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The Nature of Traumatic Memory: Why Our Memories Terrifying Events are Spotty

As a psychologist who works with trauma, I am very much aware of how difficult it can be to recall details of a traumatic experience. Even the question, “can you tell me about your trauma?” can be befuddling, if not somewhat disturbing, to one who has experienced it… What happens to us in the moment…

As a psychologist who works with trauma, I am very much aware of how difficult it can be to recall details of a traumatic experience. Even the question, “can you tell me about your trauma?” can be befuddling, if not somewhat disturbing, to one who has experienced it…

What happens to us in the moment of a terrifying experience is shocking and out of normal context, which is part of why we experience it as traumatic. At that moment when we are overwhelmed by something out of our control, our thinking mind, our prefrontal cortex, shuts down so that our limbic system, our fight/flight, can rev up…

Senior Fellow Tian Dayton’s article for ACEs Connection is available to read here: https://www.acesconnection.com/blog/the-nature-of-traumatic-memory-why-our-memories-terrifying-events-are-spotty.