Trauma is pervasive in many societies and it has intergenerational health implications. Trauma is not a phenomenon that is solely experienced by people in war zones, torture chambers and natural disasters, or isolated to the experience of physical and sexual attack victims.
A landmark study called Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) done in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Kaiser Permanente Foundation during the 1990s found that childhood trauma is common in America and includes experiences such as neglect and divorce and is associated with adulthood behavioral problems, including substance use disorders, depression, chronic illnesses, learning disabilities and shorter lifespans, in a dose response manner.
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