Exploring the Link Between Intergenerational Trauma and Mental Health
An exploration of the effects of intergenerational trauma on mental health
Does the trauma from our ancestors affect us? This article is my way of seeking answers to that question. Since my mom is Armenian, I explore intergenerational trauma from the Armenian genocide. However, you can substitute whatever trauma your ethnic group endured.
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In 2002, my mom, sister, and I reclined on my sister’s bed and watched Ararat, a film about a family and film crew in London who made a movie about the Armenian genocide. While watching the movie, we passed around a box of tissues. My mom is Armenian, and that movie hit us emotionally like a Mack truck. After the movie, I asked, “Does the genocide still affect us?” My sister said, “Of course it does.” I did not understand then what she meant. I now understand that Armenian people have boatloads of intergenerational trauma, as do other ethnic groups.
The American Psychological Association defines intergenerational trauma as “the transmission of trauma or its legacy, in the form of a psychological consequence of an injury or attack, poverty, and so forth, from the generation experiencing the trauma to subsequent generations.” Transmission of trauma from one generation to the next “affects the chemical marker for a gene rather than the gene itself.” The trauma passed down becomes a genetic adaptation that can be passed down through the generations.
Writing that paragraph evoked memories of attending a lunchtime commemoration of the Armenian genocide in college at Fresno State University. They created a cardboard replica of the memorial in Yerevan, Armenia, and passed out red roses for us to drop down. While we all filed into a line, music by Komitas, an Armenian priest and musicologist, played in the background. He survived the genocide but ended up suffering, with stints in a mental hospital for 20 years.
I distinctly remember laying my rose down while thinking of my great-grandmother, Durahi Balakian Ourganjian, a genocide survivor who had a mental breakdown, according to my great-aunt. My grandfather, Stepan Ourganjian, Durahi’s son, suffered from bipolar disorder. My mother suffers from depression, anxiety, and PTSD, as do I. My grandfather’s brother and niece died by suicide. We are only one family.
Studies of intergenerational trauma among Armenians
I did a Google search of studies about the Armenian genocide and mental health. I found a researchers have conducted studies, much to my surprise. A 2019 study cited transgenerational trauma among Armenians due to the Armenian genocide and the ongoing denial of it by the perpetrating nation. I can’t help but wonder how many Armenians around the world (we have a worldwide diaspora) experience mental health issues. How many families are like ours?
In another study, researchers gave a mental health questionnaire to 268 Armenians. They found that many of the descendants of genocide survivors experienced diagnosed mental illnesses, such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD. The study, published from the research, concluded that among Armenians, there is an “uncharacteristically high level of adolescent and adult depression.”
“Those who lived through the Armenian Genocide survived death marches, rapes, drownings, physical mutilation, and other such heinous crimes. As they have passed, it is recognized that subsequent generations continue to fight for justice, manifesting their ancestral pain, sadness, and mourning for the loss of their family members.” Selina L. Mangassarian
Why the trauma continues
A dissertation about intergenerational trauma among Armenians states that “collective trauma continues to impact the mental health of Armenian people.” A large part of the extent of the intergenerational trauma among Armenians is the denial by Turkey, the perpetrating nation. “A continued denial by the perpetrators…may further exasperate the impact of transgenerational trauma from the genocide,” according to a 2021 literature review.
An article by the Armenian National Committee of America points out that the continued denial by Turkey “does not only rebuff historical facts but rejects our ancestors’ persecution and suffering at the hands of the Turks.” The kind of pain continued denial causes is immense. Every time the Turkish government denies the genocide, it triggers intergenerational trauma. Posting about the genocide on social media means Turkish and Azeri trolls leave nasty comments that either outright deny the genocide or say something along the lines of, “Your ancestors were traitors and deserved to die.” Reporting those comments rarely results in anything.
“The denial of the Armenian genocide does not only rebuff historical facts but rejects our ancestors’ persecution and suffering at the hands of the Turks. Consequently, our inherited trauma is also discounted. Why can’t we give up and move on? Because fortunately, we have also inherited our ancestors’ strength, resilience, and determination.” Armenian National Committee of America
The loss of part of the Armenian homeland still causes pain. Western Armenia, present-day Eastern Turkey is lost. A chapter in the book, An International Perspective on Disasters and Children's Mental Health focuses on the intergenerational effects of the Armenian genocide. The authors mention that the survivors “experienced severe, tangible loss” and Armenians “share a collective memory that continues to impact their approach to the world.”
Something else compounds our trauma. The genocide continues. In January 1990, Armenians living in Baku, Azerbaijan faced a series of attacks. Around 250,000 Armenians fled to Armenia. Fast forward 30 years and we have the 2020 attacks against the Armenians of Artsakh, an ancient Armenian province placed within Azerbaijan by the Soviets. Armenians in Artsakh had a defacto government. Azerbaijan bombarded the Artsakh residents with cluster munitions and white phosphorous. Armenians, many from the Republic of Armenia, fought in a war for six weeks. The war ended when Armenia surrendered more than half of Artsakh.
Last year, Azerbaijan blocked the only road leading from Artsakh to Armenia for 10 months, causing Artsakh residents to starve. In September, Azeris shelled the region and sent their troops in. The Artsakh government surrendered and 120,000 Armenians fled the region. Attacks and fleeing Armenians are the 20th and 21st century pattern. And those events trigger intergenerational trauma among all Armenians.
How do we lessen the pain?
I can’t help but think about the effects of being descended from victims of the genocide. The Turks beheaded my great-great grandfathers. Among the 1.5 million Armenians murdered were my relatives. I carry their DNA. I carry the pain of their loss. Every Armenian alive today has the genocide as their ancestral backdrop. How do we lessen our suffering? I don’t have any answers. All I can do is carry on healing from the trauma I experienced and address intergenerational trauma when it arises.
The Armenian genocide was the first one in the 20th century and subsequent genocides occurred and continue to occur. There are many descendants of genocide survivors and victims walking around this planet. My wish is that researchers study ways to help us all heal. We have suffered enough. It is time for healing.
Resources
The History of the Armenian Genocide: Ethnic Conflict from the Balkans to Anatolia to the Caucasus by Vahakn N. Dadrian
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Praying for healing of intergenerational trauma and our trauma from childhood trauma. Love you dear Gina. <3
The ongoing power struggles between human beings is incredibly sad. There is so much trauma for us to learn how to deal with but I think, finally, more and more of us are learning how to break free from the generational behavior patterns that create the environments that epigenetically wake the genes of our ancestors.
Great article Gina. Thank you for sharing!