Families and Individuals Living with Trauma: A Guide for Therapists, Relatives, and Friends

215 Pages·2021·4.702 MB·English

by  Jeremy Woodcock

PALGRAVE TEXTS IN COUNSELLING AND PSYCHOTHERAPY
Series Editors:Arlene Vetere · Rudi Dallos
Families and
Individuals Living
with Trauma
A Guide for Therapists,
Relatives, and Friends
Jeremy Woodcock
Palgrave Texts in Counselling and Psychotherapy
Series Editors
Arlene Vetere, Family Therapy and Systemic Practice, VID
Specialized University, Oslo, Norway
Rudi Dallos, Clinical Psychology, Plymouth University,
Plymouth, UK
This series introduces readers to the theory and practice of counselling
and psychotherapy across a wide range of topical issues. Ideal for both
trainees and practitioners, the books will appeal to anyone wishing to
usecounsellingandpsychotherapeuticskillsandwillbeparticularlyrele-
vant to workers in health, education, social work and related settings.
The books in this series emphasise an integrative orientation weaving
together a variety of models including, psychodynamic, attachment,
trauma, narrative and systemic ideas.The books are written in an acces-
sibleandreadablestylewithafocusonpractice.Eachtextofferstheoret-
ical background and guidance for practice, with creative use of clinical
examples.
Arlene Vetere, Professor of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice at
VID Specialized University, Oslo, Norway.
RudiDallos,EmeritusProfessor,Dept.ofClinicalPsychology,Univer-
sity of Plymouth, UK.
More information about this series at
https://link.springer.com/bookseries/16540
Jeremy Woodcock
Families
and Individuals
Living with Trauma
A Guide for Therapists, Relatives, and
Friends
JeremyWoodcock
Nailsworth, UK
ISSN 2662-9127 ISSN 2662-9135 (electronic)
PalgraveTexts in Counselling and Psychotherapy
ISBN 978-3-030-79038-7 ISBN 978-3-030-79039-4 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79039-4
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Acknowledgments
This book has emerged out of years of many years of work at The
Medical Foundation, now Freedom from Torture, in London and I
am deeply indebted to my many colleagues there for discussions, argu-
ments, warm friendship, opportunities for co-work, and team experi-
ence. The people who come to mind are Abood Tuma, Alex Sklan,
Anne-Marie Fox, Annie Ellison, Barbara Dearnley, Caroline Gorst-
Unsworth, Dick Blackwell, Derek Summerfield, Funda Kansu, Gill
Hinshelwood, Gillian Ballance, Helen Bamber, Irene Aitman, Jane
Shackman, Jeanette Campbell-Johnston, John Schlapobersky, Karen
Callaghan, Mesfin Demissie, Naomi Richman, Nagul Subramaniam,
Nimisha Patel, Perico Rodrigues, Richard McKane, Sally Verity-Smith,
SedaSengun,SheilaMelzak,SusanLevyandZohrehRahimi.Inaddition
I wish to thank my teachers, supervisors, and psychotherapy colleagues
in London and the South West and beyond including Arul Maria
Arokiasamy, Ann Miller, Annette Mendelsohn, Barry Mason, Biddy
Arnott,mymanycolleaguesinSwedenatKrisochtraumaenheten,andat
Gloucestershire Action for Refugees and Asylum Seekers, David Jones,
David Pocock, Elsa Jones, Jane Cutler, John Byng-Hall, Judith Lask,
v
vi Acknowledgments
Judy Ryde, Kedar Dwivedi, Lennox Thomas, Marita Eastmond, Nigel
Wellings, Mark Rivett, Philip Darley, Sally Box, Tim Hockridge and
Tony Navin. Something of work with all these colleagues has rubbed
off on me in ways that have been deepening, enjoyable, and challenging
in equal measure. Finally to Arlene Vetere for her patience and gentle
guidance, to Rudi Dallos for being a critical friend, and to the skill of
colleagues at Palgrave in bringing this book to birth.
About This Book
Thisbookisabookforyouifyouareasurvivoroftrauma,orifsomeone
youlove,afamilymember,orfriendhassurvivedaserioustrauma.Itsets
outtoexplaintraumaanddescribespathwaysthroughandouttheother
side. For survivors it shows how you can recover, and for family and
friends it shows how to support and help. For therapists working with
individualsandfamiliesitsetsouttobeanessentialtext,describinghow
traumaaffectsus,anditrevealsindetailwhatworkstherapeutically,and
how to apply these ideas in practice.
vii
Contents
1 Introduction 1
References 5
2 Beginnings 7
Bodily Signs and Symptoms 9
Mental Signs and Symptoms 9
Environment Signs and Symptoms 9
Making a Story ofTrauma 9
The Four Dimensions of theTrauma Story 11
Trust 12
Making Sense of Signs and Symptoms 13
Signs of Being More Easily Aroused 13
AvoidingThings to Do with theTrauma and Being Less
Involved in Life 13
Having a SenseThat the Extreme Event Is Ever Present 14
OftenTrauma Comes Out Sideways 15
TheWish to Remember and the Need to Forget 15
A Systemic Scaffolding 16
Beginning at the Beginning 18
ix
x Contents
Capacity for Reflection 18
Supporting Someone Who Doesn’t WantTherapeutic
Help 19
Felt Experience 20
Felt Shift 21
Finding the Middle Ground 23
WhatWe Can Do as Family and Friends 25
References 26
3 Body, Brain andTrauma 27
BasicTrust 28
The Limbic System: Our Fight and Flight and Freeze
Protector 30
The Biology of the Limbic System 32
What Our Body CanTeach Us 33
Amygdala 33
Hypothalamus 34
Hippocampus 35
Cingulate Gyrus 37
The Low Road and the High Road 39
Mirror Neurones 41
HowTrauma Narrows Attention and Breathing Opens
It Up 43
TheVagus Nerve 44
BodyWork 45
WhatWe Can Do as Family and Friends 45
References 46
4 Creating aWelcome 47
Containment andValidation 50
Bordered Experience and the Exiled Self 51
Gaze Aversion 52
WhatWe Can Do as Family and Friends 54
References 55