Is trauma stored in your DNA?

Animal and human investigations indicate that the impact of trauma experienced by mothers affects early offspring development, but new research is also discovering that it is also actually encoded into the DNA of subsequent generations.

What can be passed down through DNA?

Parents pass on traits or characteristics, such as eye colour and blood type, to their children through their genes. Some health conditions and diseases can be passed on genetically too. Sometimes, one characteristic has many different forms. For example, blood type can be A, B, AB or O.

How does childhood trauma affect DNA?

Research has shown that the effects of trauma can be intergenerationally passed on through epigenetic mechanisms, such as methylation (264). Specifically, childhood trauma has been associated with alteration in methylation patterns in human sperm, which may induce intergenerational effects.

What is epigenetic trauma?

The findings, the authors concluded, supported an “epigenetic explanation.” The idea is that trauma can leave a chemical mark on a person’s genes, which then is passed down to subsequent generations. Instead it alters the mechanism by which the gene is converted into functioning proteins, or expressed.

Are fears passed down genetically?

Fear and anxiety are influenced by many genes; there is no such thing as a simple “fear” gene that is inherited from one generation to the next. The genes controlling neurotransmitters and their receptors are all present in several different forms in the general population.

What is bloodline trauma?

Transgenerational trauma, or intergenerational trauma, is the psychological effects that the collective trauma experienced by a group of people has on subsequent generations in that group. When this collective trauma affects subsequent generations, it is called transgenerational trauma.

Can We really inherit trauma?

In fact, it may be inherited. Studies have shown that experiencing trauma may leave a chemical mark on a person’s genes, which is then passed down to future generations (Pembrey: 2013).

How does trauma get passed down through generations?

A growing body of research suggests that trauma (like from extreme stress or starvation among many other things) can be passed from one generation to the next. Here’s how: Trauma can leave a chemical mark on a person’s genes, which can then be passed down to future generations.

What is transgenerational trauma?

Transgenerational trauma is trauma that is transferred from the first generation of trauma survivors to the second and further generations of offspring of the survivors via complex post-traumatic stress disorder mechanisms. 1 History.

What is intergenerational trauma?

Intergenerational trauma, also known as transgenerational trauma is often passed from parents to children. Symptoms are often tied to the parents’ child-rearing, since their trauma symptoms influence how they raise their children.