20. Stories from Death Row: How ‘Criminal Justice’ is Failing Adult Children of Trauma with Patti van Eys, PhD
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Stitcher
Overview
In this episode, Dr. Patt van Eys provides an incredible foundation of understanding about psychiatric illnesses and the U.S. system for diagnosing and treating mental health concerns. Listeners will find this conversation SO helpful as Dr. Patti connects child development, attachment, and dissociation to the critical ages of neurological growth for babies 0-3 years of age. For those parenting or teaching children who are neurodiverse, this episode will bring clarity to new research around “developmental trauma” and how this phenomenon can manifest in adults. Dr. Patti regularly visits prison residents with death sentences, and works to explain how trauma, dissociation, and the brain’s protective instincts should be considered when assessing criminal behavior.
“A brain cannot develop without what we call the serve and return from the caregiver to the babY. That's how the brain wires. What fires together, wires together.”
“And their shame begins to shed and they say thank you and they're so grateful. Thank you for helping me understand what happened to me and how I got here.”
“But I do believe that we, as a national people, should be jumping up and down and stomping our feet for resourcing early brain development.”
Episode Highlights
2:58 - An introduction to Dr. Patti Van Eys
14:20 - DSM-5 and language evolution around developmental trauma
26:28 - Early brain development and attachment
35:39 - Understanding dissociation and developmental trauma disorder
53:17 - Understanding children with adverse childhood experiences
1:01:36 - Trauma, justice, and healing
Links
Kindred Exchange - Become a monthly donor to support this show and our mission
Think Orphan - Learn more and listen to the podcast
Emmaus House - Learn more about their work with orphaned youth in Haiti
What Happened to You by Dr. Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey - the trailblazers in the work of development trauma for the last 30 years
Dr. Patti van Eys - Learn about her work and request a consultation
Neurosequential Network - A biologically respectful approach to treating children
Connect with Lauren
Email / Instagram / Leave a Review
Connect with Dr. Patti