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Early Childhood Trauma Case Study

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It is clear that Mr. Martinez has experienced a significant number of traumatic events in his lifetime. The repeated abuse as a child coupled with the trauma he experienced as an adult would most certainly make Mr. Martinez susceptible to Complex PTSD. Although this synopsis doesn't detail Martinez's response to the traumas I assume that the events in his early childhood would have instilled feelings of fear and helplessness. I believe he would have had similar feelings from the combat-related trauma, torture by law enforcement, and the experience of being on death row. It is likely that the PTSD lead Martinez to commit acts that lead to his incarceration.

Several risk factors have been identified for PTSD, these factors include: gender, learning disabilities, physical abuse, sexual abuse, duration of traumatic event, mental …show more content…

Martinez's case I suspect that he would exhibit many of the symptoms associated with PTSD and Complex PTSD. I would imagine that Martinez constantly felt threatened due to the abuse he experienced as a child, including the threats by his father to harm the family. Even if he had recovered from the trauma of his youth he went on to be tortured by law enforcement, and experience combat which would only further support these feelings. It is likely that the trauma from his childhood also prevented him from forming meaningful relationships throughout his life. It is a little harder to predict what Complex PTSD symptoms Martinez might exhibit, but I think based on his incarceration he may have a lack of impulse control. The biggest factor to keep in mind regarding Martinez's behavior while incarcerated is that he would constantly feel threatened. This could be a potential safety issue for inmates, as well as correction officers. This should be especially concerning for the correction officers given Martinez's prior experience being tortured by law enforcement. It is very possible that Martinez would feel the need to lash out at

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