sins of the past
If you are curious about your health problems and don’t know where it all began, start here.
The body has complex mechanisms in place to ensure your survival. These mechanisms are driven by a primal part of your brain. The hypothalamus is a neurohormonal gland that is the “director” of survival. It maintains homeostasis in terms of the four F’s: fight, flight, feed, and fornicate. The main function of this part of the limbic system is to survive, not thrive. Therefore, when there is a chronic disruption to the body’s homeostasis, a cascade of events is set into motion by this director to re-establish it.
These changes are lifesaving in moments of distress, like a bear attack or the devastating loss of a loved one. This physiological response and restoration of homeostasis after a temporary exposure to stress is called allostasis. However, prolonged exposure to stress and the associated neurohormonal response can lead to altered gene expression through epigenetic mechanisms. Thus furthering the development of chronic disease states, dysfunctional behavior patterns, and a disconnection between mind and body later in life.
I believe that most, if not all, chronic, debilitating health conditions can be attributed to early life stresses, adverse childhood events, generational trauma, as well as the internal emotional environment and maladaptive behaviors associated with them.
How do epigenetic changes make such a big impact?
Epigenetic modifications involve various mechanisms that alter gene expression. The genetic code doesn’t change, simply which genes are turned on or off. The “on” genes become proteins which are utilized in various ways throughout the body. A cross-species (human, monkey, and rat) and cross-tissue (peripheral and brain cells) study shows evidence of “changes in DNA methylation in response to early life stress (ELS)” with the change in methylation occurring soon after the ELS exposure (Nieratschker, 2014). This study further shows that MORC1, a gene measured to have altered methylation levels secondary to ELS, has a significant association with major depressive disorder (MDD). Although the study does not show a difference in MORC1 gene expression between the high and low ELS groups, possibly due to the specific equipment used, this research solidifies the connection between ELS and MORC1 methylation changes as well as that of MORC1 and MDD. This connection gives us insight into where to look when addressing a chronic condition. We are now starting to understand the weight emotional and psychological stressors hold in biological processes.
It is not a far stretch to say that just as our biology affects our mind our mind affects our biology. The interplay of the mind, body, and soul is a key understanding that is missing in modern western medicine. If one of these parts is harmed, then the other parts of your being will compensate. This compensation can present as maladaptive symptoms or behaviors. Therefore, considering a comprehensive psychosocial history of a person is the key to practicing true “evidence-based medicine” and to cracking the code of how our chronic health problems come to be.
Some stressors and the resulting epigenetic changes may even predate your birth. “It was previously believed that epigenetic marks are completely erased during the process of gametogenesis and that they are not transmitted to the next generation. However, several recent lines of evidence obtained from animal studies have suggested that the erasure may not be complete and environmentally-induced epigenomic changes may be inherited by the next generation along with certain phenotypes, including some of the features of mental disorders” (Kubota, 2014). Several studies show this intergenerational transmission of stress as evidenced by the altered methylation of the NR3C1 gene, glucocorticoid receptor, in the offspring of traumatized individuals (Cunliffe, 2016). This is where maternal stress during pregnancy and generational trauma can have detrimental effects even in cases where there is no large influence from previous generations.
Therefore, not only is it important to understand a person’s psychosocial history, it is also important to take their family’s history into account. It is important to note the social and financial environments of parents and grandparents. This gives us a look into the level and duration of hardships that may be passed down through generations. Such hardships may be epigenetically encoded or may dictate the environment within which someone was raised. Even if the parents did not deal with financial hardships during their child’s infancy, the parents may have faced such challenges in their own early life. Whether due to the unconscious passing of epigenetic changes or conscious decision-making from early-life experiences, this dictates what type of mental and emotional environment those parents then raise their own children in.
A literature review discussing multiple studies on epigenetic effects of pre- and post-natal maternal stress and social stress details how “low socio-economic status is associated with increased allostatic load, elevated inflammatory biomarkers and altered patterns of DNA methylation, which can be buffered by targeted social interventions” (Cunliffe, 2016). When the gene SLC6A4, serotonin transporter, has altered methylation, it is associated with “increased amygdala reactivity to a fearful stimulus” and an “increased risk of depression” as a child develops (Cunliffe, 2016). Epigenetic research shows us how our mental, emotional, and social along with physical experiences can manifest physiological and psychological symptoms. This indicates the need for a biopsychosocial perspective [1] as opposed to a purely biological perspective in the practice of medicine going forward. Such a perspective inspires a holistic examination of the “why” behind someone’s ailment to then find its root cause. That is how we work toward true curative healing methods. Teaching healers curious and compassionate self-exploration within themselves and their patients will get us there.
Identifying past dysfunction, hurt, and trauma is not about placing blame on someone or something. The stressors we face throughout life are complex and multifaceted. Recognizing them is about allowing yourself to fully acknowledge certain unchangeable past events, acknowledge the emotions they bring up, and allow yourself to loosen their grip on your life and behaviors going forward. When you acknowledge your past realities, you give yourself the capacity to heal your own behaviors and foster a safe environment for yourself and the family and community you create going forward. [2]
[1] Many traditional medicine systems practice this type of holistic medicine, while also considering the spiritual implications of their healing methods.
[2] This article is a very brief look at the connection between early life trauma and epigenetic changes. I will continue this discussion, along with the broader impacts on our individual and societal health, in future articles.
Recommended Readings
How to Do the Work: Recognize Your Patterns, Heal From Your Past, and Create Your Self by Nicole LePera
The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture by Gabor Mate
It Didn’t Start With You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle by Mark Wolynn
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk
The Mountain is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery by Brianna Wiest
References
Cunliffe, V. T. (2016). The epigenetic impacts of social stress: How does social adversity become biologically embedded? Epigenomics, 8(12), 1653–1669. https://doi.org/10.2217/epi-2016-0075
Kubota, T., Hirasawa, T., & Miyake, K. (2014). Chapter 24—Mental Disorders and Transgenerational Epigenetics. In T. Tollefsbol (Ed.), Transgenerational Epigenetics (pp. 343–354). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-405944-3.00024-6
Nieratschker, V., Massart, R., Gilles, M., Luoni, A., Suderman, M. J., Krumm, B., Meier, S., Witt, S. H., Nöthen, M. M., Suomi, S. J., Peus, V., Scharnholz, B., Dukal, H., Hohmeyer, C., Wolf, I. A.-C., Cirulli, F., Gass, P., Sütterlin, M. W., Filsinger, B., … Szyf, M. (2014). MORC1 exhibits cross-species differential methylation in association with early life stress as well as genome-wide association with MDD. Translational Psychiatry, 4(8), e429. https://doi.org/10.1038/tp.2014.75
Disclaimer
The information included in this post is not medical advice. It is intended as an educational resource on the above medical approach. If you find this content applicable to your healing path, please consult further with your medical practitioner.
