The Dr. Josh Axe Show

Your Childhood Trauma Is Causing Your Autoimmune Disease | Erica Komisar | Dr. Josh Axe

Apr 30, 2026
Guest
Erica Komisar
Erica Komisar, psychoanalyst and author who studies attachment and parenthood, explains why the first three years shape lifelong health. She explores how early stress affects the brain’s stress switches and the body. Topics include chronic neglect versus single traumas, how attachment forms, and why presence, community, and long-term repair matter for resilience.
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INSIGHT

Chronic Childhood Stress Shapes Long Term Health

  • Early emotional trauma predisposes people to chronic physical illness by dysregulating stress systems.
  • Erica Komisar explains chronic 'little t' trauma (neglect, ongoing conflict) more often harms long-term health than single 'big T' events.
ANECDOTE

Patient's Autoimmune Flare Followed Daughter's Departure

  • Josh Axe recalled a patient whose autoimmune symptoms began after emotional loss when her daughter moved away to college.
  • The timing suggested emotional separation, not diet or exercise change, preceded the illness onset.
INSIGHT

Depression Is Past Loss Anxiety Is Future Loss

  • Depression is preoccupation with past losses; anxiety is preoccupation with possible future losses.
  • Komisar ties both to loss and shows how unresolved grief amplifies physical illness risk.
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