2nd Edition
The Child Survivor Healing Developmental Trauma and Dissociation
In this second edition of Joyanna Silberg’s classic The Child Survivor, practitioners who treat dissociative children will find practical tools that are backed up by recent advances in clinical research.
Chapters are filled with examples of clinical dilemmas that can challenge even the most expert child trauma clinicians, and Silberg shows how to handle these dilemmas with creativity, attunement, and sensitivity to the adaptive nature of even the most complex dissociative symptoms. The new edition addresses the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on children and provides tips for working with traumatized children in telehealth. A new chapter on organized abuse explains how children victimized by even the most sadistic crimes can respond well to therapy.
Clinicians on the front lines of treatment will come away from the book with an arsenal of therapeutic techniques that they can put into practice right away, limiting the need for restrictive hospitalizations or out-of-home placements for their young clients.
List of Tables List of Figures Acknowledgments Preface Introduction 1. Trauma and Its Effects 2. An Integrative Developmental Model of Dissociation 3. Diagnostic Considerations 4. Assessing Dissociative Processes 5. Beginning the Treatment Journey 6. Educate and Motivate: Introducing The EDUCATE Model 7. Bridging the Selves: Healing through Connections to what’s Hidden 8. "I Try to Forget to Remember": Reversing Amnesia 9. Befriending the Body: Somatic Considerations for the Child Survivor 10. Staying Awake: Reversing Dissociative Shutdown 11. Building Attachment across States: Affect Regulation in the Context of Relationships 12. Child-Centered Family Therapy: Family Treatment as Adjunct to Dissociation-Focused Interventions 13. Rewriting the Script: Processing Traumatic Memories and Resolving Flashbacks 14. Countering Organized Abuse: Organized Attachment and Love 15. Interfacing With Systems: The Therapist as Activist 16. Integration of Self: Towards a Healing Future References Appendices Index
Biography
Joyanna L. Silberg, PhD, is a clinical child psychologist, an international expert on dissociation in children and adolescents, and past president of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation.
"For young professionals, this book will be a good reference for having a foundation in assessment and intervention. For experienced therapists, it will stimulate your reflection of practice and help improving your work. I highly recommend this book to both novice and experienced therapists." — Ellen Ma in the European Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, March 2023
"It takes a bold and delicate hand, a knowledgeable mind, and a compassionate soul to write about the unfathomable while keeping the reader engaged and able to reflect on the unthinkable. This is the brilliance of Joyanna Silberg’s The Child Survivor: Healing Developmental Trauma and Dissociation (2nd edition). The Child Survivor gives clinicians a comprehensive look at the impact of developmental trauma and offers practical concepts, theories and techniques for therapists at every level of expertise." — Eva T. Young in the Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, January 2023
"The second edition of The Child Survivor offers a wealth of insight guided by decades of clinical experience. Joyanna Silberg’s EDUCATE model offers readers a practical, readily accessible approach to treating dissociation and introduces a new concept—transitional identities. This fascinating book is a must read for all therapists treating traumatized children and adolescents." — Bethany Brand, PhD, professor of psychology, Towson University
"Joyanna Silberg's second edition of The Child Survivor is a wonderful book that should be required reading for all child therapists and trainees. The in-depth case examples illuminate key clinical dilemmas and Dr. Silberg addresses these complexities with skill and creativity." — Julian Ford, PhD, professor of psychiatry, University of Connecticut
"Dr. Silberg masterfully expands her first edition by adding a compelling chapter on organized abuse and describing its intersection with the justice system. This is a gem for all who work with developmental trauma!" — Frances S. Waters, author of Healing the Fractured Child: Diagnosis and Treatment of Youth with Dissociation
"Dr. Joyanna Silberg, a pioneer in the treatment of dissociative children and adolescents, has thoroughly revised and updated her now classic 2013 text. In this second edition, she describes how the Covid pandemic exacerbates the pandemic of child abuse. Dr. Silberg’s book is highly readable and should be essential reading for all mental health and school professionals." — Christine A. Courtois, PhD, ABPP, author of Healing the Incest Wound: Adult Survivors in Therapy
