Happy Daze: Generational Trauma and its Effects

Did you know that historical and cultural traumas affect survivors’ children for generations? Generational Trauma is “a traumatic event that began decades prior to the current generation and has impacted the way that individuals understand, cope with, and heal from trauma” (Wolynn, 2016).

Basically, a transfer of trauma and oppression sent down to younger generations and this concept helps explain years of oppression and challenges within families. There is no specific diagnosis of generational trauma, but it is widely accepted in the psychology world.

Everyone is susceptible to generational trauma but there are some populations that are especially vulnerable.

“Being systematically exploited, enduring repeated and continual abuse, racism, and poverty are all traumatic enough to cause genet- ic changes,” Dr. DeSilva, an adolescent psychiatrist, said. “So African Americans in the United States and around the world are particularly vulnerable. And the families affected by catastrophes such as the 2004 tsunami in Asia will have traumatic reactivity for generations to come.” (Gillespie, 2020).

Generational Trauma can be in- dividual, institutional, and systemic. It can take the individual form by a microaggression. Institutionally, it can take the broader form of racist practices. Lastly, it can take the systemic form by exploitation or racist policies and laws. These all work together to explain and high- light disparities in healthcare, education, socioeconomics, and more.

We may not realize it, but individuals several generations after a major traumatic event can still be carrying trauma and face serious effects. “We know trauma can manifest itself through stress, anxiety, fight or flight, and other heightened alert systems in our brain and bodies, but intergenerational trauma can also mask itself through learned beliefs, behaviors, and patterns that become engrained,” Dr. English, a clinical psychologist, said. “This kind of wiring impacts personalities, relationships, parenting, communication, and views of the world.” (Gillespie, 2020).

In the long run, generational trauma can influence behavior and increase the risk of addiction, disease, attachment issues, and more (Nurick, 2022).

The Healing Journey:

Here are specific styles of therapy that are used to help support those with generational trauma. If you suspect you have generational trauma, please talk to a trained professional!

• Theraplay
• Parent-Child Interaction therapy (PCIT)
• Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT)
• Family Play Therapy
• Psychodrama Therapy
• Family Systems Therapy Interested in Learning more? Here is a list of recommended books:

• “It Didn’t Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are” by Mark Wolynn
• “And How to End the Cycle” by Mark Wolynn Remember, every person you meet is either repeating a cycle of generational trauma or carrying the burden of breaking cycles.