Brain Awareness Night highlights importance of childhood resilience

In March, more than 100 people from around the Memphis community gathered for Brain Awareness Night, hosted annually by the Urban Child Institute and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s Neuroscience Institute. This year’s event, featuring speakers Dr. Pat Levitt and Dr. Eraina Schauss, focused on the topic of childhood resilience.

Resilience is defined as "the ability to adapt well to adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of stress." Resilient children manage to thrive despite being exposed to risk factors like poverty or problematic home environments. The speakers reiterated that resilience is not a trait that an individual either has or does not have, but is rather a skill that can be developed.

As the brain develops, neurons form strong circuits for various functions, such as motor skills, emotions, and language; the more a skill is used, the stronger and more efficient that particular circuit becomes. Though genetics play a part in determining brain structure, research has made it clear that experiences, especially early on, have an equally significant role.

“Experiences are really important—they drive development of the brain,” said Dr. Levitt. “There’s a blueprint that’s set up prenatally to get the basic connections to form, then experience drives further development through infancy, toddlerhood, childhood, and well past adolescence.”

Since experiences can have such profound influences on the brain’s architecture, it is important to consider just what kind of experiences a child is being exposed to. Studies have shown that these events can affect a child his entire life, both emotionally and physically.

When a child is exposed to stress or trauma, his body activates a stress response. If he receives comfort from an adult, his body will return to its normal state. However, if he is exposed to ongoing trauma, such as neglect or abuse, with no intervention from an adult, the stress response will remain activated. Studies have shown that this constant activation, known as “toxic stress,” can weaken and reduce neural connections in the brain related to learning and reasoning.

Early negative experiences have also been linked to long-term consequences related to physical health. One line of research, known as the ACE Study, looked at how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can have lifelong repercussions. ACEs can include emotional neglect, physical abuse, and/or living with a parent suffering from mental illness, according to Dr. Schauss.

The good news is that positive experiences can serve as a counterbalance to boost a child’s resilience. The speakers pressed two important actions: responsive interaction with young children and secure emotional attachment

“[Children] need to know that they can come back to [their parents] and [the parents] can provide that consistent, secure base over time,” said Dr. Schauss. “Providing that secure base and providing that consistency is going to…help foster resilience long-term.”

Although parents play a crucial part in providing the supportive relationships needed for children to develop resilience, they are not the only ones who can serve in this role. Research shows that teachers, coaches, mentors, and other adults who have influence in the lives of children can also help foster resilience through the same caring and responsive interaction needed from parents.

You can watch the full talks from Dr. Pat Levitt and Dr. Eraina Schauss here and here, respectively.