Does stress damage the brain? - J Douglas Bremner

Can what you see, hear, feel and in other ways experience, result in a permanent change in the structure of your brain and your physiology? This question arose from research discoveries by J. Douglas Bremner and others that showed that extreme stress may result in lasting damage to the brain, especially a part of the brain involved in memory called the hippocampus. The background of this story is addressed in this text, as well as more recent discoveries that led to the current state of trauma-related study.;Researchers believe that stress-related brain damage may cause certain psychological disorders, such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This text discards the artifical distinctions among mind, brain and body, and considers the effects of psychological trauma on all aspects of bodily function and physiology. The framework that is presented consolidates new and emerging research evidence that stress and PTSD are associated with an increased risk for physical disorders such as heart disease, and that the "trauma spectrum disorders" - a range of psychological disorders related to stress - may be manifestations of stress-induced changes to the brain. Such findings not only explain the overlap in trauma disorders, but also the inadequacy of the current diagnostic classification schema for clinicians.;Understanding trauma-related disorders as essentially neurological disorders has implications for treatment. In certain cases,thinking about the effects of stress on the brain may help understand puzzling phenomena, like delayed recall of childhood abuse.