Do you ever wonder how negative early life experiences shape our children’s minds? Listen in as my guest, Marc Hauser explains the effect of early childhood trauma and what we can do about it. Click here for the show notes and extra resources. I know how impressionable young brains are and have always been fascinated with the concept of the absorbent mind. Yet, in this episode, we go a little deeper into understanding how early childhood traumas affect brain development. It was not an easy conversation, but an important one nonetheless.
What We Talked About:What compelled Marc to write about early childhood traumas in ‘Vulnerable Minds’
The impact of trauma on children's overall development
The different types of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and how they can affect children differently.
The Adverse Ts framework.
Creating safe environments for children to heal
Traumatic signatures and how they shape children's responses to adversity.
Ways to help children develop resilience and cope with adversity.
“We need to understand both the nature of experiences and the nature of the responses.”
“The earlier adversity occurs, the more likely the damage will occur because the brain is in a fragile state of development.”
“The essence of the magic comes from building trusting relationships.”
“How you help a child who's been abused is different from how you help a child who's been neglected.”
“Different kinds of traumatic experiences can greatly delay the natural development of certain kinds of cognitive, social, and emotional skills.”
“Stress will derail three key parts of learning: Attention, Short-Term Memory, and Self-Regulation.”
“It’s important to recognize that many parents have their own history of traumatic experiences.”
- Marc Hauser