The PTSD Workbook: Simple, Effective Techniques for Overcoming Traumatic Stress Symptoms

by Mary Beth Williams, Soili Poijula

Overview

In the third edition of The PTSD Workbook, psychologists and trauma experts Mary Beth Williams and Soili Poijula offer readers the most effective tools available for overcoming post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

PTSD is an extremely debilitating condition that can occur after exposure to a terrifying event. But whether you’re a veteran of war, a victim of domestic violence or sexual violence, or have been involved in a natural disaster, crime, car accident, or accident in the workplace, your symptoms may be getting in the way of you living your life.

PTSD can often cause you to relive your traumatic experience in the form of flashbacks, memories, nightmares, and frightening thoughts. This is especially true when you are exposed to events or objects that remind you of your trauma. Left untreated, PTSD can lead to emotional numbness, insomnia, addiction, anxiety, depression, and even suicide. So, how can you start to heal and get your life back?

In The PTSD Workbook, Third Edition, psychologists and trauma experts Mary Beth Williams and Soili Poijula outline techniques and interventions used by PTSD experts from around the world to conquer distressing trauma-related symptoms. In this fully revised and updated workbook, you’ll learn how to move past the trauma you’ve experienced and manage symptoms such as insomnia, anxiety, and flashbacks.

Based in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), this book is extremely accessible and easy to use, offering evidence-based therapy at a low cost. This new edition features chapters focusing on veterans with PTSD, the link between cortisol and adrenaline and its role in PTSD and overall mental health, and the mind-body component of PTSD. Clinicians will also find important updates reflecting the new DSM-V definition of PTSD.

This book is designed to give you the emotional resilience you need to get your life back together after a traumatic event.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626253704
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	05/01/2016
Edition description:	Third Edition, Revised
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	62,586
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Mary Beth Williams, PhD, LCSW, CTS, is an author, researcher, lecturer, and trainer in the area of trauma. In addition, she treats trauma survivors in private practice at the Trauma Recovery Education and Counseling Center in Warrenton, VA. Williams is former president of the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists. She is a trainer for US Customs and Border Protection; cofounder of the proposed 501(c)(3) US Vet Source; and author of many articles, chapters, and books about trauma disorders.

Soili Poijula, PhD, is a clinical psychologist, licensed psychotherapist, and director at Oy Synolon Ltd., a center for trauma psychology in Finland, where she has done pioneering work as a developer of post-trauma psychotherapy.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

1 A Look at Trauma 5

2 Before Doing the Work: Safety, Security, and Intention 31

3 Identifying' and Writing About What Has Happened to You 53

4 Helping Yourself When You Reexperience a Trauma 63

5 Coping with Trauma with Less Avoidance 93

6 Dealing with Category D Symptoms: Part 1 111

7 Dealing with Category D Symptoms: Part 2 153

8 Lessening Arousal: What to Do If You Can't Sleep, Can't Relax, or Are Angry and Irritable 213

9 Stress, Trauma, and the Body 257

10 For Veterans Returning from War: Tools for Personal Survival 283

11 Finding Meaning 307

12 Final Thoughts and Exercises 327

References 359

Interviews

Mary Beth Williams resides in Warrenton, VA; Soili Poijula resides in Oulu, Finland.

Editorial Reviews

“The PTSD Workbook is an outstanding aid to those recovering from exposure to traumatic life events and the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For use while in psychotherapy or by itself, this workbook provides an important guideline and template for moving forward with life. Derived from considerable clinical experience and up-to-date with recent research on recovery, The PTSD Workbook is an invaluable addition to the growing number of clinical tools to improve resiliency and enhance healthy outcomes.”
—Terence M. Keane, PhD, associate chief of staff for research and development at the VA Boston Healthcare System, director of the behavioral science division of the National Center for PTSD, and professor of psychiatry and assistant dean of research at the Boston University School of Medicine



“This is a treasure trove of a book filled with up-to-date information on trauma, with the best collection of self-help methods in the field. It is easy to understand, and will be a resource for all individuals who are suffering from the effects of traumatic events, as well as for professionals.”
—Atle Dyregrov, PhD, clinical and research psychologist, and head of professional issues at the Center for Crisis Psychology in Bergen, Norway; professor of clinical psychology at the University of Bergen, Norway; author of Disaster Psychology, Children in War, Grief in Children, and Supporting Traumatized Children and Teenagers; founding member of the European Society for Traumatic Stress Studies; and chair of the Children and War Foundation



“This update of The PTSD Workbook nicely reflects the authors’ sensitive understanding of psychological trauma and resilience. It provides individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and their professional helpers with an impressive compendium of self-help and therapeutic techniques. Each of its twelve chapters is full of easy-to-use exercises that allow readers to decide which techniques are most suited to their individual situation. Anyone with a personal experience of, or exposure to, traumatic events will learn something useful from an encounter with this excellent work.”
—Joseph H. Albeck, MD, clinical associate in the department of psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA; Chairman (Emeritus) for the Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma and Resilience Special Interest Group of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS); and cofounder of the New England Holocaust Memorial



“This is an extremely helpful book for trauma victims and facilitators, but also for you and me, to own and look into it daily.”
—Hédi Fried, psychologist, writer, teacher, Holocaust survivor, author of The Road to Auschwitz, and winner of the 2015 Public Advocacy Award from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS)

From the Publisher