This analysis can be applied to diverse groups of older adults who have collectively faced historical traumas, not only Indigenous Canadians and survivors of the Holocaust, but also refugees and survivors of war, and LGBTQ older adults. Historical trauma (HT), as used by psychotherapists social workers, historians, and psychologists, refers to the cumulative emotional harm of an individual or generation caused by a traumatic experience or event. We explore the unmapped connections between historical trauma, PTSD, and dementia, based on our research question: How does historical trauma experienced by specific cultural groups mediate the dementia experience? For social work practitioners, this research aids in understanding how dementia can be shaped and embodied over the life course and within a specific socio-cultural and historical context. Populations subjected to mass trauma in the form of war, genocide, and colonization can exhibit effects and responses generations after the traumatic events occurred, and there need not be direct familial connections. Historical trauma is collective, cultural, and intergenerational in nature. A weakness of the extant literature is that trauma-informed practice and care, and the links between PTSD and dementia, have been primarily informed by individual experiences, responses, and symptoms, rather than by historical trauma. These data suggest that we should apply a trauma-informed lens to our work with older adults exposed to traumatic events, particularly persons living with dementia. Research has found causal and correlational links between trauma, PTSD, and dementia, with PTSD being a cause of dementia, and dementia symptoms found to exacerbate PTSD symptomology. Trauma-informed practice is viewed as evidence-informed in the mental health field, yet little attention is paid to its potential application to aging populations and age associated conditions like dementia. Social Work, Vancouver Island University, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada, 2. Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada These concepts illustrate repercussions from HTEs on the current population, as well as the ways in which these narratives of trauma and survival were preserved and transmitted across generations. We will discuss assessment of historical trauma and implications for research and clinical as well as community interventions, and conclude with recommendations.HISTORICAL TRAUMA, PTSD, AND DEMENTIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRAUMA-INFORMED SOCIAL WORK The historical trauma framework is used as a theoretical umbrella to encompass inter-related concepts. This article will review the conceptual framework of historical trauma, current efforts to measure the impact of historical trauma upon emotional distress, and research as well as clinical innovations aimed at addressing historical trauma among American Indians/Alaska Natives and other Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Tribal cultural and regional differences exist which may impact how the wounding across generations and within an individual's lifespan are experienced and addressed. There is increasing evidence of emotional responses to collective trauma and losses among Indigenous Peoples, which may help to inform ways of alleviating psychological suffering and unresolved grief. Indigenous Peoples of the Americas have experienced devastating collective, intergenerational massive group trauma and compounding discrimination, racism, and oppression.
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