The Transmission of Trauma from Mother to Infant: Radioactive Residues and Counter-Transference in the Case of a Haitian Mother and Her Two-Year-Old Son

Abstract

Close observation of the interactions between a traumatised mother and her infant son provides information on the modes of transmission of psychic trauma in the mother-infant dyad. Following the presentation of a current literature review on the theme, the subject of "radioactive residue" and countertransference in the transmission of psychic trauma from mother to infant will be illustrated through a clinical case study that focuses on a Haitian mother and her two-year-old infant son who has been referred to a "transitional care nursery" in urban Paris. The encounter with this mother-infant dyad is analysed through observing the quality of the interactions that take place between the mother and infant in order to determine how a particularly traumatic narrative impacts the mother-infant relationship, in addition to relations with the clinician. Mother and infant respond to one another through the emission and reception of "radioactive residues" as hypothesized by Gampel. This clinical case study shows that there is a need to consider transcultural factors and collective experience and history when analysing traumatic events. Additionally, the case study shows that countertransference can be an effective clinical tool for gaining access to an infant's experience as the recipient of a traumatic narrative.

How Do We Address and Treat the Trauma of a 16-Year-Old Girl, Unaccompanied Minor, and Her Rape-Born Son? A Case Report

“…Psychodynamic theorists have shown that a parent who has experienced a major trauma, and who has not communicated openly with his or her children may transmit the trauma to the children in the form of unconscious displaced emotion [ 12 , 41 , 48 , 49 ]. In situations of trauma, isolation, and ruptures, the child risks becoming the holder of the parent’s history instead of being its heir [ 11 , 50 ]. Whatever the form, the elements of trauma are raw and are incorporated more than introjected.…”

“…Whatever the form, the elements of trauma are raw and are incorporated more than introjected. Their effects can be felt for several generations, similarly to radioactive residues [ 11 ], unless they are metabolized, transformed by the psyche. We also know that there is often partial transmission in bits and pieces, which the child risks reconstructing, replaying unconsciously a traumatophilic scene later on.…”

“…Giving birth to a child conceived by rape is likely to have serious consequences on the wellbeing of any woman and on her relationship to her child, regardless of her age [ 9 ]. Hence, the main goals of a cross-cultural clinic are to provide care for the mother and to protect the child from the transmission of trauma [ 10 , 11 , 12 ] as well as to explore the individual and social meaning and representation of the traumatic events that disrupted their wellbeing. One of the major risks is that a mother distraught by intense suffering may be unresponsive or unable to invest emotionally in her newborn [ 13 ] and could thus reject the child [ 14 , 15 ].…”

Transcultural skills for early childhood professionals

“…Finally, some studies show that the analysis of therapists' countertransference allows a glimpse of what the babies may perceive through the mirror of their mothers (83), especially in traumatic dissociation.…”