Not All Trauma Affects Us the Same Way: What September 2026's PTSD Genetics Research Means for Your Healing

When two people experience a similar traumatic event, their responses may look very different. One person may develop nightmares, panic, avoidance, or emotional numbness. Another may feel shaken for a time but gradually regain a sense of safety. Someone else may not notice the impact until months or years later.

That difference does not mean one person is stronger, more resilient, or “handling it better.” Trauma affects each nervous system, body, and life story differently.

New research reported on September 17, 2026, is helping explain why. A large King’s College London-linked study found that genetic risk for post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, can vary depending on the type of trauma a person experienced. The strongest gene–trauma interactions appeared in relation to childhood trauma, particularly childhood emotional neglect.

As a therapist, I see this research as another reminder that healing should never be treated as one-size-fits-all. Your response to trauma is not a character flaw. It is a human response shaped by biology, experience, relationships, and the support available to you.

What the New PTSD Genetics Research Found

The study, published in the European Journal of Psychotraumatology, examined genetic and mental health information from more than 144,000 people. Researchers compared different types of potentially traumatic experiences, including childhood abuse, childhood neglect, accidents, serious illness, violence, sexual assault, war exposure, and witnessing death.

Rather than treating all trauma as one category, the researchers asked a more specific question:

Does genetic vulnerability to PTSD interact differently with different kinds of trauma?

The findings suggest that it does.

Childhood trauma generally showed stronger associations with PTSD symptoms and stronger gene–trauma interactions than trauma that first occurred during adulthood. Childhood abuse had the strongest overall association with PTSD symptoms. However, childhood neglect: especially emotional neglect: showed a particularly strong connection with genetic factors.

One gene highlighted in the research was FAM120A, which is involved in biological processes related to the brain’s response to fear and stress. Its interaction with childhood emotional neglect appeared stronger than its interaction with other trauma types studied.

These findings do not mean that one gene “causes” PTSD. They also do not mean that a genetic test can predict your future. The research shows something more nuanced: biology may influence how sensitive a person is to certain experiences, while the experience itself, later relationships, environment, and treatment all continue to matter.

You can read the King’s College London research listing or the News-Medical coverage of the study.

Why the Same Event Can Affect People Differently

I often explain trauma responses using the idea of a personal stress-response system. Every person brings a different combination of biology and life experience to a difficult event.

Your response may be influenced by:

• Your genetic makeup and nervous system sensitivity

• The age at which the trauma occurred

• Whether the experience was isolated or repeated

• Whether you had safe adults or supportive relationships

• Your physical health, sleep, and stress levels

• Previous experiences of loss, instability, or fear

• Cultural expectations about emotions and help-seeking

• Whether you had access to protection, validation, and care afterward

Childhood neglect can be especially complex because it may involve what did not happen: comfort, attention, protection, encouragement, or emotional connection. A child may not have the words to understand that their needs were unmet. Instead, they may internalize beliefs such as, “My feelings do not matter,” or “I have to handle everything alone.”

None of this means a person is permanently damaged. It means their mind and body adapted to the conditions they were given.

A trauma response is often an attempt to protect you. Hypervigilance may have helped you notice danger. Emotional numbness may have helped you get through overwhelming experiences. Avoidance may have helped you feel temporarily safer.

In the present, those same protective responses can become exhausting or disruptive. Therapy can help you understand them with compassion and gradually build new ways of responding.

Genetics Are Not Destiny

The phrase “genetic risk” can sound frightening, especially if you have lived through childhood neglect, abuse, or another traumatic experience. I want to be clear: genetic vulnerability is not a life sentence.

Genes are not switches that determine exactly what will happen. They are part of a larger system that interacts with your environment. Supportive relationships, physical safety, meaningful connection, coping skills, and effective therapy can all influence how trauma affects you over time.

The brain and nervous system are capable of change. This capacity is sometimes described as neuroplasticity: the ability to develop new patterns through experience and practice. Healing may not erase what happened, but it can help you feel less controlled by the past.

This is also why I do not view a diagnosis as a definition of who you are. A PTSD diagnosis describes a set of symptoms and experiences. It does not describe your worth, your potential, or your capacity to grow.

You are not weak because your body learned to stay alert. You are not failing because healing takes time. You are not responsible for the conditions that shaped your early life.

Why Personalized, Trauma-Informed Care Matters

The new research supports an approach I value deeply: trauma-informed, individualized care.

Trauma-informed therapy begins with safety, choice, collaboration, and respect. I do not assume that every person needs to tell their story in the same way or at the same pace. Some clients want to talk through memories. Others need to begin with sleep, grounding, emotional regulation, relationships, or daily functioning.

Together, we can explore:

• What your symptoms may be communicating

• How your body responds to reminders of danger

• Which situations feel unsafe or overwhelming

• What strengths helped you survive difficult experiences

• What kind of support feels manageable right now

• Which goals would make the greatest difference in your life

Depending on your needs and preferences, therapy may include EMDR, somatic approaches, cognitive and behavioral strategies, or gentle trauma therapy. These approaches can help you process distressing experiences, reconnect with your body, reduce avoidance, and develop a stronger sense of control.

I will not push you to move faster than your nervous system can tolerate. Healing is a collaborative process. My role is to support you, offer evidence-based tools, and help create a safe, supportive, and respectful space where you can make informed choices.

You Do Not Have to Explain Everything Perfectly

Many people delay therapy because they worry they will not know where to start. You do not need a complete timeline, a formal diagnosis, or the “right” words before reaching out.

You might simply say:

• “I feel on edge all the time.”

• “I know something from childhood still affects me.”

• “I shut down when people get close.”

• “I cannot stop replaying what happened.”

• “I want to understand why I react this way.”

That is enough for a beginning.

At Talk to Heal Counseling Center, I work to make therapy more accessible and approachable. We provide psychotherapy in many different languages and accept a wide range of insurance plans, including UHC, Aetna, Cigna, and more. If you are unsure whether your plan is accepted or what type of support may fit, a conversation can help clarify your options.

You can also meet our therapy team and learn more about the clinicians available to support you.

Take a Gentle Next Step

The September 2026 research gives us a more detailed understanding of PTSD: trauma is not a single experience, genetic risk is not uniform, and people can respond differently for reasons that are biological, emotional, relational, and deeply personal.

Most importantly, the findings do not take hope away. They reinforce why compassionate, personalized care matters.

If trauma continues to affect your sleep, relationships, emotions, body, or sense of safety, you deserve support. Book Now through our free 15-minute consultation, or call 404-369-3838 to get in touch.

Care is provided only in the State of Georgia. You do not have to navigate the next step alone.