Childhood Emotional Trauma Effects the Developing Brain of the Child Dr. Bruce Perry Interview
by Lisa A. Romano
'It was the norm to be called a 'little brat or a bitch' in our childhood home. I can't ever remember an encouraging or empathic word falling from my mother's lips. It has taken me a lifetime to put the pieces of the puzzle together, heal my mind, retrain my brain, and develop life skills to move forward.
Words, intentions, energy, and the glares I noticed from my mother, stuck like cement to the inside of the invisible walls that constructed my perception of self.'
Effects of Childhood Emotional Neglect
- Did you know that all children who ever felt disconnected and NOT attuned to their caretakers were conditioned to live in a state of survival?
- Did you know that a child's brain is in a state of rapid growth in the first year of life and that being born to dysfunctional parents and chaotic conditions literally wire a child's stress response system to be hypersensitive?
Every single one of us makes sense.
For lifetimes, people have struggled with wondering why they felt the way they do.
- I remember judging myself mercilessly because I had anxiety and suffered panic attacks.
- I remember loathing myself and the terrible way in which I would berate myself as I felt a panic attack coming on.
But those days are long gone. I am not saying I never have a bad day. I am saying, however, that my mind is far clearer these days, and that even when my emotions are high, I have learned how to pull my focus back into my body without judgment.
Because I invested the time in understanding myself, I can now gain control over my emotions quicker than I have ever been able to do before.
Many of us have been conditioned to feel and thus believe we were unworthy.
Adult children of alcoholics as well as those raised by narcissistic, disordered, and abusive parents, may have also felt that the good things in life were meant for other people.
Emotional abandonment, and physical, sexual and psychological abuse separates us from the self--and from any idea that we are worthy of love.
NOT OUR FAULT!
As a result, many unhealthy self-sabotaging neural pathways have been made in our brains.
NOT OUR FAULT!
Because all beings are born asleep, we did not know we were unaware.
NOT OUR FAULT!
The matrix is a mirror of what we think, feel, believe and have experienced.
NOT OUR FAULT!
The characters in our adult lives very often mimic the characters of our childhoods.
NOT OUR FAULT!
Even the adult us, is very similar to the child us.
NOT OUR FAULT!
The universe maintains order through resonance. Birds of a feather flock together.
NOT OUR FAULT!
The GIFT of being human is the fact that we are also spiritual and conscious beings.
WE CAN CHANGE OUR LIVES and even reorder the matrix BUT only if we take FULL responsibility for our personal resonance.
Dr. Bruce and Oprah Winfrey Join Forces -- What Happened to You?
Dr. Bruce Perry is a world-renowned child psychiatrist who has authored a book with Oprah Winfrey regarding childhood trauma, called What Happened to You. I was also lucky enough to sit down with this incredibly intuitive doctor for an interview on how a child's brain naturally responds to trauma.
You can click the link below to view that interview.
It is my hope, that as you learn to embrace your brain and appreciate that your mind can only play with the tools that are in the shed, this new awareness will trigger your willingness to dig deeper into how you might be able to RETRAIN your brain to believe that YOU, the being YOU ARE, is ENOUGH.
Emotional Trauma Can Cause You to Act Out
Sure, your traumatic experiences may have caused you to act out, and maybe even settle for less than you would have if you were not raised in an environment that forced you to live in survival, but even so, nothing could ever make you NOT good enough at your core.
You just might have some more personal development work to do, and that's alright...there is no nobler way to spend your time here on planet earth than looking to evolve, expand and grow.
YOU ARE THE LIGHT THE WORLD NEEDS and YOU MATTER!
DR.BRUCE PERRY and LISA A. ROMANO INTERVIEW
The Self Help and Spiritual Communities Could Not Help Me Integrate Like Science Could
When the spiritual, psychological, and self-help industries failed me, I turned to brain science for the answers I needed to RECLAIM my sense of self.
As it turns out, blending science, with psychological concepts, as well as integrating spiritual teachings, allowed me to find my true self.
On the journey inward, armed with sound scientific research regarding emotional trauma, and its effects on the brain, there she was, beneath the survival brain neurology, and dominated by the narrative of the harsh inner critic, was the wounded me, who had only done in her life, what her brain and mind thought would keep her safe, and maybe even, acquire the love and understanding from others she had always longed for.
Denied love, I was unable to find love within myself, until I let go, and set out to forge my own path back to the self.
May you know, that at your core, minus your programming, exists the ability to love the self, in spite of a painful past. It might take all you've got to retrain your brain to believe you are enough, but self-actualization, and integration are worth it.
Be sure to reach out to whomever you believe you need for support, including seasoned therapists, and attuned psychiatrists, as well as trustworthy friends and family as you navigate what are often turbulent lands within.
All my love, your sister on the path to emotional freedom and self-mastery,
Lisa A. Romano
