The New York Times – By DAVID BROOKS – Published: September 27, 2012 – The Psych Approach
David Brooks considers the link between childhood trauma and adult outcomes. The seminal study he references uses 10 categories of childhood traumatic experiences among ‘mostly white, mostly upscale patients’ with good health insurance, and looks at various measures of adult success/happiness correlations.
But here’s the rub: we all suffer some form of trauma. That’s the price of being born. As a psychotherapist, what amazes me is less the damage done by childhood trauma, but those who overcome the worst, and function with great equanimity. Of course, children who experience the destabilizing effects of traumatic experience are impacted as adults. Thankfully, our brains are capable of great resiliency.
To overcome our past it’s helpful to have those individuals in our life who give us hope, validation, and deep, affirming encouragement. We can access the tools to build our own life in spite of our personal history. We will make mistakes from which we learn and grow.