Trauma Rewired – "Trauma Isn't Just In Your Head (It's In Your Cells)"

Podcast: Trauma Rewired
Hosts: Jennifer Wallace & Elisabeth Kristof
Guest: Dr. Memba Jabi, Clinical Neuroscientist
Date: October 6, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode delves into the complex biology of trauma, demonstrating how early traumatic experiences, especially in childhood, are not only psychological but are also deeply encoded in our bodies at the cellular and genetic level. Hosts Jennifer and Elisabeth are joined by Dr. Memba Jabi, a clinical neuroscientist, who explores the interplay between neurogenetics, brain circuits, sensory inputs, and emotional experiences. Together, they unpack the science behind how trauma influences the nervous system, how it can manifest as physical and mental disease, and why healing is absolutely possible thanks to neuroplasticity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trauma Is a Lifelong Conversation Between Brain, Body, and Environment

• Protective Patterning: The episode begins by noting that trauma patterns established early—such as those from childhood abuse—can unconsciously lead people into similar environments and behaviors as adults.

  • [00:00] A: “That same protective patterning finds people in the same situations … trying to escape the very same environment because they've been patterned to learn the maladaptive place to be. An adaptive patterning, right?”

• Mental and Physical Costs:

  • [00:22] B: “The high cost of that can lead, or usually lead to severe, prolonged mental, but also physical diseases.”

• Scientific Framing of Trauma:

  • [00:38] A: “Trauma isn't just an event. It's a lifelong conversation between your brain, your body, and the environment … people with a history of early childhood trauma … can carry that imprint into their immune system and emotional health literally in their cells.”

2. Biological Underpinnings: How Trauma Becomes Somatic

• Dynamic Brain Networks: Dr. Jabi discusses the brain's core emotional circuits (like the anterior cingulate, insula, and amygdala) and their constant, rapid assessment of sensory information to keep us safe.

  • [07:55] B: “The living brain is … a well organized, nice thick mass of gel … any part … could literally be scooped. … The network and how it's wired together and how the information … from different sensory modalities … determines the network.”

• Neuroplasticity:

  • [09:05] C: “Really makes you think about neuroplasticity too, and the malleability of the brain.”
  • [09:12] B: “Exactly. … As individuals … we scan our environment … The emotional circuitry does [this] whether the input is visual … auditory … tactile.”

3. Sensory Input, Adaptation, and Trauma

• Role of Sensory Training: The insular cortex interprets a flood of external and internal sensory signals, integrating signals from the body (e.g., gut feelings, heart rate), not just the environment.

  • [13:20] B: “The insula is really a privileged region … at the epicenter of really capturing most, if not all, the sensory signals … and then connect it to the body … It regulates the feeling states.”

• Environmental Adaptation & Survival Values: Dr. Jabi compares adaptation in various environments (jungle vs. city vs. sea, etc.). Trauma often causes hyperdevelopment (hypervigilance) of certain sensory skills and suppression of others.

  • [17:58] B: “One terminology I would share is survival values. … The context specific nature of each environment … The survival value of our environment matters.”

• Adaptive but Costly Patterns: Dissociation and numbing are adaptive (not underdeveloped) suppressions of awareness in unsafe situations.

  • [24:45] B: “They are not necessarily underdeveloped, but they're adaptively suppressed.”

4. Genetic and Epigenetic Pathways

• How Genes Build—and Fail to Build—the Brain: Dr. Jabi explains that genes lay the template, but environment shapes how much risk is “expressed.” Stress—even in utero—can derail development.

  • [26:53] B: “We want to look at genes as the biological building block. … If those impact … genes that code the brain … and the network that are hardwired to enable us to code our emotions … [it] can lead … to not be adequately able to manage our emotions.”
  • [30:56] B: "If that mother is really undergoing extraneous, stressful or even consistent traumatic experiences... it’s going to affect not just the development of that child, but could cascade all the way down to their lifelong health status.”

• Nature and Nurture: Genetic risk is not destiny. A nurturing environment can compensate, and the brain remains plastic.

  • [33:29] B: “I think one could weigh it as not necessarily fully predetermined destiny … Genes themselves … have to be at … the very extreme that a nurturing environment wouldn’t kind of compensate."

5. Trauma Types and Inflammatory Biomarkers

• C Reactive Protein and Trauma:

  • Dr. Jabi shares his lab's research showing that people with childhood trauma—especially sexual trauma—have higher levels of C-reactive protein, linking trauma to systemic inflammation and increased disease risk.
  • [41:40] B: “What we found when we asked specific questions of the origin of childhood trauma, is that C reactive protein, independent of what kind of trauma people have had, is higher. … Those who experience sexual trauma, their C reactive protein was also a notch higher and mainly also driven by the fact that they are women."

• Physical Validation:

  • [47:01] C: “Powerful statement to say there is a strong biological marker associated with body sanctity violations like that.”
  • [47:33] B: “If C reactive protein levels are indeed really telling us … we can identify those who experience childhood trauma and it's really leading to negative health … Can we take those measures … as indicators of how we really treat people?”

6. Emotional Patterning, Memory, and Action

• How Fear Is Encoded: Emotional triggers bypass cognition for immediate survival (e.g., fear response to a threat).

  • [51:19] B: “Let’s say … we are … on a tropical beach … and a cobra comes in … emotional trigger … the eye will see it … tracks through the visual pathway into the visual cortex … secondary pathway that … goes into the amygdala … before we even think, we are already acting … run.”

• Imagination vs. Reality:

  • [55:24] C: “My body was like the same reaction.”
  • [57:12] B: “Emotions are real, but you may not run, but you still very much get tense.”

• Closing Insight: Emotions deeply affect and reflect the body’s state, influencing not only survival but also our capacity to thrive.

  • [57:44] B: “Emotions from the healthy point of view are necessary for us to really not just navigate our environment, but stick around as long as we do and survive. But there is also a positive part of it, like it enhances our well being …”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Emotional Disease as Embodied:
  • [00:38] A: “...people with a history of early childhood trauma … can carry that imprint into their immune system and emotional health literally in their cells.”
• On Adaptive Suppression:
  • [24:45] B: “They are not necessarily underdeveloped, but they're adaptively suppressed.”
• On Neuroplasticity and Hope:
  • [37:04] C: “Our brains are super neuroplastic. Our nervous system is continuing to adapt. … we can work with our nervous system, learn skills for regulation, develop safe relationships for co regulation … it's not fixed, that we will go down this disease pathway.”
• On the Biological Marker of Trauma:
  • [41:40] B: “C reactive protein … is higher … for those who experience childhood trauma, and … sexual trauma … was also a notch higher.”
• On the Law & Emotional Harm:
  • [59:30] B: “Our laws don’t even have an acknowledgement of the fact that … someone who comes in and insults … may hurt even more … We don’t have laws to deal with that."
• On the Potential for Growth:
  • [61:52] A: "Repatterning for joy and learning to experience joy and happiness and comfort and, and compassion is just so important to the way that we thrive and survive."

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Protective Patterning & Cost – 00:00–00:38
• Dr. Jabi’s Introduction & Research Vision – 02:28–04:13
• Neuroplasticity and Brain Circuitry – 07:55–13:20
• Developmental Adaptation of Sensory Systems – 17:58–24:45
• Genetics, Epigenetics, and Brain Development – 26:53–33:29
• Inflammation, C Reactive Protein, and Trauma Types – 40:14–47:33
• Emotion Encoding, Memory, and Survival Response – 51:19–57:12
• Closing Reflections on the Embodied Nature of Emotion – 57:44–61:52

Takeaways for Listeners & Practitioners

• Trauma is embodied, not just psychological—it is imprinted in our cells, nervous system, and genes.
• Patterns of adaptation to trauma can both protect and harm us; healing requires addressing these patterns at sensory and body-based levels, not only cognitively.
• The brain is plastic: healing and new patterns are always possible, no matter how deep the trauma.
• Inflammation markers like C reactive protein may soon play a role in diagnosing, tracking, and treating trauma.
  • [47:33] B: “Maybe we need to start thinking how we use this information to guide us to actually design treatment in such a way that especially those who went through sexual trauma are taken seriously … with a window on doing periodic sampling of C reactive protein …”
• Practitioners are encouraged to bridge neuroscience and somatic approaches, honoring that emotional health is inseparable from physical and community health.

For listeners, this episode offers both scientific insight and practical affirmation: trauma reshapes us on every level, but awareness, skilled support, and neuroplasticity mean healing is never out of reach.