The Right Book at the Right Time

• Published in: PsycCritiques Vol. 52; no. 31; p. No Pagination Specified
• Main Author: Slavin, Lesley A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Psychological Association 01.08.2007
• Subjects: Child Welfare; Emotional Trauma; Human; Mental Health; Psychoeducation; Psychotherapy
• ISSN: 1554-0138; 1554-0138
• DOI: 10.1037/a0008469

Reviews the book, Collaborative Treatment of Traumatized Children and Teens: The Trauma Systems Therapy Approach by Glenn N. Saxe, B. Heidi Ellis, and Julie B. Kaplow (see record 2006-22230-000). This book provides an excellent resource for therapists who work with the children and families served by public mental health and child welfare systems. This is a practical treatment manual that incorporates all of the major techniques or practice elements used in proven trauma treatments such as trauma focused-cognitive behavior therapy (TF-CBT), including use of a phased approach, psychoeducation of the child and family about trauma, teaching coping skills, teaching relaxation skills, using exposure to thoughts and memories about the trauma through developing a trauma narrative, and working on making meaning and transcending the negative experiences. In addition, the trauma systems therapy (TST) approach includes a broader framework for addressing the multiple difficulties of children who have experienced complex trauma in real-world settings. As the title and subtitle suggest, there is an emphasis here on collaboration across the multiple agencies that are involved in the lives of these families and an emphasis on treating the whole "trauma system." The authors define the trauma system this way: "A trauma system is comprised of (1) a traumatized child who has difficulty regulating emotional states and (2) a social environment and/or system of care that is not able to help the child to regulate these emotional states" (p. 6). By focusing the treatment on the whole trauma system, this approach provides useful conceptual and practical tools to help clinicians understand and address families' real difficulties. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)