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Related Concept Videos

Traumatic Memory01:20

Traumatic Memory

340
Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual...
340
Repressed Memory01:16

Repressed Memory

231
Repressed memories are a psychological phenomenon where memories of traumatic events are unconsciously blocked from a person's awareness. This process occurs as a defense mechanism, protecting the mind from the emotional impact of distressing or painful experiences. For example, a person who has experienced childhood trauma may grow up with no conscious recollection of the event. In such cases, the memories are thought to be buried deep within the subconscious, inaccessible to the conscious...
231
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder01:27

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

197
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition that arises following exposure to traumatic events such as natural disasters, forced displacement, or severe accidents. It significantly impairs individuals' ability to cope with daily activities and disrupts their emotional and psychological equilibrium.
Symptoms and Behavioral Manifestations
A spectrum of distressing symptoms characterizes PTSD. Recurrent flashbacks, where individuals involuntarily relive traumatic events,...
197
Fractures: Bone Repair01:27

Fractures: Bone Repair

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Treatment for a fracture is based on the type of break, the bone affected, and the patient's age.
Minor fractures with no bone displacement are treated by immobilizing the fractured bone using a cast or splint. However, in the case of fractures with displaced bones, the broken bones are repositioned before immobilization to ensure successful healing without deformation and loss of function. The realignment of fractured bone ends is performed through a process called reduction. If the...
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Dissociative Disorders01:27

Dissociative Disorders

222
Dissociative disorders represent complex psychological conditions characterized by disruptions in consciousness, memory, identity, or perception. These disruptions cause individuals to experience a disconnection from their thoughts, emotions, and memories. The phenomenon is not merely an occasional lapse in attention but a profound alteration in mental functioning that can severely impact daily life.
Dissociative Fugue
A hallmark feature of dissociative disorders is the dissociative fugue...
222
False Memories01:18

False Memories

202
False memories represent a cognitive distortion in which individuals recall events that did not happen, or remember them in an altered form. This phenomenon highlights the brain's constructive nature in processing and recalling memories, emphasizing that memory is not a perfect representation of past events but rather a dynamic reconstruction influenced by various factors.
One primary source of false memories is misattribution, where individuals incorrectly associate external information...
202

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 6, 2025

Pseudofracture: An Acute Peripheral Tissue Trauma Model
10:08

Pseudofracture: An Acute Peripheral Tissue Trauma Model

Published on: April 18, 2011

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Trauma and representation.

Lawrence J Brown1

  • 1Boston Psychoanalytic Institute, Newton Centre, MA, USA.

The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis
|May 4, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Profound trauma impairs the mind's ability to process emotional experiences, leading to difficulties in thinking and symbol formation. This study examines trauma's impact on psychic representation and cognitive function.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Psychoanalysis
  • Trauma Studies

Background:

  • Trauma significantly impacts an individual's capacity for psychic representation and emotional processing.
  • Freud's concept of a protective shield (Reizschutz) offers a framework for understanding trauma's effects.
  • Object relations and the internal parental couple are crucial components of psychic defense mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the profound impact of trauma on the mind's ability to represent emotional experiences.
  • To examine the breakdown of symbol formation and the emergence of concrete cognition following trauma.
  • To present a Bionian perspective on trauma, integrating object relational theories and the French Psychosomatic School.

Main Methods:

  • Review of psychoanalytic theories on trauma, including Freud's Reizschutz and object relations.

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Using Visual and Narrative Methods to Achieve Fair Process in Clinical Care
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Using Visual and Narrative Methods to Achieve Fair Process in Clinical Care

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  • Integration of Bionian concepts and contributions from the French Psychosomatic School.
  • Clinical case vignette illustrating severe psychic dysfunction and psychosomatic regression.

    • Main Results:

    • Profound trauma diminishes the capacity for thinking and symbolic representation.
    • Cognitive functioning may shift towards concrete modes of thought.
    • A clinical case demonstrates near-total psychic collapse and compensatory psychosomatic regression.

    Conclusions:

    • Trauma fundamentally disrupts psychic representation and cognitive processes.
    • The internal parental couple plays a vital role in the psyche's protective shield against trauma.
    • Psychosomatic manifestations can represent a regression in psychic functioning following overwhelming trauma.