January Monthly Forum with Ruth Cohn MFT

This presentation shines a light on a client population largely overlooked by the trauma field, and thus glaringly underserved: survivors of early childhood neglect. Because these clients often lack narrative memory of an overwhelming event, they may believe “nothing” happened to them. In an important sense, that is precisely true: in early infancy, they subsisted in a void of essential attachment experiences. They may consequently present with an identifiable symptom cluster without understanding its cause and can slip under theradar—unrecognized in their families, in the larger world, and even within the mental health and trauma field. The very act of being seen and recognized, and having their trauma recognized, named, and validated, can itself be a powerful intervention. Their most painful symptoms frequently emerge in the realm of relationship, accompanied by shame and a sense of responsibility for difficulties that seem to have no clear cause. This presentation will explor…