<p>It's <a href="http://www.currentpsychiatry.com/index.php?id=22661&amp;tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=169044" rel="nofollow noreferrer">fairly</a> <a href="http://blogs.psychcentral.com/nlp/2013/12/early-life-stress-makes-you-susceptible-to-chronic-physical-pain-and-depression/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">well</a> <a href="http://bbrfoundation.org/discoveries/childhood-trauma-what-role-does-it-play-in-depression" rel="nofollow noreferrer">documented</a> that childhood trauma (such as chronic illness) can lay the neurochemical groundwork for conditions like depression later in life. A paper, <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18602762" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"The link between childhood trauma and depression: insights from HPA axis studies in humans"</a>, states:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>We here summarize results from a series of clinical studies suggesting that childhood trauma in humans is associated with sensitization of the neuroendocrine stress response, glucocorticoid resistance, increased central corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) activity, immune activation, and reduced hippocampal volume, closely paralleling several of the neuroendocrine features of depression. <strong>Neuroendocrine changes secondary to early-life stress likely reflect risk to develop depression in response to stress</strong>, potentially due to failure of a connected neural circuitry implicated in emotional, neuroendocrine and autonomic control to compensate in response to challenge.</p>
</blockquote>

<p><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2169505/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"Late Consequences of Pediatric Chronic Illness"</a> has some related findings too.</p>

<p>I'm interested in what <em>psychological</em> groundwork might be also laid by early life stress such as childhood illness, also contributing to the development of mental health conditions. For example, I've read of cases where chronic childhood pain may cause the patient to have an unhealthily high acceptance (not tolerance) of stress as an adult, meaning they persist in stressful situations where others would not. They've learned that pain is to be accepted and worked through to an extent beyond which many would think reasonable, and this may lead to stress related illness.</p>

<p><strong>Are there any other maladaptive behaviours, cognitive distortions or similar that commonly occur in adults who experienced chronic childhood illness?</strong></p>

<p>(Also interested in evidence related to my anecdotal example.)</p>

<p><strong>EDIT (31st Dec 2013):</strong> Thanks to <a href="https://cogsci.stackexchange.com/users/3832/caseyr547">caseyr547</a> for <a href="https://cogsci.stackexchange.com/a/5217/3854">his answer</a>. To clarify, I'm particularly interested in answers using the behavioural, cognitive and psychodynamic models, as opposed to the biological or stress-vulnerability models.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-31T16:22:28.930Z
Why not? I understand that some criticise psychoanalysis as pseudoscience, but if the model suggests something relevant (however valid the model itself!) it might be interesting as part of a wider answer?
Jonathan Deamer
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-11T01:56:06.517Z
Even as the originator, Freud is not the only authority on psychoanalysis, nor is that all he "would say." People put simplistic caricatures of his theories as words in his mouth far too often, even if he was asking for it in some ways by being so sensational. As @JonathanDeamer points out, the psychodynamic model may offer interesting (and falsifiable) implications regardless of its own validity. Furthermore, as the asker, it is his prerogative to define the question as he sees fit, of course. There's plenty worth knowing (if not necessarily believing) about psychodynamics.
Nick Stauner
<developmental-psychology><depression>
What maladaptive behaviours or cognitive distortions develop as a result of chronic childhood illness?
Jonathan Deamer
# What maladaptive behaviours or cognitive distortions develop as a result of chronic childhood illness?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2013-12-19)

It's [fairly](http://www.currentpsychiatry.com/index.php?id=22661&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=169044) [well](http://blogs.psychcentral.com/nlp/2013/12/early-life-stress-makes-you-susceptible-to-chronic-physical-pain-and-depression/) [documented](http://bbrfoundation.org/discoveries/childhood-trauma-what-role-does-it-play-in-depression) that childhood trauma (such as chronic illness) can lay the neurochemical groundwork for conditions like depression later in life. A paper, ["The link between childhood trauma and depression: insights from HPA axis studies in humans"](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18602762), states:

> We here summarize results from a series of clinical studies suggesting that childhood trauma in humans is associated with sensitization of the neuroendocrine stress response, glucocorticoid resistance, increased central corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) activity, immune activation, and reduced hippocampal volume, closely paralleling several of the neuroendocrine features of depression. **Neuroendocrine changes secondary to early-life stress likely reflect risk to develop depression in response to stress**, potentially due to failure of a connected neural circuitry implicated in emotional, neuroendocrine and autonomic control to compensate in response to challenge.

["Late Consequences of Pediatric Chronic Illness"](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2169505/) has some related findings too.

I'm interested in what *psychological* groundwork might be also laid by early life stress such as childhood illness, also contributing to the development of mental health conditions. For example, I've read of cases where chronic childhood pain may cause the patient to have an unhealthily high acceptance (not tolerance) of stress as an adult, meaning they persist in stressful situations where others would not. They've learned that pain is to be accepted and worked through to an extent beyond which many would think reasonable, and this may lead to stress related illness.

**Are there any other maladaptive behaviours, cognitive distortions or similar that commonly occur in adults who experienced chronic childhood illness?**

(Also interested in evidence related to my anecdotal example.)

**EDIT (31st Dec 2013):** Thanks to [caseyr547](https://cogsci.stackexchange.com/users/3832/caseyr547) for [his answer](https://cogsci.stackexchange.com/a/5217/3854). To clarify, I'm particularly interested in answers using the behavioural, cognitive and psychodynamic models, as opposed to the biological or stress-vulnerability models.

**Tags:** developmental-psychology, depression

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Why not? I understand that some criticise psychoanalysis as pseudoscience, but if the model suggests something relevant (however valid the model itself!) it might be interesting as part of a wider answer?  
> **username_1**: Even as the originator, Freud is not the only authority on psychoanalysis, nor is that all he "would say." People put simplistic caricatures of his theories as words in his mouth far too often, even if he was asking for it in some ways by being so sensational. As @JonathanDeamer points out, the psychodynamic model may offer interesting (and falsifiable) implications regardless of its own validity. Furthermore, as the asker, it is his prerogative to define the question as he sees fit, of course. There's plenty worth knowing (if not necessarily believing) about psychodynamics.  

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## 0 answers

