The effect of trauma on the brain and how it affects behaviors | John Rigg | TEDxAugusta

I want to ask you to think about a time in your life when you've had an argument with someone, particularly someone you loved, cared about a lot, a family member, a spouse, a parent, and you really reacted, you really reacted, you got so angry you did things, you said things, maybe you broke up, you said hurtful things and then you reflected on your behavior and wondered what happened, where that came from. I want to look at some of the factors that contribute to that kind of overreaction, that mechanism, that hyperarousal. occurs hyperarousal anger hostility where does that come from what generates it I'm going to talk about stress, okay, stress as if it were a factor that can influence

behaviors

and if we look at the anatomy of the human

brain

, we actually have two

brain

s that are contributing to our

behaviors

two brains contributing to our behaviors and stress is particularly influential in one of them emphasizes noting that we think well it doesn't occur to us stress is a reaction to the external environment so let me talk about the two brains I have a diagram here of the cortex of the brain and this structure underneath the cortex of the brain that is labeled brainstem here, but I'm really talking about the subcortical brain, this whole structure here, the cortex of the brain is what I'm going to call the human brain the intelligent brain is where our personality is our individuality where we choose our partner what we eat we are the type of music we listen to what car we drive where we live what type of life we ​​live, we receive sensory information that is processed in the cortex and we take actions based on sensory information, there it is where our personality, our individuality, everything is centered in that cortical area of ​​the human brain, it is actually by far the largest mass of the human being. the brain is cortex, okay, we rule the world as humans, why not?

Because we perform animal functions better than any animal, we are not bigger, faster, stronger than animals, we think better, we have the largest cortex and we rule the world, but we are animals that eat. making waste products and making babies and that behavior t

rigg

ered by our primitive animal brain is sometimes responsible for t

rigg

ering some of the behaviors that we didn't particularly like, so this primitive animal brain what does the brain do well react to situations if we want it to do so or not, particularly this animal brain that doesn't believe that it's just reacting to the environment, so if I said to you, hey, let's all go out and run down Broad Street, but don't increase your heart rate.

Could you do it now? think to yourself hey, I'm going to stop my heartbeat for 10 seconds but you can't do it the thought exists the thought exists in the cortex the human brain but the animal brain is controlling your heartbeat and it won't let you do it It's so you can think all you want about lowering your blood pressure and it won't happen that the primitive animal brain keeps your heart beating, your breathing, your digestion from the moment you are born, at any time, I mean, even before birth. birth, you know? like a fetus, these structures don't start operating in that central nervous system, the primitive animal brain is running non-stop until your death, it's pretty amazing, okay, I'll ask you to look at another way this primitive animal brain reacts to situations. .

Okay, so this you know, let's pick a photo of a group of guys arguing about who's going to win the Super Bowl on Sunday, talking about cars, whatever men want to talk about when they're engaged in a conversation. I'm a man. so I look, you know, I only have a male perspective on things, but you guys are sitting around talking and suddenly this conversation comes up and a really attractive looking woman walks by in an inappropriately short miniskirt and an inappropriately tight t-shirt. is going to happen with that conversation, okay, the little Snickers in there ain't me, man, I don't look, you know, men will be attracted to that, not because they're looking for mates, married men might react that way way, okay, but because of the fact that there is an animal incident of sexual attraction, why do advertisers put sexually attractive women in ads to draw attention to those ads so that people continue buying things they don't need?

It's okay, it's an animal instinct. Now I can get distracted sometimes, but... I'm married, so I don't go out and chase the girl. You know, married men, men engaged or in a relationship, they might be attracted to each other, it might be like a magnetic boom, but refocus on, hey, I'm married, yeah, I think the Patriots are. you're going to lose or whatever, you know, whatever happens in the conversation, you know, but the reaction and I don't know how women react to men, I mean, you know, luckily, you react to those ugly guys, that It's good, you know, but that primitive sexual instinct is a really important driver of behavior on a day-to-day basis, you know, male elephants are attracted to female elephants, female frogs mate with male frogs, all species. they mate, sexual attractions, basic animal instinct, a more powerful animal instinct programmed into that primitive animal brain is survival and how to do it. animals survive, fight or flight, okay, much more powerful instincts, so the primitive animal brain to check runs our body breathing, digestion, heartbeat, blood, maintains blood pressure and this program for primitive animal instincts that all animals have, sexual attractions to eat, they seek safety and shelter, and then that most powerful thing. instinct survival fight or flight the cortex of the brain is our thinking brain makes decisions takes actions that those things are right according to the sensory information believes that it is where our memory is located all our processing now my daily job is Work I am a doctor Work I am the director of

trauma

tic brain injuries for military members here at Fort Gordon Eisenhower Army Medical Center and I'm going to use some examples of what happens to soldiers when they are taken out of the United States, sent to Iraq and Afghanistan and experienced the

trauma

tic experience of war and How that experience

affects

your performance.

How does that experience affect their behaviors based on the influence that traumatic experience has on their brain, whether they wanted it to or not? So what they do is they go to a place like Iraq or Afghanistan. What is the enemy trying to do to them when they are there? Kill him trying to keep the enemies trying to kill these men and women so that their fight or flight is final. The primitive animal instinct is intensified and magnified, activated in a big way all the time, not for 20 minutes here, in ten minutes here, but non-stop for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for the whole day. deployment time.

I was with the patient this morning at seven deployments seven deployments 14 months minimum of those seven in those seven deployments hyperactivated combat flight and when you're in a place where you know the bad guys are trying to kill you, it's best to activate your fight or flight to respond very quickly That could happen to you and it works very well when you are in a combat zone, but now let's take that soldier and return him to the United States so you get on a plane, get back to the United States, get off the plane . Hello I'm back. start, what part of the brain is recognizing the geographic shift back to the United States, the cortex, the intelligent human thinking brain, but where was this hyperaroused fight or flight located and the primitive animal brain, the subcortical brain, specifically a structure called amygdala that becomes hyperactivated and triggers fight or flight now, that was very, very powerful and essential in a combat zone, but the soldier now comes home and is still hyperactivated, so to give you an example, one of my men He went to that house to feel pretty good a few months ago.

He went to a rock and roll show in Atlanta. He spent some time in Atlanta. I was doing well with the crowd, but suddenly fireworks go off, BAM, he bought, he throws himself to the ground and now he didn't. I didn't hear the explosion it makes it sound like a bomb, I better duck, ok, he reacted without thinking, so now let's look at the anatomy of the brain because there is one more super important point to make here that is fascinating, the sensory information comes in: you. We know that we see taste, touch and smell here, that the sensory information that reaches our sensory organs is sent to a structure in the brain, except for smell, which bypasses the thalamus, but everything else is sent to the thalamus, which is a relay station that sends a signal to both the human intelligent cortical brain and the primitive animal brain, so in this case of this explosion at a rock show the explosion reaches the cortex and the cortex is going to think on exploding sounds like a bomb Whitman, I'm in Atlanta, oh my God. terrorists by the way the band is still playing no one is running for cover no one saw romance fireworks roof I'm fine and the cortex was able to realize that very quickly simultaneously that signal went to the animal brain the animal brain does not understand geography it is hyperactivated it is hyperactivated in particular to explosions which in war meant what I a DS rocket propelled grenades mortars blood guts death body parts here is the second key point about this primitive animal brain number one does not understand geography number two is faster than the thinking brain the animal's brain is actually physiologically programmed to respond faster than the thinking brain, so before the soldier can take that soldier was fireworks, that explosion was a fireworks boom, he's on the ground diving for cover , you know, the moment he hits the ground, he goes on like he's God.

Like an asshole down here, you know, because everyone else is cheering and he's on the ground, okay, but it was a thoughtless response, you know, a thoughtless response triggered by the animal brain, which is designed to respond more fast when you think about it from a survival perspective. perspective a survival perspective the faster we react the more likely we are to survive in fact over an evolutionary period you know the human species has been around for about 300,000 years but for 300 million years we have had animals that have had a fight or flight reaction. I don't know who realizes this, but that's what it says in biology books 300 million years of fight or flight, you know, the faster they react, the more likely they are to survive.

The animal brain is not very intelligent. Fast is fast, the faster you respond to dangerous and threatening situations, the more likely you are to survive a child growing up in an abusive environment. You could take him out of that home and put him somewhere else, but if he has experimented, he or she. You have experienced significant abuse in that home that abuse has affected your arousal system your primitive animal brain no matter how much in your cortical brain you want to overcome you are still reacting to situations programmed into that primitive animal brain but you cannot change it by thinking more than that you can change your heartbeat, your blood pressure, okay, eat and hold the food in your belly for four hours before you digest it, so let me talk a little bit about irritability, okay, so there was a man and a wife or at home and the wife asked her husband, honey, can you take out the trash for me?

Sure, maybe there's no problem. I'll take out the trash, so the man who gets up took out the trash. He did a good job, cleaned everything and came home nice. The work is already done, meanwhile his wife went to another room and his two small children had spilled chocolate milk on this beautiful new white sofa. She was angry now that she has this new couch with big nasty stains. She does not. happy, okay, why are you looking for these kids to break the chocolate milk here? Why did I buy a white sofa? My relatives come to visit me.

I've got this nasty stain here, boy, is she mad? She is not angry with her husband. Okay, but she comes back to her. husband with an angry look on his face, okay, and now our husbands, maybe fatigued and stressed, you know, things happening at work or whatever you know, are not particularly in a good mood, she comes back to him now and has an angry look. in her face and she says: Did you take that crap off like I asked you? Yes, she starts cursing in her own way and yells at him. Wow, well, what happened?

Well, how did she do? How did she approach her husband? Aggressive, hostile, angry, what is the fastest part of the brain? to respond to the sensory information that comes in his angry face and angry tone of voice the fastest part of the brain that responds is what the primitive animal brain for that man to recognize hey, that's my wife talking about trash, she needs her memory in his cortex to recognize his wife and to recognize the English language you took out the trash then when he answered no.he responded to his wife he responded to the aggressive tone of voice and the aggressive face that she presented now of course when he yells at his wife she doesn't like that, so she barks at him and he barks at her and now they are in a big argument about nonsense and nonsense, they made a decision with their smart thinking, their human brains made a decision, hey, I love you baby. let's get married and live happily ever after have a wonderful life together your wonderful husband dad but now in the heat of the moment that smart decision and the primitive animal brain reacts and puts you in a situation where your smart thinking brain would never ever I would have done it when the brain is hyperaroused if it's stressed, you know, certainly, this is a situation that I see in military personnel who have been involved in combat, but you know, everyone gets stressed, you know, bills, family relationships, neighbors. making too much noise or whatever, okay, that hyperarousal, that primitive animal brain is pumping out stress hormones that interfere with sleep and keep you awake, it can hijack a memory because, as you think about all the stress, you even subconsciously remember that I'm not talking about the conscious brain where you're thinking and plotting and using your cortex and probably a hyperarousal of the animal brain that's been stimulated by some kind of things.

Well, it could be trauma, it could just be everyday things that build up and are difficult. but stress hormones are released, that part of the brain is activated, and memory becomes difficult because concentration and attention is not that memory storage and retrieval is problematic, as attention is diverted to all these other things, well, stress factors. For example, many soldiers will tell me that they have memory problems. One time I was talking to a guy in my office and we started having a conversation about sports and we got up and walked down the hall and I'm talking about you.

You know the thing we had been talking about we got to the end that Holly goes to the doctor and I told you my memory sucks I don't remember anything she just said well what happened was when I opened the door we retraced our steps to analyze So when I opened the door, He saw other doors in the hallway and started thinking who was in those rooms, what kind of weapons they had there, whose steps were the ones coming down to connect me, dragging one of the guys with a grenade, what are we going to do?

It's time for us to get to the end of the hallway. He wasn't. He didn't forget what I said. He never heard it because his primitive animal brain was hyper-aroused. neuroscientist I went back to school later in life I became a doctor and I'm fascinated by being a brain mechanic, that's what I consider myself to be. I'm not a behavioral health psychiatrist or anyone who deals with motor depression and all that stuff. There are many things, but what I love is the way the brain operates, it is a machine, the most complex machine in the entire universe, and what is really amazing to me is that we have this part of the brain that reacts before We think and it triggers hormonal releases and, consequently, behaviors. that really leads us into situations that we don't necessarily want when we look back, well why did I do that during the day? the brain constantly generates ideas constantly generates thoughts, it goes back to that, you know, I like to think in terms of ontology, you know, Descartes 1650 said there I think, therefore I am, how did he define his being?

I think, therefore I am, fast forward to the 1950s. French existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre was not concerned that I think, therefore I am, but that I am the person who sees. my thoughts thoughts can happen but they are spontaneously generated by the brain they are not necessarily who you are you are the person who sees those thoughts I love that definition because that is the cortex of the brain that I want to amplify I want to magnify when you use that cortex to determine in my life how I live my life, what I do, I can see thoughts that come into my head, you know, maybe getting excited about things, getting angry because someone challenges me or interrupts me along the way or something that is a challenge. but it's always good to stop for me I stop to think wow I feel my reaction is not necessarily what I want to happen here what I want to happen I can control I can do it with my cortex I keep reacting it's that brain that primitive brain reacts like that in me experience both on the job and I've been working for the military for almost seven years and you know, I've had concerns about a brain injury for a few more years.

I see many people in this state. who end up going to the doctor and they get prophylactic headache medications and a bunch of therapies they get sleep medications that don't work they get mood medications they get painkillers okay, you know, let me talk about one more thing that I forgot, so That's stressful, right? when you always walk badly all these muscles tense you know that you are walking around the neck your back hurts you know this is pain generated by stress you know with headache generation of headache particular attention and then migraines headaches neck the muscles are tense from that, you know, from stress, almost all the soldiers I see during the war have this happening, so one solution is to give them headache medications to solve the headache or we get to the cause of the problem. to the cause of the problem this is not rocket science okay a person is stressed it changes the way their body functions because these stress hormones are activated so we can do things to reduce stress that you don't need for so long, well, I mean.

I am not referring to psychiatric patients needing medications, but I am referring only to cases where there is a clear cause of hyperarousal, hyperstress, well, where these physical symptoms are not generated by abnormalities in the brain but by a set of circumstances. . that is stimulating the primitive animal brain to create stress hormones and activate this thing we call stress. So what we do when we treat men and women who have gone to war is we try to come to a solution. Okay, so how do we treat headaches? take them to a physical therapist learn a stretching program get devices heating devices massage devices to loosen muscles reduce tension that triggers headaches learn sleep hygiene learn relaxation techniques okay, we have yoga classes okay, we teach meditation meditation has been an incredible tool.

You know, meditation relaxes the brain. What happens. Physical symptoms improve. The headaches. The memory. We exercise at a normal high military level, so we use these programs to really help soldiers lower their stress level and look for an organic holistic solution instead of using pharmaceuticals that of course have major side

effect

s as well. that I leave you with the message to consider in your own lives how your primitive animal brain reacts to situations that trigger actions and urge you to consider alternatives to the pharmaceutical industry. I'm about to demonstrate something I do to relax before becoming a doctor.

I was a professional guitarist for many years. and I'm about to plug in this beautiful Gibson Les Paul over here and do a little bit. I'm doing this as a tribute to the men and women who have served in the military. I've had an incredible opportunity in my life to not only be a professional musician, but go to medical school and become a doctor when I'm 40 because I live in this amazing country called the United States and I play this for all the veterans and current soldiers. active duty and people involved with the military who have You allowed me to have the freedom to live this crazy life that I've had so thank you and this will be for you okay let it pop.