Thriving After Trauma: Stories of Living and Healing

Every year millions of men and women develop addictions, eating disorders, depression, and related illnesses due to trauma. Trauma victims are more likely to suffer from drug or alcohol abuse, to smoke, or to engage in other self-destructive practices in an effort to avoid emotions they cannot handle and cope the hopelessness, despair, and painful feelings often associated with traumatic experiences. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

A change is finally happening. Society is talking about sexual assault and abuse, about PTSD and associated disorders. And as people begin to acknowledge the traumas they’ve endured, they seek assistance for overcoming their experiences so they may live full lives free from shame, guilt, and despair.

Thriving After Trauma discusses the many ways trauma victims have overcome the consequences of a wide-array of circumstances, including physical or sexual abuse, war-related injury, and loss due to tragedy, illness, and natural disasters. Real stories illustrate the many types of trauma people experience and the actions they took to help them survive, grieve, and move on. Letting go of the shame, guilt, anger, and fear associated with trauma is crucial to reclaiming a full life, and Shari Botwin provides insight into strategies such as journaling, bodywork, mindfulness, and using healing relationships, such as group therapy, to aid recovery. Any reader who has experienced trauma or knows someone who has will find comfort and hope in these pages, and a path forward to a full life.