NAME: OKWOR CECILIA AMARACHI
STUDENT REG. NO. 21J01DCPS008
DEPTMENT: COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY
COURSE TITTLE: TRAUMA COUNSELLING
COURSE CODE: PSY 308
LECTURER: DR. DAPHNE KAGUME
ASSIGNMENT 2
What HPA axis is
HPA axis (Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis is the main psychological system that
mediates the body’s stress response, controls reactions to stress and regulates many body
processes, such as digestion, immune system, mood and emotions, sexuality, and energy
storage and expenditure.
The impact of HPA axis on trauma
In HPA axis, if a person has traumatic stress, HPA axis is affected. If the person has severe or
chronic PTSD, the person’s HPA axis will be also affected. This means that PTSD is a
whole-body event. The HPA axis governs the entire hormonal system within the body
including: mood, appetite, weight, sexual function, fatigue, sleep/wake cycles etc.
HPA axis may be vulnerable to developing acute stress dysregulation when exposed to
trauma especially during infancy. The HPA axis is a pathway through which childhood
trauma may increase risk for negative health outcomes.
HPA axis can have an impact on trauma through an underlie stress-related psychiatric
disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Also, childhood trauma can lead to
health impairments by altering the functioning of the HPA axis, a critical network that
modulates cognitive, immune, and behavioural responses to stress.
Function of the hippocampus
The hippocampus is a part of the limbic system, which is associated with the functions of
feeling and reacting.
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How hippocampus affects trauma
If one or both parts of the hippocampus are damaged by illness such as Alzheimer’s disease,
or if they are hurt in an accident, the traumatic person can experience a loss of memory and a
loss of the ability to make new, long-term memories. Trauma person may be unable to
remember somethings that happened shortly before the hippocampus damage, but they may
still remember things that happened longer age. This is because the long-term memories are
stored in another part of the brain, once they become long term.
The role of amygdala plays in stress response
The amygdala interprets the images/sounds and plays a leading role in mediating the stress
response. The stress response begins in the brain. When someone confronts an oncoming car
or other danger, the eyes or ears or both send the information to the amygdala, an area of the
brain that contributes to emotional processing.
REFFERENCE
FROM DR DAWIN ELISE SNIPES. THE NEUROBIOLOGICAL IMPACT OF
PSYCHOLOGCAL TRAUMA
Bremner JD, Vermetten E, Mazure CM. (2000). Development and preliminary psychometric
properties of an instrument for the measurement of childhood trauma: The Early Trauma
Inventory. Depression and Anxiety (Goggle Scholar).
