The PTSD And Memory handout outlines the brain regions typically associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is ideal for early psychoeducation or therapy rationale in memory-focused trauma treatments.
Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
An editable Microsoft PowerPoint version of the resource.
This resource is a concise, one-page psychoeducational guide explaining how trauma can affect memory and brain function. It focuses on two key regions often discussed in PTSD: the amygdala and the hippocampus. These are described using clear, metaphor-based language and visual cues to support client understanding.
The resource illustrates how the amygdala acts as a threat detector and how the hippocampus — responsible for storing memories with time and place — can become disrupted during extreme stress. The content supports conversations about why traumatic memories may feel intrusive, confusing, or as though they are happening in the present.
This tool is suitable for early psychoeducation, especially when helping clients make sense of memory processing techniques such as EMDR or trauma-focused CBT.
Understanding how trauma affects memory can:
Understanding why traumatic memories feel intrusive or ‘present’.
Clarifying why some memories lack time/place tags.
Use during psychoeducation to explain key brain areas linked to PTSD.
Invite clients to relate the concepts to their own experiences of PTSD.
Use before EMDR or trauma-focused CBT to provide a therapy rationale.
This resource draws on neuroscience-informed models of PTSD that highlight alterations in the brain’s memory and threat-detection systems. Research has shown that in PTSD, the amygdala tends to become overactive — responding strongly to perceived threat, even when it originates from internal cues like thoughts or memories.
The hippocampus, which typically tags memories with time and place, may become impaired under stress. This can lead to memories being stored without proper context, contributing to the sensation that past events are happening in the present — often described as "re-experiencing."
The material aligns with dual representation theories of PTSD (Brewin et al., 1996) and supports the rationale for therapeutic approaches that focus on integrating traumatic memories.
Clinicians can use this information thoughtfully to support memory-focused interventions, reinforcing the rationale for therapeutic approaches that aim to integrate traumatic memories and regulate neurobiological responses to threat.
