Adult Depression and Childhood Abuse

Adult Depression and Childhood Abuse

Depression runs in families. So does abuse. "Studies show that one in four girls and one in eight boys are sexually abused before the age of 18, and one in twenty children are physically abused each year." But sexual and emotional abuse, in particular, is woefully under reported. Most abused children grow up in an atmosphere of denial - denial by the adults around them and, for the most part, denial within themselves as a means of survival. Ultimately it is the secrecy around the abuse that helps to foster the depression. Additionally, neurobiology has expanded our understanding of how emotions affect brain chemistry. Traumatic events - such as any form of childhood abuse (sexual, emotional, physical) or neglect, changes the chemistry of the brain. These events can reshape wiring patterns and reset responses to them so that even a small degree of stress can produce an overabundance of stress hormones that in turn create anxiety and depression.