The Integrated Neuropsychobiology of Trauma Resolution: Memory Reconsolidation, the Endogenous Psychedelic System, and Dissociative Biomarkers

Structured Abstract

• Background: The Addiction as Dissociation Model (ADM) posits that addiction is a conditioned bond to a pathological dissociative state, initiated by trauma for the purpose of survival and pain regulation.¹ This model reframes trauma pathology—including functional neurological symptoms (e.g., Absence Seizures, Fading Memory Disorder)—as involuntary, survival-driven dissociation. Traditional neuroscience, while identifying key systems (opioid, cannabinoid), has struggled to unify them into a cohesive framework for healing and addiction.
• Hypothesis: Trauma-related dissociation is maintained by the synergistic and interdependent actions of the Endogenous Opioid System (EOS), which enforces dependence (addiction through numbing), and the Endocannabinoid System (ECS), which mediates emotional regulation and fear extinction (healing). The Endogenous Psychedelic System (EPS), augmented by 5-HT2A agonism, provides the neuroplastic window necessary for Memory Reconsolidation (MR)—the core therapeutic mechanism that resolves this dissociative bond. Furthermore, dynamic physiological markers, specifically pupillary responses, serve as measurable, biological indicators of involuntary dissociative switches and trauma-induced arousal, providing objective evidence for the embodied unconscious.
• Conclusions: Addiction, dissociation, and neuroinflammation are transdiagnostic manifestations of chronic, unresolved trauma encoded in the body. The convergence of pharmacological agents (Naltrexone) and physiological markers (pupillary dynamics) confirms a unified, interdependent biological axis for this pathology. This framework mandates a shift toward trauma-affirmative treatments that utilize MR and physiological monitoring to facilitate the body’s innate, love-based drive for healing.

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1. Introduction: The Transdiagnostic Nature of Trauma and Dissociation

The core principle of the Wounded Healers Institute (WHI) is that the physical body is the psychological unconscious, and that symptoms of chronic illness, obesity, and functional neurological deficits are communications of unresolved, somatically stored traumatic memory.¹ The Addiction as Dissociation Model (ADM) operationalizes this by defining addiction as the relationship created between unresolved trauma and the continued progression of dissociative responses—a relentless, conditioned pursuit of a state perceived as safety or relief.¹

This paper integrates recent neurobiological findings—particularly concerning Memory Reconsolidation (MR) and the Endogenous Psychedelic System (EPS)—to detail the interdependent neurophysiology of trauma, addiction, and healing. We explore how the body uses its endogenous pain, reward, and regulation systems (EOS and ECS) to manage trauma, how Naltrexone provides pharmacological proof of this transdiagnostic axis, and how modern physiological monitoring can validate the involuntary nature of dissociative switches.

2. The Neurophysiology and Neuropsychobiology of Memory

Memory encoding under traumatic stress bypasses the standard narrative processing (explicit memory) and is stored implicitly in emotional and somatic systems, including the amygdala and brainstem, which drive instinctual responses.¹ The healing of these implicit, fear-based memories requires Memory Reconsolidation (MR)—the process of unlocking the memory synapse, introducing new, non-fearful information (safety), and relocking the memory in a neutralized form.¹

2.1. The Interdependent Axis of Trauma and Addiction

The body’s immediate response to overwhelming trauma utilizes two primary endogenous systems, which establish the biological basis for the ADM:

1. The Trauma-Opioid Addiction Axis (The Numbing Bond): Trauma and chronic stress activate the Endogenous Opioid System (EOS), which releases opioid peptides to induce peritraumatic analgesia (numbing and emotional blunting). This immediate relief is biologically reinforcing, creating a conditioned bond to the dissociative state. Addiction is defined as the pathological dependence on this chemically induced survival state. New research confirms that exposure to opioids following traumatic injury increases the risk of persistent opioid use and use disorder. This pathology is linked to epigenetic modifications, including changes in microRNA (miRNA) expression that modulate mu-opioid receptor levels, highlighting the chronic, deep-seated neurobiological changes that underpin compulsive use and reenactment.
2. The ECS and Emotional Numbing (The Healing Regulator): The Endocannabinoid System (ECS), which includes cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R), regulates memory consolidation, stress response, and emotional control, and is strongly implicated in trauma pathology. The ECS is linked to physical and psychological rest and repair.¹ Recent findings show that the ECS is specifically connected to emotional numbing symptoms in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). While numbing (via opioids) is a temporary defense, the ECS mediates the deeper regulatory process, offering a pathway toward therapeutic fear extinction and true healing, confirming that cannabis, whether endogenous or exogenous, can be healing via a highly regulated system.

2.2. The Endogenous Psychedelic System (EPS) and Memory Reconsolidation

The Endogenous Psychedelic System (EPS), encompassing endogenous DMT and related molecules, is hypothesized to provide the neuroplastic window required for MR.¹ Psychedelics (e.g., Psilocybin, LSD, DMT) are structurally analogous to serotonin and function primarily as agonists at the 5-HT2A receptor.

• Neuroplastic Mechanism: Agonism at the 5-HT2A receptor facilitates neuroplasticity by modulating brain networks, notably by transiently reducing activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN).
• Therapeutic Action: This “dissolution of the self” temporarily collapses the rigid, fear-based self-model—the Cartesian fiction—that maintains the trauma narrative, creating the optimal neuroplastic window for new learning. Crucially, this action enables the therapeutic process of MR, allowing the emotional component of the traumatic or addictive memory to be processed and integrated into a resolved state. MDMA, which promotes oxytocin and neuroplasticity, further supports this link by significantly reducing PTSD symptoms, confirming that the enhancement of neuroplasticity is central to trauma resolution.

3. The Transdiagnostic Pharmacology and Dissociative Biomarkers

The unified nature of the trauma-dissociation-addiction axis is confirmed by both pharmacological and physiological evidence.

3.1. Naltrexone as the Transdiagnostic Proof

The opiate antagonist Naltrexone serves as powerful pharmacological proof of the transdiagnostic nature of this pathology. Its effectiveness extends beyond substance use disorders (alcoholism, cocaine, gambling) to treat clinical dissociation, self-harm, and other trauma-related conditions.¹

• Standard Dose: High-dose Naltrexone (50–100 mg) acts as a full opioid antagonist, blocking receptor activity associated with compulsive use and pathological numbing.¹
• Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN): Low-dose Naltrexone (2–6 mg) has distinct transdiagnostic effects. Research demonstrates that LDN effectively treats trauma-related and dissociative disorders, with patients reporting improved reality assessment, bodily perception, and self-regulation. This mechanism is attributed to LDN’s ability to modulate neuroinflammation and promote the transient upregulation of endogenous opioids—addressing both the physical and emotional distress at the root of the dissociative pathology.¹ LDN’s efficacy in treating pain, fibromyalgia, and chronic illness validates the WHI model that dissociation and chronic physical pain are inseparable.

3.2. Pupillary Dynamics as Biomarkers of Dissociation

If dissociation is an involuntary, physiological survival response, it must be objectively measurable. Recent research confirms that ocular measures, such as pupil diameter (PD), provide a non-invasive, objective marker of this process.

• Physiological Marker: Pupil dilation reflects increased activity in the sympathetic nervous system (arousal/fight-or-flight), which is heightened in individuals with PTSD.
• Dissociative Switching: Studies show that PD and other ocular dynamics dissociate distinct perceptual states during cognitive tasks, linking these measures to heightened arousal and attention allocation. This suggests that dilated pupils or subtle changes in ocular dynamics may serve as a biological marker for dissociative switches, signs of an induced state of living dissociated, or markers of an imminent dissociative reenactment (e.g., the involuntary overriding of the conscious self by the unconscious survival system). Observing these markers provides objective confirmation of the body’s unconscious defense mechanism in action.

4. Conclusions and Recommendations

The integration of the ADM with recent neurobiological findings confirms that trauma, addiction, and chronic illness are unified by a single psychoneurobiological axis. The body’s systems—EOS, ECS, and EPS—are interdependent, constantly seeking homeostasis, and their dysregulation is the essence of dissociative pathology.

4.1. Conclusions

1. Trauma is Addicting to the Body: The EOS/ECS complex creates a self-reinforcing, conditioned bond to dissociation (the “numbing bond”) as a survival strategy, which becomes addiction when pathological and chronic.
2. Dissociation is Measurable: Involuntary dissociative switches and trauma-induced arousal can be objectively identified through pupillary dynamics, providing an essential, non-invasive biomarker for the embodied unconscious in clinical settings.
3. Healing is Neuroplasticity: The EPS, augmented by serotonergic agonism, facilitates the necessary neuroplasticity (MR) to neutralize the emotional charge of the trauma memory, thereby resolving the addictive/dissociative bond at its source.

4.2. Recommendations

1. Transdiagnostic Treatment Integration: Adopt treatment models, such as the PWH, that utilize transdiagnostic agents like Naltrexone to address both the neuroinflammation and opioid-mediated pathology underlying chronic dissociation.
2. Memory Reconsolidation as Primary Goal: Prioritize therapeutic modalities (e.g., psychedelic-assisted therapy, EMDR, Brainspotting) that leverage the neuroplastic window to directly resolve trauma and addiction memories, recognizing that behavioral change is a secondary outcome of memory resolution.
3. Physiological Monitoring in Dissociation-Affirmative Care: Clinical practice should incorporate non-invasive physiological measures (e.g., ocular dynamics, heart rate variability) to gain objective insight into the client’s involuntary dissociative states, moving beyond self-report to affirm the reality of the embodied unconscious.

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References

O’Brien, A. (2023a). Addiction as Trauma-Related Dissociation: A Phenomenological Investigation of the Addictive State. International University of Graduate Studies. (Dissertation). Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/courses/addiction-as-dissociation-model-course/

O’Brien, A. (2023b). Memory Reconsolidation in Psychedelics Therapy. In Path of the Wounded Healer: A Dissociative-Focused Phase Model for Normative and Pathological States of Consciousness: Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/courses/addiction-as-dissociation-model-course/

O’Brien, A. (2023c). Path of the Wounded Healer: A Dissociative-Focused Phase Model for Normative and Pathological States of Consciousness: Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/

O’Brien, A. (2024a). Healer and Healing: The re-education of the healer and healing professions as an advocation. Re-educational and Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/

O’Brien, A. (2024e). Path of the Wounded Healers for Thrivers: Perfectionism, Altruism, and Ambition Addictions; Re-education and training manual for Abusers, Activists, Batterers, Bullies, Enablers, Killers, Narcissists, Offenders, Parents, Perpetrators, and Warriors. Re-Education and Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/

O’Brien, A. (2025). American Made Addiction Recovery: a healer’s journey through professional recovery. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/

*This is for informational and educational purposes only. For medical advice or diagnosis, consult a professional.