argues that the central aspect of han is loss of identity, and defines han as "the complex of emotions that result from the traumatic loss of collective identity". han is most commonly associated with divided families: families who were separated during the korean war. according to shin, all koreans may experience han, or a "constant feeling of being less than whole", because of not having a collective identity as a result of the continued division of korea. furthermore, new generations of koreans seemingly inherit it because of growing up in a divided country. refugees refugees are often at risk of experiencing transgenerational trauma. while many refugees experience some sort of loss and trauma, war-related trauma has been documented to have longer-lasting effects on mental health and span through more generations. children are especially prone to the trauma of resettling, as their childhood may have been disrupted by migration to a new country. additionally, they often face the difficulty of learning a new language, adapting to a new environment, and navigating the school's social system in their host country. normal caregiving is disrupted by the process of fleeing from their original home, and it may continue to be disrupted by their parents' ptsd symptoms and challenges faced in their new home. furthermore, many host countries do not provide adequate mental healthcare systems to refugees, which can worsen symptoms and lead to transmission of trauma. in general, children of refugees exhibited higher overall levels of depression, ptsd, anxiety, attention deficiency, stress, and other psychological issues. vietnam war refugees since 1975, the us has accepted many refugees from vietnam, cambodia, thailand, and laos. as a result of the vietnam war, many of these southeast asian refugees are at high risk of experiencing transgenerational trauma. factors occurring both before and after immigration to america could contribute to traumatization in these groups. being forced to witness and flee violence and war were uniquely traumatic occurrences, resulting in high levels of psychological distress. upon arriving in the united states, vietnamese americans struggled to adapt to their new environment, resulting in limited social mobility, high rates of poverty within the community, and exposure to community violence. exposure to these stressors are correlated with higher trauma symptoms in first-generation vietnamese american refugees. in turn, these traumatic experiences impacted the ways that refugees raised their children, since they internalized notions of being outsiders in a new country and emphasized success in the face of their many sacrifices. this cultural and familial transmission of trauma has led to second-generation vietnamese americans to face their own forms of intergenerational trauma. these unique forms of mental health and stress are often not addressed due to socio-cultural standards of silence and refusal to seek treatment. while a majority of these groups were fleeing war and poverty, cambodian refugees were also fleeing a genocide from the khmer rouge. the atrocities of violence, starvation and torture were common themes experienced by these refugees. many cambodian refugee families refused to talk about their trauma which created an isolating environment for the child. this led to a transmission of trauma and through the continuing pattern of silence and refusal to acknowledge an issue or seek treatment. there has also been data showing that the children of survivors from regions with higher rates of violence and mortality displayed stronger overall symptoms. the parenting style of caregivers may also contribute to the rate of impact among children of khmer rouge survivors. a 2013 study found that among khmer rouge survivors with ptsd who engage in role-reversal parenting, a form of parenting where the parent looks to the child for emotional support, there may be higher rates of anxiety and depression in the children. indigenous australians many aboriginal australian and torres strait islander children were forcibly removed from their parents and placed in aboriginal reserves and missions in the late 19th and first half of the 20th century. some were subsequently placed with white families, and this practice continued after people were no longer forcibly removed to reserves. these people became known as the stolen generations, and successive generations suffer from intergenerational trauma as a result of this as well as other issues related to the colonisation of australia, such as dispossession of land, loss of language, etc. native/indigenous peoples of the americas settler-colonization encompasses a wide range of practices: war, displacement, forced labor, removal of children, relocation, destruction, massacre, genocide, slavery, unintentional and intentional spread of deadly diseases, banning of indigenous language, regulation of marriage, assimilation, eradication of culture, social and spiritual practices. for more than 400 years european colonization has violently subjugated the indigenous peoples of the americas through ethnic cleansing, forced assimilation, and acculturation. the genocide perpetrated by the u.s. government through indian reservations, and harmful policies excluding and oppressing natives evoked similar responses to trauma as the descendants of holocaust survivors. in a similar way we find transgenerational trauma in holocaust survivors we find the same patterns and effects in indigenous populations and their children and grandchildren. settler colonization has been recognized as a contributing factor to the ill health of indigenous populations around the world. ill health is linked to epigenetic mechanisms. due to the effects of settler colonialism, oppression, racism, and other aversive events, native americans disproportionately experience adverse childhood experiences as well as health disparities, including high rates of posttraumatic stress, depression, substance abuse, diabetes, and other psychiatric disorders. there is evidence that these adverse childhood experiences have been linked to methylation changes in genes that regulate the stress response (hpa axis). these molecular changes contribute to health disparities. the mechanisms and causality of historical trauma are heterogeneous and complex. social, cultural, economic, and genetic mechanisms are intertwined in a complex manner. this results in significant hurdles in elucidating the mechanisms and relative magnitude of causal effectors. however, epigenetic mechanisms, via modification of gene expression, are known to play a role. military personnel and their families transgenerational trauma is also commonly known as secondary trauma due to the transmission of symptoms that can take place between individuals in close proximity (i.e., children, spouses/partners, and other family members). transgenerational trauma affects everyone, including those in the military and their families. patterns of transgenerational trauma can be recognized through the use of a genogram, a family tree that provides a visual representation of hereditary patterns. specifically, a trauma-focused genogram can be used with those who suffer from acute stress disorder (asd) and posttraumatic stress disorder (ptsd). traumatic family patterns could include things such as sexual abuse, domestic violence, and even things such as natural disasters. this type of genogram is inclusive to military personnel in that it takes into consideration the servicemembers' experiences. some of these considerations include taking into account how long the servicemember served, what their role was, if they were a prisoner of war and if they witnessed the death or injury of others. however, not all military personnel pass down intergenerational trauma. military personnel who have seen or participated in abusive acts of violence have been found to transmit the trauma they experienced to their children. children of these veterans have been found to suffer from behavioral disturbances such as aggression, hyperactivity, and delinquency. children whose parent was diagnosed with ptsd had a higher rate of anxiety as well as aggression when compared to children of civilians or non-veterans. these children can also have increased depressive symptoms and other ptsd symptoms. however, it has been found that spouses and partners of military veterans can help to buffer the effects of the transmission of trauma symptomology. this type of intergenerational trauma can be experienced and transmitted not only to children of veterans but also to their spouses/partners, ultimately affecting the whole family unit. veterans who experienced ptsd or wartime combat stress reaction (csr) had spouses/partners who experienced increased psychiatric symptoms. these symptoms included feelings of loneliness and having impaired relationships within the family unit and marriage. much like veterans who suffer from ptsd, their spouses/partners can suffer from much of the same symptoms as well. spouses/partners of military veterans can experience the avoidance of thoughts, behaviors, and emotions. spouses/partners may also experience intrusions such as unwanted cognitions and images that may remind them of the negative experiences of their spouse/partner. common symptoms of emotional distress that spouses may experience are depression and anxiety. these symptoms are intergenerational trauma symptoms that are being passed down from the veteran to the spouse. intergenerational trauma can sometimes go unrecognized by the spouse/partner suffering from the transmission of trauma. it sometimes can be difficult for those suffering from intergenerational trauma to recognize that they are emotionally affected, and thus difficult for these individuals to find treatment. resources such as a genogram can be an excellent way in which an individual can recognize the trauma that has been passed down to them. when it comes to transgenerational trauma, it can be transmitted quite quickly and can affect many people in which the servicemember has encountered. this also includes mental health workers and primary care physicians with whom the servicemember may be working. mental health workers and primary care physicians asked to take a survey entitled “secondary traumatic stress scale” reported that they had trouble sleeping, feeling emotionally numb, and having intrusive thoughts about clients. treatment mental health workers who are considering working with veterans who suffer from ptsd and other traumatic experiences should have experience working with veterans and servicemembers. cultural sensitivity is another aspect to consider when working with this population. understanding the military culture and lifestyle is informative when developing the therapeutic relationship and treatment plans. another cultural consideration is the family component. this can include the servicemember’s actual family or their chosen family. the military can bring on a lot of stress when it comes to the servicemember and his family. these include, moving to different places on short notice, deployment plans constantly changing, difficulty transitioning when coming back from deployment, and many other stressors. therefore, it is crucial that a mental health worker truly understands military life. in the case of ptsd, in order to prevent/minimize intergenerational trauma, it is important that the family also seek mental health services. a spouse/partner who is receiving mental health services and is at a better place in their life because of these interventions can help the family unit overall. in a military family, the roles are constantly changing due to the servicemember being on deployment and other factors. the family, as a unit, needs to adjust to the servicemember coming into and out of their lives. with a healthy family unit, the spouse/partner becomes a predicting factor of soldier retention and a functioning family unit. resiliency can also play a role in this dynamic. a few things can contribute to resiliency in a family unit. these include flexibility/organizational style, the family’s belief system, and the communication process. these are important things to look for and identify as they can help in the treatment of intergenerational trauma. making the family unit strong can help to empower each individual member of the family, and together they can overcome intergenerational trauma within the family. understanding military culture can help aid families through the process of overcoming intergenerational trauma. in addition to the genograms, solution-focused brief therapy (sfbt) has been found to be successful with military families. it uses an emphasis on the client’s successes and creating small steps that are attainable for the client. this type of therapy uses the client’s language and experience to address things systematically within the family. sfbt, together with the genograms, can be informative to both the client and clinician and can help to inform the future of practice. as the genograms can help to give a clear picture as to what the trauma patterns are in the family, sfbt can help to change these patterns and provide the family with a healthier way of living and functioning. this specific type of therapy can help to educate the client and their family as to what exactly has been passed down from previous generations. it can also inform the family as to what is now beginning to be transmitted and can help to change the trajectory in the future and change the family dynamic principles. transmission transmission during pregnancy main articles: transgenerational stress inheritance and epigenetics of anxiety and stress–related disorders stress can