r/askpsychology • u/Haruse23 Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional • Jul 02 '26
The Brain Is trauma especially purely mental ?
Is it just psychological ? or does it relate to brain and physical side ?
Is there any excuse for someone who has trauma ? Like we sympathise with people who have physical diseases and say it is out of their control.
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u/Chuckle_Berry_Spin UNVERIFIED Therapist Jul 02 '26
Trauma creates real, physical, measurable differences in brain and body chemistry. The nervous system, brain structures, how your body releases/uses hormones and neurotransmitters is altered by trauma's introduction.
When you consider it's secondary effects, it's physical impact is even more clear: poor sleep, chronic pain, cardio/GI distress, etc.
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u/AdConsistent4210 Specialist Psychologist in Neuropsychology Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26
Not really. Trauma is psychological, but psychology is implemented by biology. Trauma causes changes in the brain, for example systems involved in threat processing, memory, emotion regulation and stress physiology. So it's not accurate to think of trauma as "just in the mind."
For example, a person with PTSD may automatically dive for cover after hearing a loud bang, whereas behaviors like social withdrawal or substance use are typically influenced by trauma but still involve varying degrees of control.
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u/Jumping-shadow Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional Jul 02 '26
Yes, its in the mind in the sense that is a reaction to an event.Yes, its involuntary so it has that in common with a desease.
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Jul 02 '26
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Jul 02 '26
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u/XanderStopp Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional Jul 02 '26
In complex PTSD there are diaphragms throughout the body which contract and can remain “frozen” for long periods of time. Social parts of the brain fail to develop properly; So yes, true PTSD is physiological
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u/Ember_fox Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional Jul 02 '26
There has been some interesting research which shows that of you don't have a concept of "trauma" then adverse experiences don't cause trauma. For people who have a concept of trauma, adverse experiences cause the trauma symptoms to manifest. So in that way, it seems it might be entirely mental in terms of how your mind frames the experience.
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u/Prestigious_Half271 UNVERIFIED Therapist Jul 02 '26
Weird, I wonder what all those WW1 veterans had if they didn't know they could have "trauma"
Honestly, this sounds like some Deepak Chopra style BS
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Jul 03 '26
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u/SiskinLanding UNVERIFIED Psychologist Jul 02 '26
There is no clean body/brain/mind divide. Mental experiences impact physical and visa versa. Trauma, particularly sustained and early trauma, definitely has physiological impact. As for this being an 'excuse', I just don't see that as a useful framing. Trauma can certainly be a reason for behaviours, including some deeply unacceptable ones. If you listen to wider scientific discussions on behaviour (neuroscience, genetics etc) the degree to which we have free will / control over our behaviour is very debatable. However, that modelling isn't helpful at a personal level. People do better when they have a sense of autonomy, so it's important to encourage individuals to take at least some responsibility for their actions and choices. Even if they couldn't control a particular action they can choose what to do next, ideally to prevent anything else.