If you like the writings of Oliver Sacks, then you’ll like reading this book. Combining the traumatic stories of men with an exploration in the body’s response system, The Boy in the Chicken Coop provides a clear understanding of the relationship between trauma and addiction. It answers the question: how could I, or my children, friends, or family members become addicts or alcoholics. It puts into perspective, the precarious relationship between addiction and trauma; how a panic attack and addictive tendencies are related.The Boy in the Chicken Coop explores the body’s natural reaction to threat and helplessness; its physiology, and how addiction manifests as a means to calm itself. It offers a view of the autonomic nervous system which simply states: the purpose of the autonomic nervous system is to keep you safe and alive, but sometimes mistake’s current events, as if they were past, traumatizing situations, happening again. For example, why an argument with your spouse can stir up unwanted, and disproportionate, emotional states.The Boy in the Chicken Coop concludes with strategies for wellness. The healing from trauma and addiction, into a healthy, self-regulated life is possible through body-based treatment options. Some of today’s treatments are explored, offering hopefulness for change.