Welcome to *The Learning Library*, your dedicated resource for healing and growth. Curated by Jen McNeil, LICSW-- a trauma therapist -- this page features carefully selected books designed to support your journey toward recovery from CPTSD. Find books that might help support the work you do in session. Whether you have experienced sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, neglect, attachment wounds, or related challenges such as anxiety, depression, dissociation, self-esteem issues, and emotional regulation, these recommendations aim to empower you with knowledge, comfort, and hope as you navigate your path to healing.
What's on the shelf
The Complex PTSD Workbook by Arielle Schwartz, PhD
This workbook is a practical guide for individuals struggling with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). It's not just about understanding CPTSD, but actively working through it.
The workbook uses a variety of techniques, including mindfulness, cognitive restructuring, and exposure therapy, to help readers process trauma, regulate emotions, and build healthier relationships. It emphasizes self-compassion and provides tools for managing difficult emotions and challenging unhelpful thought patterns, ultimately aiming to empower you to reclaim your life and move toward healing.
A key aspect is the focus on building a strong self-awareness and understanding of the impact of trauma on one's present experience.
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD
This book explores the profound impact of trauma on the mind and body. It argues that trauma isn't just a psychological experience; it leaves lasting physical imprints, affecting everything from the nervous system to the immune system.
The book delves into the science behind these effects, explaining how the brain and body adapt to trauma and how these adaptations can manifest as various physical and psychological symptoms. It highlights different types of traumas and the diverse ways they manifest within you.
It also offers therapeutic approaches and strategies for healing from trauma, emphasizing the importance of understanding the body's response and employing treatments that address both the emotional and physical aspects of the experience.
Set Boundaries, Find Peace by Nedra Glover Tawwab
This book is a guide to establishing and maintaining healthy boundaries in all aspects of life. It's not just about saying "no" but about understanding why boundaries are crucial for well-being and how to create them effectively.
The book explores the root causes of people's difficulty with setting boundaries, often stemming from past experiences and learned behaviors.
It provides practical tools and exercises to help you identify their values, understand their needs, and communicate their boundaries clearly and respectfully, ultimately leading to greater peace and fulfillment.
The Set Boundaries Workbook--Companion to The Set Boundaries, Find Peace book by Nedra Glover Tawwab
This workbook provides a structured, hands-on approach to applying the concepts from the book. The workbook features exercises, worksheets, and prompts designed to help readers actively work through the process of identifying their values, needs, and boundaries.
It encourages self-reflection and provides space for journaling and exploring specific situations where boundary setting is needed.
This workbook is intended to facilitate your understanding and implementation of the principles discussed in the book, leading to the practical application of boundary setting in daily life.
Daring Greatly by Brene Brown, MSW, PhD
This book explores the importance of embracing vulnerability as a path to connection, belonging, and courage and delves into the societal pressures that often prevent us from being vulnerable and how those pressures contribute to our fear of imperfections and judgment.
It emphasizes the idea that vulnerability is not weakness, but rather a strength that allows us to connect with others on a deeper level.
The book likely includes stories, research, and exercises to you understand and practice the concept of daring greatly in your own lives.
Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown, PhD
This book is a deeply personal and insightful exploration of human emotions. It's not a clinical manual, but rather a compassionate guide to understanding and navigating the complexities of the human experience.
Brown uses storytelling and research to illuminate the full spectrum of emotions, from joy and love to grief and shame. The book offers a framework for recognizing and naming these emotions, empowering readers to understand their own feelings and connect with others on a deeper level.
It emphasizes the importance of vulnerability and courage in navigating life's challenges and fostering meaningful connections. The main goal of this book is to encourage you to embrace the full spectrum of human experience and find strength in their shared humanity.
What My Bones Know by Stephanie Foo
This book is a poignant and deeply personal exploration of family history, trauma, and the enduring power of memory. It weaves together Foo's own experiences with the stories of her ancestors, particularly her grandmother's experiences in war-torn Singapore and delves into the complex relationship between inherited trauma, cultural identity, and the search for belonging.
Foo's writing is both lyrical and unflinching, creating a powerful narrative that bridges the gap between personal experience and historical context.
The book highlights the enduring impact of the past on the present and the importance of acknowledging and processing painful memories.
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker
This book is a practical guide for understanding and overcoming the challenges of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD). It moves beyond simply describing the condition to offer concrete strategies and tools for healing and recovery.
Walker emphasizes the importance of understanding the specific impact of chronic trauma on the mind and body and provides a framework for recognizing and addressing the often-intertwined symptoms of C-PTSD, including emotional dysregulation, relationship difficulties, and self-perception issues.
The book is grounded in research and clinical experience, offering a hopeful and empowering perspective for those navigating the complexities of C-PTSD recovery.
No Bad Parts by Richard Schwartz, PhD
This book introduces the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model, a powerful framework for understanding and healing the inner world.
It's not just a description of the model; the book aims to demystify the often-conflicting parts of ourselves that contribute to emotional distress and psychological challenges. By explaining how these "parts" develop and function, the book empowers you to understand their inner landscape and cultivate self-compassion.
It also provides practical tools and exercises for working with these parts, promoting self-awareness and fostering a more integrated and harmonious inner experience.
Attached by Amir Levine, MD & Rachel S.F. Heller, MA
This book explores the science of adult attachment styles and how they influence our relationships. It delves into the different attachment styles (secure, anxious, avoidant) and how they develop in childhood, offering insights into how these patterns shape our adult romantic connections.
This book doesn't just describe the styles; it provides practical strategies and tools for understanding and improving relationships by recognizing and addressing attachment-related patterns.
Ultimately, Attached aims to help you build healthier, more fulfilling connections with others by fostering self-awareness and understanding of their own attachment needs.
Dissociation Made Simple by Jamie Marich, PhD
This book emphasizes the potential link between trauma and dissociation. This likely involves exploring how traumatic experiences can lead to dissociative responses as a coping mechanism, shielding the individual from overwhelming distress.
It also aims to demystify dissociation, explaining how it is a psychological defense mechanism that involves a disruption in the normal integration of thoughts, memories, emotions, and/or identity. The book also briefly breaks down the difference between depersonalization and derealization, along with other dissociative symptoms.
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It doesn't delve into the intricacies of the various dissociative disorders, but rather focuses on providing a clear, concise understanding of the core experience.
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The Cognitive Behavioral Coping Skills Workbook for PTSD by Matthew Tull, MD, Kim Gratz, PhD & Alexander Chapman PhD
This book is a practical, workbook-style guide for individuals struggling with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It focuses on teaching and practicing cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques to manage PTSD symptoms, such as intrusive thoughts, avoidance behaviors, emotional regulation problems, and negative thoughts.
The workbook likely includes exercises and worksheets to help readers identify triggers, challenge negative thought patterns, develop coping strategies, and improve overall well-being.
It Didn't Start with You by Mark Wolynn
How to do the Work by Nicole LePera, PhD
This book explores the concept of inherited trauma, arguing that trauma, rather than being solely a product of individual experiences, can be passed down through generations via the family emotional system.
The book likely delves into the various ways this intergenerational trauma manifests in individuals and families, offering a framework for understanding and healing from these patterns.
It emphasizes the importance of recognizing and addressing these underlying issues to break the cycle.
This book is a practical guide to emotional healing and personal growth. It's not a quick fix--it's essentially a roadmap for self-discovery and emotional healing.
It encourages you to engage with your emotions, understand their root causes, and cultivate a more fulfilling and authentic life.
It's not a passive read; it requires active engagement and introspection but can help you understand and address the underlying emotional patterns that contribute to unhappiness and hinder personal fulfillment.
How to Meet Yourself by Nicole LePera, PhD
This book guides you towards a deeper understanding of your inner world, fostering self-acceptance and compassion, and ultimately paving the way for a more authentic and fulfilling life.
It's less about fixing problems and more about embracing the complexities of the self. It's not about changing who you are, but about understanding the reasons behind your actions and developing a more authentic and fulfilling life.
The book specifically addresses the often-conflicting narratives and desires that shape our identities and behaviors.
Anxiety Rx by Russell Kennedy, MD
This book is a practical guide to understanding and managing anxiety. It's not a quick fix, but rather a comprehensive approach that emphasizes a combination of lifestyle changes, cognitive techniques, and, when necessary, medical interventions.
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Some of the topics explored include understanding the science of anxiety, addressing potential underlying issues, Practical strategies for managing anxiety, and how Lifestyle factors and anxiety.