How catastrophe changes who you think you are

A lot of people are going through a lot right now. As we've touched on before, the cost of living crisis, global 'boiling', and the uncertainty around the economy has meant we dream more, sleep less, and feel less in control.

But, says a group of psychologists in Psychiatric Times it might be playing a bigger role in who we think we are. Enduring Personality Change After Catastrophic Experience (EPCACE) is a condition identified by the mental health community as a fundamental shift in our outlook after enduring prolonged periods of stress and trauma.

How bad stuff makes us feel different 😧

Research into how trauma changes us has dated back to the early nineties. It's a well-studied phenomenon, but the origins and mechanisms at play aren't clear. What we do know is that our environment plays a powerful role in how our genes express themselves.

Everything from how susceptible we are to disease, to how heavy we are and how happy we might be, are influenced by our genes which in turn are influenced by where and how we live.

What's different, is how we go about treating and diagnosing these impacts. In a recent study of psychologists, only 16% of clinicians used these ideas to diagnose people struggling with the wider world.

If you're feeling afraid or uncertain about what the world will be like when you venture back outside, you're not alone.