Understanding and Healing Emotional Trauma

Conversations with Pioneering Clinicians and Researchers

‘Emotional trauma’ is one of those terms that most of us think we understand without
spending too much time studying it. With myriad causes, it is characterised by its effects:
trauma leaves us with a deeply held implicit conviction that our survival is at risk. As a result,
our minds and bodies construct a set of unconscious defences which changes our life-paths.
Paradoxically, these defences create new, self-perpetuating layers of trauma and pain.
Daniela Sieff talks to some of the world’s leading practitioners to illuminate the origins of
emotional trauma, and the suffering created in its wake, as well as how it can be healed. The
conversations are engaging, making their insights directly available to a general readership
for the first time. The practitioners come from three different perspectives, creating a uniquely
interdisciplinary book
1. Psychotherapeutic perspectives take us inside the world of the unconscious mind
and body to illuminate how emotional trauma distorts our relationships with ourselves
and with other people (Donald Kalsched, Bruce Lloyd, Tina Stromsted, Marion
Woodman).
2. Neurobiological perspectives explore how trauma impacts the systems that mediate
our emotional lives and well-being (Ellert Nijenhuis, Allan Schore, Daniel Siegel ).
3. Evolutionary perspectives contextualise emotional trauma in terms of the legacy we have inherited from our distant
ancestors (James Chisholm, Sarah Hrdy, Randolph Nesse).
Healing emotional trauma is possible, but it is a difficult and painful process, both for those who carry trauma and for those who try
to help them. The insights that emerge from Sieff’s conversations support and facilitate that journey. This multi-layered book is an
invaluable tool for psychotherapists, psychologists and counsellors, for anyone concerned with the care of children, and for adults
who are endeavouring to find ways through their own emotional trauma.
“This is a treasure chest of diverse perspectives on trauma. We are treated to a satisfying mix of leading evolutionary thinkers,
stellar neurobiological researchers and distinguished Jungian and other psychotherapists, all offering rich and in-depth insights
on a subject that requires inter-disciplinary joined-up thinking. Sieff’s sensitive question-posing and surefooted comments and
editing make the reading easy, vibrant and always stimulating.” – Graham Music, Consultant Child and Adolescent
Psychotherapist, Tavistock and Portman Clinics in London, UK
– ENDS –
About the Author…
Daniela F. Sieff is an independent writer and scholar with a PhD in biological anthropology from Oxford University and an active
interest in the dynamics of the human psyche.
Understanding and Healing Emotional Trauma
Written by Daniela Sieff
Published: 3rd December 2014
Pb: 978-0-415-72084-7 £26.99
Hb: 978-0-415-72081-6 £100.00
Cover Image: Antony Gormley, Apart VII, 2002, Photograph Stephen White, London, © The Artist
To find out more and to read more reviews please visit:
http://www.routledgementalhealth.com/books/details/9780415720847/
NOTES TO EDITORS
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
(Outside North and South America) Sarah Wilkins, Marketing Manager, Routledge Psychology
Tel: +44 (0) 207 017 5390 | Email: Sarah.Wilkins@tandf.co.uk
(North and South America) Julia Gardiner, Marketing Manager, Routledge Psychology
Tel: +1 (917) 351-7165 | Email: julia.gardiner@taylorandfrancis.com
When referencing the book: Please include book title, Author, published by Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group) and the following
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*View inside Understanding and Healing Emotional Trauma at:
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