Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread

Description

A powerful guide to transcending childhood trauma—from the people who’ve done it It’s like a dark thread woven through a piece of cloth: You can’t pull it out without unraveling the whole thing. And it shows up here and there among all the other threads. Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread weaves together 90 stories of survival to create a silver lining of hope... Read more

A powerful guide to transcending childhood trauma—from the people who’ve done it

It’s like a dark thread woven through a piece of cloth: You can’t pull it out without unraveling the whole thing. And it shows up here and there among all the other threads.

Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread weaves together 90 stories of survival to create a silver lining of hope for those struggling to heal from childhood trauma. This unique book documents the endless challenges facing children and adults who have been subjected to physical, emotional, and psychological abuse, and examines the proactive coping strategies that have made their recoveries a success. Each poignant story reveals an amazing capacity for growth and an ability to adapt emotionally that offers a positive spirit to others suffering abuse.

Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread examines how 90 people who have experienced childhood trauma and abuse have been able to rise above the suffering to not only endure, but prevail. In their own words, trauma survivors discuss what happened to them as children and the process they went through to become healthy, happy adults. Their stories are heartfelt, heartbreaking, and sometimes surprising in the variety of traumatic experiences, the intensity of the stress, and the number of people who were forced to deal with multiple issues in childhood, including sexual and physical abuse, alcoholism, neglect, and violence. The stories told in Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread explore:

when the trauma began
common feelings associated with trauma
therapy and support groups
getting married
escaping abuse
the role of religion and spirituality
significant people who provided help
types of homes where abuse occurred
the positive effects of surviving trauma
school life
patterns of survival
and much more

Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood: The Dark Thread also includes a list of resources that might be helpful to those in the process of transcending trauma and a self-study guide for developing a deeper understanding of the healing process.

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Foreword (David H. Olson)
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Introduction
Importance of the Topic
About the Study
About the Participants
Intended Audience
Organization of the Book
Chapter 2. Surviving As Children
Beginning of the Trauma
Common Feelings Associated with Trauma
People Who Helped
Factors That Helped
Conclusion
Chapter 3. Transcending As Adults
Spirituality
Therapy and/or Support Groups
Getting Married
Escaping from the Abuse
Looking Forward, Not Back
Conclusion
Chapter 4. School
It Was a Sin to Overeat
My Nickname Was “The Retard”
Once There Was a Seedling in the Forest
Life Is What You Make It
Chapter 5. Religion and Spirituality
I Was Sexually Abused by My Father and My Mother Tried to Kill Me
Inside I Was Dying
Evil and Sin Are Ignorance Acted Upon
Chapter 6. Pariah or Paragon
Nothing Is As Important As Loving Somebody and Having Somebody Love You
The School Kids Called Us “The Crazy Gene Sorenson Kids”
You Can Be the Sum of Your Own Choices and Not the Product of Your Past
Chapter 7. People Who Helped
I Blame My Parents, My Brothers, and God
I Almost Died Before I Realized That the Only Person Abusing Me Now Was Me
Chapter 8. It Made Me a Better Person
What Was, Was, It Cannot Be Changed. What Is, Is, But It Can Be Changed. What Comes, Comes, Be on the Offensive
From Angel Child to the Devil’s Child by the Age of Six
I Have Seen the Dark Side of People; I Am Even More Determined to See the Light
I Am a Walking Miracle; It Helps Me Believe in Other Miracles
Chapter 9. What We Have Learned
What Happened
When It Happened and When It Ended
Common Feelings Associated with Trauma
People Who Helped
Factors That Helped During Childhood
Who They Are Today
Factors That Helped During Adulthood
Helping Children Survive and Adults Transcend
Appendix A. Selected Readings
Appendix B. A Self-Study Guide
References
Index

Author(s)

Biography

Skogrand, Linda; DeFrain, John; DeFrain, Nikki; Jones, Jean

Surviving and Transcending a Traumatic Childhood The Dark Thread

Description

Table of Contents

Author(s)

Biography

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