This webinar uses Bessel Van Der Kolk’s landmark book, The Body Keeps the Score, as a foundation to better understand trauma’s effects and what treatment types might ultimately be the most beneficial. We will first examine how the brain processes trauma, including understanding how developmental trauma activates cognition, memory, and emotional regulation. Then, we will examine how trauma’s effect on the brain also causes disconnection in the body, which can result in intense physical sensations and difficulty engaging in the environment.  We will discuss how we can help clients make sense of their trauma, given the neurobiological challenges, and how they can begin to tolerate feelings and emotions to feel safer, more competent, and in control. Case studies, videos, and discussion questions will help us better understand and synthesize these important concepts.

Objectives:

1. Learn about how current research understands the effects of trauma on the brain through neuroscience, such as looking at memory, emotional regulation, and cognition.
2. Identify the body-brain connection and how the effects of trauma on the brain affect actions, feelings, and physical sensations.
3. Identify and understand types of dissociation and how it influences attention and memory.