Trauma and Physical Health

Description

Trauma research and clinical practice have taught us much about the widespread problems of child maltreatment, partner violence, and sexual assault. Numerous investigations have documented links between such trauma exposure and long-term negative mental health consequences. As we learn more about traumatic stress, however, increasing attention has been drawn to the less studied physical health effects of maltreatment and trauma. Trauma and Physical Health describes both the negative physical health effects of victimization in childhood as well as exploring theoretical models that explains these links. By bringing together new and current studies on the relationship between trauma and physical health, this edited collection assesses the clinical implications of these links. At a time when the mental health field is becoming increasingly cognizant of the value of collaboration with professionals in the physical health arena, this book suggests ways in which clinicians can work with primary care professionals to better meet the needs of trauma survivors across the lifespan. A key focus of the text is to clarify the relationship between the current knowledge base in trauma and physical health and directions for future research in primary care health settings. With contributors from a wide range of clinical and psychological disciplines, it will be of interest to researchers, clinicians and professionals in the trauma field and to primary care professionals concerned with compassionate care for the traumatized. Review: A must read for any birth professional! - Not only a recent publication (2009) but an accessible one, what I especially like about Trauma and Physical Health: Understanding the Effects of Extreme Stress and of Physiological Harm is that it is so client/patient-focused. with an emphasis on “lay” people (not just academics) do important work in the area of trauma. So often I read articles that are useful but feel completely removed from the real world. They are synopsis of clinical studies done by academics who have never done any kind of in-person counseling, even on a volunteer or community level. To me, that always feels as if something is missing. One chapter especially speaks to these strengths. The title of the chapter, “Client-Centered Care”, gives the reader a hint of what is to come; the focus is on how to do the best for clients. The introduction describes the experience of one of the co-authors: a physical therapist who volunteered at a non-profit sexual assault center co-facilitating a support group for survivors of CSA. Reading this chapter, the reader gets the sense that this isn’t just a study about health professionals can better integrate client-centered care into their own practice and be able to connect more meaningfully with their patients who are survivors of CSA but also how to do so with compassion, being respectful of boundaries and intersections of race/class/gender, etc. and in a manner that shares control. It is a thoughtful article that every healthcare professional should read. One of the most useful articles in the book looked at the connection between traumatic childbirth and breastfeeding, “Traumatic Childbirth and Breastfeeding”. Those of us who do this work, like the author Cynthia Good Mojab, know that “childbirth trauma is largely an invisible issue.” (65) but what we are beginning to understand more and more, from our work with clients and recent research, is that that childbirth trauma can impact both the initiation and the duration of breastfeeding, as Mojab explores in her article. Childbirth trauma can lead to postpartum depression, PTSD and more. Women with preexisting issues such as childhood trauma due to CSA or intimate partner violence can be at an increased risk for traumatic childbirth (67-8).What does this mean for the mother’s ability and inclination to breastfeed? From even basics like the physical challenges of breastfeeding after a c-section to the emotional challenges of depression or PTSD, moms who have suffered a traumatic childbirth will battle more challenges, including breastfeeding, than women who did not. Add to the fact that “healthcare professionals, friends, family may not realize how important breastfeeding can be to a mother after a traumatic childbirth” and the reader begins to get a sense of just how devastating a traumatic childbirth can be to a mom’s sense of mastery and confidence. Trauma and Physical Health: Understanding the Effects of Extreme Stress and of Physiological Harm is an excellent, I would argue, must read for any birth professional from doula to childbirth educator to everyone in between. It is an outstanding resource and guidebook to understanding trauma and its devastating impac Review: Comprehensive, well-documented book on the subject - This book, with chapters by many of the major researchers in the field, covers a variety of aspects of the research in the area of the relationship of psychological trauma to physical health. Long known by clinicians who treat people with post-traumatic stress disorders and disorders of extreme stress, the relationship is an important one. So many of these clients are poorly understood by the medical community. (The other reviews of this book refer to one chapter, not the book in its entirety.) Another comprehensive volume on this topic is Lanius, R.A., Vermetten, E., & Pain, C. (2010). The Impact of Early Life Trauma on Health and Disease: The Hidden Epidemic. Cambridge, U.K., Cambridge University Press. Strongly recommended.