NCJ Number
120446
Date Published
1989
Length
269 pages
Annotation
Intended for the experienced mental health therapist who treats traumatized children, this book presents guidance and tools for treating children who have been traumatized by physical and sexual abuse, disaster, divorce, or the witnessing of violent events.
Abstract
After examining the nature of trauma, a chapter outlines the critical aspects of treatment. They include acknowledgment and exploration of the pain underlying the trauma, a serialized course of treatment, the involvement of caretakers, a direct treatment approach, positive clinical messages, and attention to all aspects of damage to the child. A chapter on traumagenic states to be considered in treatment planning covers self-blame, powerlessness, loss and betrayal, fragmentation of bodily experience, stigmatization, eroticization, destructiveness, dissociative/multiple disorder, and attachment disorder. Separate chapters subsequently address treatment for each of these states. Other chapters discuss guidelines for evaluation and treatment planning, the basic treatment process, explaining therapy to the child, social rehabilitation, the integration of traumatizing events, and techniques and exercises. A chapter also discusses crisis intervention in large-scale disasters. Appended supplementary material, 207-item bibliography, subject index.