Minding Your Amygdala - A Brain, Body, Behavior Podcast

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"Oh $h!ggidy! Did you see that?!" was the common refrain from the night of the Oscars 2022. So many of us worldwide watched in shock as Will Smith, one of the main honorees of the event, slapped Chris Rock in response to a joke told about Jada Pinkett Smith's bald head, which is due to autoimmune alopecia. This is just one of MANY examples that we have had lately of humans behaving badly. From airplane conduct, to road rage, to gun violence, political violence and even war, it is not your imagination that you are seeing more people act out aggressively towards others, often in responses that seem to be extreme relative to the triggers. You may be wondering, what the heck is wrong with humans???!
Dr. Alauna's answer: We are primitive. Humans currently run primarily on input and impulses from our most animalistic, primitive brain systems, and because we have such a poor understanding of our invisible anatomy, we have been taught to blame others, God OR the Devil (sometimes all 3!) when our emotions become intense and we act on them. The widespread myths about emotions and ignorance about how the human brain calculates information and makes decisions is resulting in widespread chaos, and of course, major disagreements about how we view things. In this episode of Minding Your Amygdala, Dr. Alauna breaks down The Slap with an empathetic perspective on how trauma and biology played a role in THAT situation, and how to recognize when your amygdala may be taking you down a primitive path that you don't want to experience.
Learn more about Dr. Alauna at www.dralauna.com.
Sign up for the Trauma Recovery Academy at www.traumarecoveryacademy.com
Submit questions to [email protected]

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We are absorbing an INCREDIBLE amount of trauma lately. From the very public medical emergency of Damar Hamlin, to the release of brutal footage of police beating Tyre Nichols, we find ourselves in the space to again, be a witness. According to dictionary.com, to be a witness is to "be present, personally see or perceive a thing; a beholder, spectator, or eyewitness."
This episode of MYA is centered on the importance of building our individual trauma resilience skills. There is no "right" or "wrong" way to feel about these events; the key is to identify effective actions that help create healthy change. Dr. A shares her 3As of Coping with Secondary Trauma: Acknowledgment, Awareness, & Action! It's important to understand how "indirect trauma" still can directly impact our brain, causing "programming changes."
Learn more about your brain, body and behavior with Dr. Alauna on March 9-11, 2023 at https://thetraumacure.com. Join us for The Trauma C.U.R.E. : Creators Using Radical Empathy, for 3 days of fun and informative education, coaching and skill building! It's the most fun you'll ever have talking and thinking about trauma!

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It's time for Trauma Mythbusters!!!! Now that we have explored the real world trauma of "The Slap," it's time to dive into the many myths and falsehoods we have been taught about mental health and psychological trauma.
"Only military people who go through combat and get injured have trauma." - NOPE, Errbody has experienced trauma. Every human being on Earth has experienced trauma in their past, present and will in their future as well.
"Trauma has to be horrific and obviously violent to 'qualify' as traumatic." - NOPE! The invisible impact of psychological trauma is pervasive and often, unnoticed in real time, in part because we are desensitized to trauma as the norm.
Discover these emotional and mental health myths and more in this episode of Minding Your Amygdala: A Brain, Body, Behavior Podcast with Dr. Alauna, Trauma Psychiatrist. Become a member of the Trauma Recovery Academy to learn more from Dr. Alauna!
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We are seeing the numbers of children struggling with emotions skyrocketing, and as a trauma psychiatrist, it makes sense to me. Traumas create predictable patterns in our psychological and biological health. The pandemic was/IS a shared, global trauma that all humans experienced, and if a large number of "adults" are struggling with "post-" traumatic mental health effects, then of course, the children are suffering, too. In this episode, we will dive into 3 common challenges for children who have experienced ACES: Tantrums, Trouble-making and Trust-issues, and address how Empathy (LOVE) can help them heal.
ACEs (Adverse Childhood Events) are surprisingly common in the US. About 61% of adults surveyed across 25 states reported they had experienced at least one type of ACE before age 18, and nearly 1 in 6 reported they had experienced four or more types of ACEs.

• experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect
• witnessing violence in the home or community
• having a family member attempt or die by suicide

Also included are aspects of the child’s environment that can undermine their sense of safety, stability, and bonding, such as growing up in a household with:

• substance use problems
• mental health problems
• instability due to parental separation or household members being in jail or prison

Preventing ACEs could potentially reduce many health conditions. For example, by preventing ACEs, up to 1.9 million heart disease cases and 21 million depression cases could have been potentially avoided.

https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/index.html

Be aware of the power of words and the way the amygdala can pull even adults into saying things in a heated emotional state that we cannot “erase” even when We retract. Having empathy for the Child’s internal experience. See Your Self as they might experience you. Become a corrective experience.

Look with Suspended JudgmentObserve the emotions in all parties involvedValidate the differing yet EQUAL experience of the OtherExpress Your Self SKILLFULLY, Creator!

To learn more how to AIM for better Mental Health and self-heal from trauma in 2023, Join me for The Trauma CURE : Creators Using Radical Empathy 3 Day Live Virtual event on March 9 - 11, 2023 from 10 - 4 pm CST.

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In this episode, Dr. Alauna reflects on America's most recent Presidential Debate between Former President Donald Trump and Current President Joe Biden on June 27, 2024. The stakes for our country are extremely high, and watching this as a trauma psychiatrist, I realized that we HAVE to talk about the aging brain! Both candidates have clearly observable challenges, but without mental health awareness and education, these concerning symptoms may not be obvious. Over the next few episodes, we will explore the various presentations of the aging brain, including addressing different types of dementias, personality disorders, and other mental health factors that America's voters need to consider when choosing our next leader. Stay tuned for more Minding Your Amygdala Podcast!

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