Book Review: Trauma & the Struggle to Open Up

Our relationships can be our greatest source of pain, and yet without relationships, we cannot heal from pain. For some people, the pain is too overwhelming and avoidance seems the only option. Others may try to be open about their experiences and find themselves feeling too exposed, too vulnerable, and worse off than before. In either case, healing from trauma requires that we find and allow ourselves to experience a healing relationship. In his new book, Trauma and the Struggle to Open Up: From Avoidance to Recovery and Growth, Robert T. Muller, who is also the author of Trauma and the Avoidant Client, takes us inside the therapeutic relationship to show just how to reestablish trust when it has been lost, offer hope where it has been extinct, and, in some cases, help the client ultimately find growth and healing in the aftermath of trauma. In trauma, Muller tells us, an important trust has been broken. “There are interpersonal losses or violations. Often, there’s betrayal. And the effects are felt for years,” he writes. How the therapist receives the client, and the relationship that transpires — often affecting both parties — lays the groundwork for how the client’s trauma is handled. Ideally, a client can tell their story, reveal the forbidden details and feelings within, and allow others to share the burden and ease the distress. Yet when clients reveal too quickly, it can often make them feel worse. Muller writes, “Opening up too quickly, before f...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Book Reviews Disorders General Memory and Perception Personal Stories Psychology Psychotherapy PTSD Trauma Treatment books on trauma trauma book Source Type: news