Update on Neuroscience

April 26, 2016

During long road trips when I was a kid, instead of switching on the radio my father sang, sometimes accompanied my mother. My brother had left home, so it was just me in the back, behind a blanket strung from door to door, pretending I was on a pirate ship headed for China, doing my best to blot out my father’s off-key warbling. Bernie was not a happy man, but his repertoire had a single theme: Happy Days Are Here Again, Smile (though your heart is breaking) and Put On A Happy Face topped his hit parade.

My mother wasn’t any happier than my father, but it was as if she had drunk the same cultural Kool-Aid as he. They both had got the message that happiness is the only worthy emotion. The rest—anger, disappointment, fear, sorrow—were signs of a weak character. Shameful. I got the message, too. Like so many Westerners, especially Americans, we believed we were supposed to be happy all the time—as far as I can tell, the number one, surefire predictor of misery.
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Intergenerational Trauma Recovery: A Discussion with Ruby Gibson

January 25, 2016

Inter-generational Trauma Recovery: A Discussion with Dr. Ruby Gibson
TOPICS

1. 4:23-13:50 / Generational inheritance
2. 13:51-16:22 / Epigenetic transmission
3. 16:23-22:07 / An example of intergenerational somatic process; finding the generational source for illness through exploring the body.
4. 22:08-28:02 / Bodies hold experiences of both the genetic and social inheritance of the family system.
5. 28:03-32:07 / Uncovering trauma through feeling; giving the body a voice.
6. 32:08-38:20 / An example of somatic archaeology uncovering ancestral trauma from five generations before.
7. 38:21-45:46 / Spiritual mission, exploring your senses, and transformation.
8. 45:48-51:50 / Our stories are beautiful once illuminated; remembering the place of truth vs. historical amnesia; disconnection with ourselves generates disconnection with the Earth.
9. 51:51-58:45 / The sacred dream of seven generations makes up who we are; your body becomes your ally; your ancestors are your resources.

How the Brain Changes When You Meditate

December 2, 2015

Not too long ago, most of us thought that the brain we’re born with is static—that after a certain age, the neural circuitry cards we’re dealt are the only ones we can play long-term.

Fast-forward a decade or two, and we’re beginning to see the opposite: the brain is designed to adapt constantly. World-renowned neuroscientist Richie Davidson at the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, along with this colleagues, want us to know three things: 1) you can train your brain to change, 2) that the change is measurable, and 3) new ways of thinking can change it for the better. Read more here…

Moral Injury in the Context of War

June 26, 2015

Shira Maguen, PhD and Brett Litz, PhD

What is moral injury?

Like psychological trauma, moral injury is a construct that describes extreme and unprecedented life experience including the harmful aftermath of exposure to such events. Events are considered morally injurious if they “transgress deeply held moral beliefs and expectations.” Thus, the key precondition for moral injury is an act of transgression which shatters moral and ethical expectations that are rooted in religious or spiritual beliefs, or culture-based, organizational, and group-based rules about fairness, the value of life, and so forth.

Moral injury in war

In the context of war, moral injuries may stem from direct participation in acts of combat, such as killing or harming others, or indirect acts, such as witnessing death or dying, failing to prevent immoral acts of others, or giving or receiving orders that are perceived as gross moral violations. The act may have been carried out by an individual or a group, through a decision made individually or as a response to orders given by leaders …

What is the aftermath of moral injury?

In terms of the aftermath of moral injuries, transgressive acts may result in highly aversive and haunting states of inner conflict and turmoil. Emotional responses may include:

Shame, which stems from global self-attributions (for example “I am an evil terrible person; I am unforgivable”)
Guilt
Anxiety about possible consequences
Anger about betrayal-based moral injuries

Please read the remainder of the article for more and comment:

http://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/co-occurring/moral_injury_at_war.asp

Update on Neuroscience