According to the Center for Disease Control, one in three girls and one in five boys are sexually abused by an adult at some point in childhood. Child abuse is a vicious cycle. Abuse of a child is a deterrent to his or her ability to succeed in life. An example of this is adults who were abused as children who are twice as likely to become abusers themselves. Most people in prisons were abused as children. It's no wonder why childhood trauma has such a horrific impact on a person's personality and brain. Trauma is a serious consideration in special education. When a child is exposed to a traumatic event, such as abuse, neglect, or death, it can have a lifelong effect on their mental health. While there are numerous effects following childhood trauma, brain neurotransmitter chemistry is most affected. First of all, a person may wonder what neurotransmitters are. A perfect example is a lock and key. Neurotransmitters are keys and each activates different receptors (locks). Today it is known that there are sixty chemicals that play a role in the transfer of information through the brain and body, each of which influences thinking, feelings and behavior differently. During childhood is the time when a person is most impressionable. Therefore, when a child has suffered physical, sexual or emotional abuse, these cases play an important role on the connections with his brain and how that person will react to a certain situation. If a child were abused frequently, his or her brain would be continually on high-stress alert. According to The Healing Center-On Line, studies on the physiological effects of trauma have found profound and substantial effects within multiple interconnected neurobiological systems. damaged connections in their brain. After the trauma the person may be haunted by nightmares or constantly disturbed by the inability to fully remember the incident, due to the damaged hippocampus. Trauma is a more overwhelming event than a person would normally expect to encounter. Therefore the individual would suffer more than a few effects including everlasting change such as thought process, inability to learn properly, difficulty in trusting people, difficulty in socializing and basically inability to live one's life to the fullest without distractions. If anyone knows of a child in danger of abuse they should call 1800-4-A-child. The longer the child remains traumatized, the greater the effects on his or her brain chemistry and the less likely he or she will be to overcome the damage and live a normal life...