The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder
Trauma can profoundly affect the sense of self, where both cognitive and somatic disturbances to the sense of self are reported clinically by individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These disturbances are captured eloquently by clinical accounts, such as, ‘I do not know myself anymore...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2020-12-01
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| Series: | European Journal of Psychotraumatology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1807703 |
| _version_ | 1797954507722719232 |
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| author | Ruth A. Lanius Braeden A. Terpou Margaret C. McKinnon |
| author_facet | Ruth A. Lanius Braeden A. Terpou Margaret C. McKinnon |
| author_sort | Ruth A. Lanius |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Trauma can profoundly affect the sense of self, where both cognitive and somatic disturbances to the sense of self are reported clinically by individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These disturbances are captured eloquently by clinical accounts, such as, ‘I do not know myself anymore,’ ‘I will never be able to experience normal emotions again,’ and, ‘I feel dead inside.’ Self-related thoughts and experiences are represented neurobiologically by a large-scale, cortical network located along the brain’s mid-line and referred to as the default mode network (DMN). Recruited predominantly during rest in healthy participants, the DMN is also active during self-referential and autobiographical memory processing – processes which, collectively, are thought to provide the foundation for a stable sense of self that persists across time and may be available for conscious access. In participants with PTSD, however, the DMN shows substantially reduced resting-state functional connectivity as compared to healthy individuals, with greater reductions associated with heightened PTSD symptom severity. Critically, individuals with PTSD describe frequently that their traumatic experiences have become intimately linked to their perceived sense of self, a perception which may be mediated, in part, by alterations in the DMN. Accordingly, identification of alterations in the functional connectivity of the DMN during rest, and during subliminal, trauma-related stimulus conditions, has the potential to offer critical insight into the dynamic interplay between trauma- and self-related processing in PTSD. Here, we discuss DMN-related alterations during these conditions, pointing further towards the clinical significance of these findings in relation to past- and present-centred therapies for the treatment of PTSD. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T23:18:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3fec6b64328944f587de8a6fff5d6210 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2000-8066 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T23:18:34Z |
| publishDate | 2020-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of Psychotraumatology |
| spelling | doaj.art-3fec6b64328944f587de8a6fff5d62102023-01-12T15:31:32ZengTaylor & Francis GroupEuropean Journal of Psychotraumatology2000-80662020-12-0111110.1080/20008198.2020.18077031807703The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorderRuth A. Lanius0Braeden A. Terpou1Margaret C. McKinnon2Western UniversityWestern UniversitySt. Joseph’s HealthcareTrauma can profoundly affect the sense of self, where both cognitive and somatic disturbances to the sense of self are reported clinically by individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These disturbances are captured eloquently by clinical accounts, such as, ‘I do not know myself anymore,’ ‘I will never be able to experience normal emotions again,’ and, ‘I feel dead inside.’ Self-related thoughts and experiences are represented neurobiologically by a large-scale, cortical network located along the brain’s mid-line and referred to as the default mode network (DMN). Recruited predominantly during rest in healthy participants, the DMN is also active during self-referential and autobiographical memory processing – processes which, collectively, are thought to provide the foundation for a stable sense of self that persists across time and may be available for conscious access. In participants with PTSD, however, the DMN shows substantially reduced resting-state functional connectivity as compared to healthy individuals, with greater reductions associated with heightened PTSD symptom severity. Critically, individuals with PTSD describe frequently that their traumatic experiences have become intimately linked to their perceived sense of self, a perception which may be mediated, in part, by alterations in the DMN. Accordingly, identification of alterations in the functional connectivity of the DMN during rest, and during subliminal, trauma-related stimulus conditions, has the potential to offer critical insight into the dynamic interplay between trauma- and self-related processing in PTSD. Here, we discuss DMN-related alterations during these conditions, pointing further towards the clinical significance of these findings in relation to past- and present-centred therapies for the treatment of PTSD.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1807703default mode networkptsdtraumasense of selfposterior cingulate cortexmedial prefrontal cortexsomaticpresent-centred treatmentpast-centredtreatmentmdma |
| spellingShingle | Ruth A. Lanius Braeden A. Terpou Margaret C. McKinnon The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder European Journal of Psychotraumatology default mode network ptsd trauma sense of self posterior cingulate cortex medial prefrontal cortex somatic present-centred treatment past-centred treatment mdma |
| title | The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| title_full | The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| title_fullStr | The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| title_full_unstemmed | The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| title_short | The sense of self in the aftermath of trauma: lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| title_sort | sense of self in the aftermath of trauma lessons from the default mode network in posttraumatic stress disorder |
| topic | default mode network ptsd trauma sense of self posterior cingulate cortex medial prefrontal cortex somatic present-centred treatment past-centred treatment mdma |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1807703 |
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