For two years, the social and emotional costs of school closures, business interruptions, news of death and illness, and vacillating guidance from officials has taken a toll on all of us. With mask mandates and other COVID protocols set to expire around the country, will we heave a collective sigh of relief and instantly return to normal? Or will we suffer the aftershocks of pandemic trauma for years to come? “Whether a harrowing event or a series of stressful moments that culminate over time, trauma can echo and etch itself into our brain as we remember it throughout our lives,” says Tracey Shors, a Distinguished Professor in Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience in the Department of Psychology at Rutgers-New Brunswick’s School of Arts and Sciences. To read the full story.