What happens when the past casts a shadow over the present? The experiences of earlier generations can leave an imprint on our brains and bodies. Explore the often-invisible legacy of intergenerational trauma.

Trauma is any experience, or series of events, that overwhelms our ability to cope and decreases our sense of safety. While “Big T” traumas, such as war and abuse, often come to mind, there are also “little T” traumas that we tend to discount. Even seemingly less significant events, like emotional neglect and social rejection, can have lasting negative impacts on our brains and bodies.

Little T traumas may feel like the slow drip of a leaky faucet – slowly accumulating across time, creating a chronic pattern of pain. Meanwhile, Big T traumas may feel like a water hose turned on full blast – painful, intense, and impossible to ignore.

The point is: whatever you have experienced, your experience matters, and you deserve support and care.

Painful experiences are not limited to an individual person.

Intergenerational trauma refers to the transmission of unhealed wounds and emotional patterns across generations.

Think of it like ripples across a pond: a single traumatic event throws a stone (the ancestor’s experience), affecting not just the immediate surface (their emotions and behaviors), but also sending subtle vibrations that travel across generations, influencing the lives of their descendants (the ripples on the pond).

Intergenerational trauma isn’t about blaming the past. It’s about understanding the hidden legacy we carry, recognizing its potential impact on our lives, and choosing to break the cycle through healing and conscious awareness.

Here are 6 things to know about intergenerational trauma.

It’s more than just stories – it’s felt in the body.

While traumatic experiences — such as abuse, violence, displacement, poverty, neglect, and discrimination — can be shared verbally, intergenerational trauma is often transmitted through the body. Our bodies speak for us. Our bodies remember what words cannot express.

Children can feel and sense the nonverbal impact of trauma experienced by their parents or ancestors.

How does this happen?

The earlier generation experiences traumatic life events (Big T and little T), which influence their emotional reactions, coping mechanisms, and relationship patterns. Their nervous systems may switch into survival mode: a constant state of stress, fear, and alertness. The degree to which earlier generations are able to heal their traumas depends on their available resources and their level of awareness.

As they raise the next generation, their children’s nervous systems are impacted. Their children’s brains and bodies absorb the energy around them, like a sponge in water.

The result? Without anyone ever explicitly saying so, members of a family may embody the same energy. They may all breathe, move, feel, grieve, communicate, work, and rest in similar ways. Their nervous systems hum along to the same frequency. This is the unspoken, energetic legacy of intergenerational trauma.

Trauma can be passed down genetically.

Research suggests that traumatic experiences can leave chemical imprints on genes, altering how they’re expressed in future generations. These marks don’t change the DNA sequence itself, but they can influence how those genes function, potentially increasing the prevalence of certain mental and physical health conditions in future offspring.

This means that children of trauma survivors may inherit biological responses and emotional regulation tendencies that mirror their parents’ experiences, even without explicit knowledge of the original trauma.

Intergenerational trauma manifests in various ways – within mind, body, spirit, and culture.

Symptoms of intergenerational trauma can vary widely, emotionally, mentally, and physically. Common signs include anxiety, depression, difficulty with relationships, chronic pain, and substance abuse. These symptoms can overlap with other conditions, so it’s important to explore this from a holistic perspective.

Consider what frameworks are most helpful for you on your healing journey. How would it be to acknowledge your relationship challenges as part of a larger, intergenerational pattern? Does the way you avoid conflict, or struggle to let in love and affection, relate in any way to the experiences of your parents, grandparents, and beyond? Is this perspective useful for you?

Depending on the cultural and spiritual context, how we talk about symptoms may vary. Some shamanic traditions link our moods and physical states to the energies around us, including spirits and ancestors. In certain cultures, it’s common to engage in spiritual practices that cleanse and release excess energy. These energies might be called “depression” or “anxiety” in Western clinical terms.

The way we talk about the symptoms of trauma influences the way we heal from it.

A history of trauma is not a prophecy for the future.

We are not doomed to repeat the past. Through therapy, individual work, and family/community/system-oriented approaches, it’s possible to break the cycle and build healthier patterns for future generations. With compassion and awareness, we can shift the energy of our family ecosystems.

This may involve exploring family history, learning better coping mechanisms, having restorative conversations, asking important (and perhaps uncomfortable) questions, setting healthy boundaries in relationships, and more.

Intergenerational healing is a team effort.

Healing intergenerational trauma is not an individual journey. It’s a collective responsibility. No one alone can change an entire system. Collective work might look like:

fostering open, honest, and healthy communication within families
providing resources and support to communities that you’re connected with
engaging in reciprocity and repair with historically marginalized communities, which you may or may not be a part of
addressing systemic issues (racism, sexism, homophobia, ableism, socioeconomic inequity, and more) that contribute to ongoing trauma

Remember the other side of the coin: with intergenerational trauma comes intergenerational resilience.

The survival mechanisms that kept your ancestors alive is the energy that ensured your existence. There is strength and wisdom in the roots of your family tree. This is your power.

As you continue on your healing journey, may you create a life for yourself that your ancestors dreamed of.

If you’re curious to explore healing for intergenerational trauma, let’s connect.

SCHEDULE A FREE CONSULTATION TO WORK WITH ME

{FOR COLORADO RESIDENTS}

Therapy services are available virtually, for adults located in Colorado.

About the Author

I’m Liz Zhou, a holistic trauma therapist (MA, LPCC, she/her). My work integrates teachings from psychology, neurobiology, multicultural awareness, and spirituality. I provide compassionate therapy for highly sensitive people across Colorado.

What to Know About Intergenerational Trauma