Health potential for ..

[The People]

people abused as kids. Talk of big C. Will scroll but would like feedback.
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I think I already mentioned that my sister has lung cancer. She started smoking in grade 4. But we 3 youngest sisters all had pre-cancerous cells that resulted in hysterectomies. Hard to know if it is a coincidence or from the SA. There is some documentation about it but usually mother/daughter or father/son. I never had a sense that my sisters went through what I did. Anyone else have info on this?

[Cammy]

Many types of CA are from a genetic predisposition. For instance, breast CA is more likely if the mother or other female members of the family have had it. All of the studies that I've encountered on this issue cite the genetic link. I've not read anything that shows a strong correlation between psychological factors and CA, although there is some researchers that claim that strong negative psychological factors can depress the immune system making the person a bit more prone to these type of diseases. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

[The People]

I just got an email from a friend. She believes what I asked even though I didn't send the question to her. The mind/body correlation is very strong.

[nats]

as far as i am aware, without googling, there is a strong and recognised correlation with childhood trauma/abuse and later health issues. you certainly see this in substance abuse and obesity, but i think it's increasingly accepted for some chronic illnesses as well (not sure offhand regarding the evidence-base, so best to google).

[Cammy]

I know that parents who undergo sustained long term trauma, such as live in a war for years, actually experience enough genetic alteration as to pass on anxiety disorders to their children. This has been verified. This is certainly strong evidence of the mind/body correlation between mental distress and actual physical disease that can change a person's genetics. That's very strong.

[The People]

Igraine I remember hearing of a condition carried by children of survivors of Jewish Hell. I have also noticed that a lot of Polish people who are first generation Canadians. They often struggle with selves and life.

[Cammy]

My mother lived through Nazi occupied Holland and through the hell of WWII in Europe as a young girl. The sustained stress of years of being at war and her life being endangered every minute of every day caused her so much anxiety that she slipped into the learned helplessness mode and her emotional age became arrested at about the age of 10. In turn, even though she rarely visibly showed any sign of anxiety, I developed severe anxiety disorders at about 11 years old. Even though there was a very low environmental pressure on me to get an anxiety disorder, I inherited this vulnerability genetically from my mother's war experience. Odd as this sounds, much of my anxiety issues are rooted in WWII even though I was not born yet. This is, at least, how one T/researcher explained how & why I was so vulnerable to contracting a panic disorder so young - a panic disorder in which my life & circumstances were not considered major causative agents. Studies done on this phenomenon showed a stark clear correlation between sustained parental childhood trauma and a marked high incidence of anxiety disorders in offspring. I find it astonishing that a war that occurred years before my birth has the ability to directly be a cause of my anxiety/panic issues via genetic alteration in my parent. Bad evolutionary adaptation is what I call it.

[The People]

If your mother was stunted at that age did she have trouble parenting? That would cause anxiety for you. Her fear would have been so extreme that she would have just shut down. And you would never know where you stood with her.

[Cammy]

I parented her from my physical age of 10 onward. I knew exactly where I stood with her - pretty much in charge. It didn't create anxiety, per se, as it was my normal. It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized that this child parenting the parent arrangement was not the norm. I also had stellar grandparents who raised me while both parents worked. They were loving and stable people, and I am grateful for their influence in my life. So, with my grandparents, I did have real parents and proper parenting. I do see your point, however, about the anxiety being caused by environmental influences, however, my first panic attack occurred BEFORE my entire home and life came crashing down. So, in my case, I'd have to say that it is likely a mixed bag - nature AND nurture.

[nats]

am guessing almost everything in our behaviour is both nature and nurture, on some kind of continuum between the two.