Studying the brain in detail is like taking a computer apart and trying to figure out how the engineers designed the circuitry inside the computer chips. To some extent, it doesn’t matter. We know this is the CPU, this is the memory, and this is the hard drive. Even if we know everything there is to know about the wiring of our computer, it means nothing without the programing.
As for the brain, there is a massive ongoing study. We know that physical, chemical and neurological damage or changes have certain effects on people and lab animals. In a computer, knowing the location of certain parts is important only to the programmer or the technician trying to fix the computer. The reason I am including this portion on the brain is because it explains why we react to trauma the way we do and what is happening to us as a result. That makes it important.
The control center of the brain is made of parts that do certain things.
Nucleus Accumbuns
Hippocampus
Amygdalae
vmPFC
Cingulate Cortex
Left and Right Brain
Synchronization
Conclusion
I could compare the brain to a giant warehouse where trucks of information back up to the loading dock from the eye gate, ear gate, taste buds, nose and nerve endings. All this information is received, processed and stored in chronological order with importance and feelings attached.
Well, not quite. Sometimes things not only go to storage, but they demand an immediate response such as action or speech. We might hear someone say something and we respond by answering. We might touch something hot and jump back. Actually, it’s more complicated than that. Our brain is more than a bunch of switches and wiring. It is biochemical and hormonal. These hormones and chemicals are like big master switches. A chemical is produced in the brain and receptors everywhere switch on or off. Adrenalin for example. Suddenly our heart rate jumps, we become tense, every muscle in our body is ready for action.
Additionally, when you read the pages concerning the differences between the male and female brain …Wow
But we need to start somewhere. So let’s look at the brain.
What happens in the brain during trauma? To answer this, we need to first know a little about the brain, its parts, functions and how it is wired.
In 1909 Korbinian Brodmann published a paper organizing the brain into 51 different modules. He assigned each a number (many of these Brodmann areas have since been subdivided). For example, Brodmann area 1 is the primary somatosensory cortex, Brodmann area 17 is the primary visual cortex, and Brodmann area 25 is the anterior cingulate cortex. (Wikipedia)
I mention this because it is easier to recite a Brodmann number than it is to pronounce some of the names given to parts of the brain.
At one time, it was thought that each part of the brain had a specific function. This is called the modular theory. Other theories believe that the functions and memories span these modules giving to the theory that thoughts and functions reside in general areas rather than specific locations.
I do not intend to go into extreme detail about every aspect of the brain, but there are certain areas and functions of the brain that will peak our interest as we study the effects of trauma. Here, I do need to give reasonable detail. It is important to know which part of the brain sends and receives signals and how these change in the face of Trauma. Remember too, that the male brain is very different from the female brain. These differences are covered in the section discussing men vs women.
Since trauma affects the emotional part of the brain and that part is connected to certain memory areas, it stands to reason that memories are affected by trauma. Likewise, the affected parts are also connected to decision making parts of the brain, this explains why people make poor decisions under stress and trauma. This part is also connected to various motor centers in men and speech in women. Women under stress tend to talk their stresses out. Men tend to do something. Like hit something, take a walk or build a city.