. They theorized that if there was an individual in the family who suffered from a mental illness, genetic factors could be responsible for the onset of depressive disorders later in adulthood. Evidence and Citations: From their data they determined that there was less influence from ACEs on patients who lived with a mentally ill family member, compared to those who did not. However, the family member in question may not have suffered from a similar condition and may not even have been a blood relative, so it was not possible to conclude the relationship between genetics and depressive disorders from these results. The ACE that had the strongest relationship with depressive disorders was emotional abuse for both men and women, and this is confirmed by Roy, A. (1999) who also found that emotional abuse had an impact significant on children who then developed mental health problems. problems later in adulthood. Although it has been further explained by Chapman, D. et al (2003) that emotional abuse is often associated with other forms of abuse. Topic sentence: There is a strong belief that overcoming childhood trauma can help alleviate mental health problems, although there is evidence to the contrary. Evidence and Citations: O'Connor, L. (2012) argues that there are other alternative causes for mental illnesses and that there may be others as wellmuch attention is placed on childhood trauma. There was a study conducted by Jaroslav Flegr on how the parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, could be responsible for some cases of schizophrenia as it is thought to affect personality in people with predisposed genetics by causing dopamine imbalances. There are also mental illnesses that were previously thought to be caused by childhood abuse, but later research has found otherwise, such as autism and maternal deprivation that has been nicknamed the "refrigerator mother." Schizophrenia was also thought to be caused in the same way. Evidence and Citations: 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 more at risk of developing disorders due to their genetics. Evidence and Citations: There is also an argument that identical twins may have different experiences when they are in the womb, which may lead to the expression of different genes or epigenetic changes, meaning that identical twins may not be completely identical and because one could develop a mental illness that the other does not suffer even if he lived the same childhood. O'Connor, L. (2012) also described how we are often led to believe those in authority, so when speaking with professionals there is commonly a focus on trauma which can cause people to probe old memories looking for an attacker or memories that they might satisfy as the “cause” of their problem. Although O'Connor, L. (2012) supports alternative causes of mental illness, it is still recognized that adverse childhood experiences can have a detrimental impact on brain development. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay Conclusion Concluding Paragraph: All data collected from these sources is valid as it accurately reflects the reality of the 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 manifestation in adulthood. These were done throughquestionnaires sent to patients who had been diagnosed with depressive disorders or who met 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 abuse and mental illness later in life 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) conducted studies. O'Connor, L. (2012) however discusses some of the other possible causes of mental illness in adults and how it is possible for individuals to be influenced to believe that it was childhood trauma when in reality there could be a number of possibilities. Babbel, S. (2011) and Chapman, D. et al. (2003) both talk about how childhood trauma can cause post-traumatic stress disorder, the latter also agrees 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 structures, with the former providing a more detailed possibility. References Babbel, 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 10/12/18).Bostan, SN (2017) How 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 01/10/ 19) Brodsky, B., Oquendo, M., Ellis, S., Haas, G., Malone, K., John Mann, J. (2001) "The relationship between childhood abuse and 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 for depressive disorders in adulthood', Journal of Affective Disorders, 82 (2004) 217-225Finkelhor, D. (2008) Childhood victimisation: violence, crime and abuse in the lives of young people. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Flegr, J. (2007) 'Effects of toxoplasma on human behaviour', Schizophrenia Bulletin, 33 (3), pp. 757-760.Higley, J.D., Thompson, W.W., Champoux, M., Goldman, D., Hasert, M.F., Kraemer, G.W., Scanlan, J.M., Linnolia, M. (1993) "Paternal and maternal genetic and environmental contributions to cerebrospinal fluid monoamine metabolites 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. California: Brooks Cole.Marsh, S. (2017) Ambulance calls for mental health patients in England increase by 23%. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/aug/13/ambulance-call-outs-mental-health-patients-soar-23-per-cent (accessed 26/11/18). Mental Health Connection (2019) Recognizing Trauma: Changing a Child's Future. 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