Full Description
This forward-thinking book explores the impact of psychological trauma on the brain's sensory pathways and demonstrates the crucial role sensory-based interventions can play in recovery. Ruth A. Lanius and associates interweave neurobiological research with evocative case examples and narratives from survivors. The book shines a spotlight on the brain-body disconnect that is part of the lived experience of trauma, and traces what happens in all eight sensory systems when an individual is under threat. Featuring "Bridging to Practice" sections in each chapter, the book reveals how working with sensory pathways can engage the whole brain, promote neuroplasticity, and optimize the effectiveness of standard psychotherapies. Illustrations include eight pages in full color.
Contents
Foreword, Daniel J. Siegel
1. Introduction to the Senses and the Sections of the Brain
2. A Sensational Journey: How Sensory Information Travels through the Brain
3. Feeling Safe or under Threat: The Diverging Roads of Sensory Experience
4. The Defense Cascade: How Sensory Experience Informs the Line of Defense
5. Understanding the Vestibular System: Balance, Center of Gravity, and Seeking Safety after Trauma
6. Interoception and Visceral Sensations after Trauma: The War Within
7. Feeling the World Through the Senses: The Shattered Universe after Trauma
8. The Hijacked Self: Overcoming the Compulsion to Repeat the Trauma
9. Becoming Whole: Synchronizing the Mind, Brain, and Body
References
Index
