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Intro:
Victims of childhood sexual abuse were proven to experience higher rates of anxiety and
depression throughout their lifetime as well as a history of other disorders. But there is hope!
The resilience in the human spirit, and the renewing capability of the human mind
(Neuroplasticity), as well as ones genetics disposition can help a victim bounce back. One
could conclude that the above three enablers of abuse recovery can be an instrumental nexus to
complete healing. This is very apparent in some cases such as the case of the sisters LaTanya
and Tichelle in the Emily Bazelon writing. A personal conclusion about the relevance of abuse
and the healing that can take its place, inspires a desire to protect the innocence of children.
1)
connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the neurons (nerve cells) in the brain to
compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to
changes in their environment. Brain reorganization takes place by mechanisms such as "axonal
sprouting" in which undamaged axons grow new nerve endings to reconnect neurons whose links
were injured or severed. Undamaged axons can also sprout nerve endings and connect with other
undamaged nerve cells, forming new neural pathways to accomplish a needed function.
(Medicine, N. 2012)
For example, if one hemisphere of the brain is damaged, the intact hemisphere may take
over some of its functions. The brain compensates for damage in effect by reorganizing and
adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or even significant sources of
stress such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems, or workplace and
financial stressors. It means bouncing back from difficult experiences (Association, A. 2007).
In contrast during the critical period during childhood, the brain experiences anything goes
plasticity, adapting itself to sort and interpret a large variety of incoming data from the world
(Nelson, L. 2006).
As people grow older, their brains become noisier because they are filled with more
information, the management of which causes them to slow down. In one experiment however,
computer games were shown to rejuvenate the learning machinery of elderly subjects. His
findings are striking: through auditory training, people between the ages of 70 and 95, were able
to recover the cortical plasticity of people 10 to 15 years younger than they. Visual training
resulted in an increased plasticity equivalent to that of brains 25 years younger. Countering
conventional wisdom, which says that brains simply slow down with age, Merzenich said that it
is very easy to change cortical dynamics by training (Nelson, L. 2006).
The everyday meaning of the word resilience extends to anything that bounces
back. Its the word for springing back from serious adversity, like abuse, war or natural disasters.
You exhibit resilience (as opposed to plain competence) if you cope with terrible misfortune and
live relatively successful life as defined by mental health, success in school or at work or solid
relationships (Bazelon, 2006).
In studies of the long-term effects of physical and sexual child abuse, 20 to 40 percent of
victims show few signs of behavioral or mental-health problems. They seem well-balanced with
success in school or at work, while having solid relationships. And many of them dont appear
damaged later in life. As Ann Masten, a resilience researcher, has written, resilient children have
the benefit of ordinary magic. When it comes to abuse victims, though, this finding is rarely
trumpeted; for fear that saying abuse isnt always inevitably harmful is tantamount to saying its
not always bad (Bazelon, 2006).
The statistic above actually contains some viable argumentshowever this still leaves 60 to
80 percent of the population that have experienced abuse and long term negative effects of said
abuse.
experiences anything goes, plasticity, adapting itself to sort and interpret a large variety of
incoming data from the world.
The possibility exists that genes plays a part in how well someone can bounce back from an
abusive experience. The Bazelon article says that a person that has two long allels is able to
bounce back from such situations in comparison to those that have one long allel or those that
have two short allels. The gene makes that person more able to adapt and heal from the
experience.
There is a relationship between the gene, 5-HTT and childhood maltreatment in causing
depression. Scientists have determined that 5-HTT is critical for the regulation of serotonin to the
brain. Proper regulation of serotonin helps promote well-being and protects against depression in
response to trauma or stress. In humans, each 5-HTT gene has two alleles, and each allele occurs
in either a short or a long version. Scientists are still figuring out how the short allele affects
serotonin deliver, but it seems that people with at least one short 5-HTT allele are more prone to
depression. And since depression is associated with unemployment, struggling relationships,
poor health and substance abuse, the short allele could contribute to a life going awry
(Nelson, 2006).
Reflection on assignment: After reading though these articles, I have come to a clearer
realization of the detrimental effects of child abuse. The abuse can cause long term psychological
damage to individuals including anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other negative psychological
Reference
Association, A. (2007). What is Resilience? Psych Central. Retrieved on April 16, 2014, from
http://psychcentral.com/lib/what-is-resilience/0001145
Bazelon, E. (2006, April 30). AQuestion of Reslience. The4 New York Times, Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/magazine/30abuse.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Medicine, N. (2012, June 14 ). Definition of Neuroplasticity. Retrieved from
http>//www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=40362
Nelson, L. (2006). A learning machine: Plasticity and change throughout life. Retrieved from
Https://ww.psychological science.org/index.php/publications/observer/2006/august-06/alearning-machine-plasticity-and-change-throughout-life.html