Imprint by Claire Sicherman

Author:Claire Sicherman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: trauma, family, grief, Holocaust, Mental Health, Grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, Psychic trauma, Intergenerational relations
ISBN: 9781987915563
Publisher: Caitlin Press
Published: 2020-01-19T16:00:00+00:00

Journal Entry #44

Holocaust survivors are getting older and many have since passed. What will we do when there are none left? Who will carry their voices? How will we ensure that we remember? That we don’t stay silent? That we awaken to the atrocities we are now committing and to the ones we are capable of committing?

July 2, 2016

Dear Ben,

I watch Nova: The Ghost in Your Genes, a program on epigenetics where researchers tell me that the lives of our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents can directly affect us even though we may not have experienced the events ourselves. I read about the transgenerational transmission of trauma, about the fact that genes can be altered and carry memories of experiences, which are then passed down. We, the next generations, hold these changes, these memories, in our bodies.

I learn that children of Holocaust survivors show abnormal levels of stress hormones, which means coping with stress is difficult and they are more prone to PTSD. Because the gene that manages the stress response has been damaged, it’s as if their bodies are in a constant state of hyper-arousal.

This genetic imprint is then passed onto their children.

The grandchildren.

The third generation.

Which means trauma gets inherited. Which means me. Jeremy.

Generation four: I’m afraid for what you may carry in you.

Love always,

Mom

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