Book Resources
Welcome to our book resource page dedicated to providing valuable resources on eating disorders and trauma. This collection of books offers insights, guidance, and support for individuals seeking to understand and navigate the complexities of both eating disorders and trauma. Explore the titles listed here to gain a deeper understanding of eating disorders and/or trauma and to find inspiration on the path to healing.
Sick Enough: A Guide to the Medical Complications of Eating Disorders
The book "Sick Enough" addresses the common belief among individuals with eating disorders that they are not "sick enough" to seek treatment, despite having both measurable and unmeasurable medical problems. It provides a comprehensive and accessible review of the medical issues associated with eating disorders through relatable case presentations and a scientifically sound approach. The author, Dr. Gaudiani, uses metaphor and patient-centered language to improve medical diagnosis and treatment, encourage recovery, and validate the experiences of individuals of all body shapes and sizes, while rejecting dieting culture.
"The Body Is Not an Apology" explores the diverse nature of humanity and the harmful impact of oppressive systems on our relationships with our bodies. The book advocates for radical self-love as a means to heal the wounds caused by these systems. Sonya Renee Taylor, a renowned activist and poet, encourages readers to reconnect with the radical origins of their minds and bodies and celebrate their collective strength. By confronting and challenging ingrained body shame, individuals are inspired to awaken others and disrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression. The book argues that embracing radical self-love on a global scale can lead to a more just, equitable, and compassionate world for everyone.
Beyond a Shadow of a Diet: The Comprehensive Guide to Treating Binge Eating Disorder, Compulsive Eating, and Emotional Overeating
"Beyond a Shadow of a Diet" is a comprehensive guide for professionals working with clients who struggle with Binge Eating Disorder, Compulsive Eating, or Emotional Overeating. The book challenges the notion that food restrictions for weight loss trigger and sustain overeating, presenting research to support this claim. It provides step-by-step guidelines to help clients shift away from the diet mentality and adopt an internally-based approach called attuned eating. The book is divided into three sections, addressing the problem, treatment, and solution, with engaging chapters that include case examples, visualizations, and exercises to enhance therapists' knowledge and skills. Additionally, the book goes beyond clinical aspects and covers topics such as the therapist's attitudes towards dieting and weight, cultural and social justice issues, mindfulness neuroscience, weight stigma, and promoting wellness for children of all sizes. Drawing from the Health At Every Size paradigm and extensive research, "Beyond a Shadow of a Diet" offers therapists and clients an evidence-based model to develop a positive relationship with food, their bodies, and themselves.
It Didn't Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle
"It Didn't Start with You" explores the idea that difficulties such as depression, anxiety, chronic pain, phobias, and obsessive thoughts may not solely stem from our own life experiences or brain chemistry, but can be rooted in the traumas experienced by our parents, grandparents, and even great-grandparents. The book draws on scientific research that supports the concept of inherited family trauma, showing that traumatic experiences can be passed down through generations. Mark Wolynn, a pioneer in the field, offers a pragmatic and prescriptive guide to his Core Language Approach. This approach includes diagnostic self-inventories to uncover fears and anxieties expressed through everyday language and behaviors, techniques for creating a genogram to map experiences across generations, and visualization and dialogue to facilitate reconnection and integration. "It Didn't Start with You" presents a transformative approach to resolving long-standing difficulties that traditional therapy or other interventions may not have been able to address effectively.
"What Happened to You?" challenges the tendency to blame ourselves for our reactions and behaviors, instead encouraging a shift in perspective. In this book, Oprah Winfrey and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry engage in deeply personal conversations that move away from asking "What's wrong with you?" to "What happened to you?" Winfrey shares her own experiences with trauma and adversity, understanding the vulnerability that arises from such experiences at a young age. Together, Winfrey and Dr. Perry explore the understanding of people, behavior, and ourselves. This subtle yet profound shift in approaching trauma allows us to comprehend our pasts, paving the way for resilience and healing. The book offers a proven and powerful method to open the door to a brighter future.
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
"The Body Keeps the Score" acknowledges that trauma is a common experience in life, affecting individuals and families in various ways. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, a renowned trauma expert, draws on over three decades of experience working with survivors to explore how trauma reshapes both the body and the brain. He explains how trauma can impact pleasure, engagement, self-control, and trust. The book delves into innovative treatments, such as neurofeedback, meditation, sports, drama, and yoga, which leverage the brain's natural neuroplasticity to facilitate recovery. Dr. van der Kolk's own research, along with that of other specialists, is presented to highlight the significant influence of relationships in both causing and healing trauma. "The Body Keeps the Score" offers hope for reclaiming lives affected by trauma.
