Traumatic experiences are distressingly common. And the risks of developing posttraumatic stress disorder are high. But in recent years the field of traumatology has grown strong, giving survivors and their counselors firmer footing than ever before on which to seek healing. This book is a combined effort to introduce counseling approaches, trauma information, and Christian reflections to respond to the intense suffering people face. With extensive experience treating complex trauma, Heather Gingrich and Fred Gingrich have brought together key essays representing the latest psychological research on trauma from a Christian integration perspective. Students, instructors, clinicians, and researchers alike will find here an overview of the kinds of traumatic experiences coverage of treatment methods, especially those that incorporate spirituality material to critically analyze as well as emotionally engage trauma theoretical bases for trauma treatment and interventions references for further consideration and empirical research Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.

Heather Davediuk Gingrich applies years of counseling experience to the sensitive task of treating complex traumatic stress disorder (CTSD). Writing for pastors and counselors who have not received training in complex trauma, Gingrich integrates current trauma therapy research with discussions of prayer and spiritual warfare.

She's seen slave dungeons in Ghana. Genocide in Rwanda. Systemic sexual abuse in Brazil. Child abuse and domestic violence in the US. After forty years of counseling abuse survivors around the world, Dr. Diane Langberg, a world renowned trauma expert, remains certain that what trauma destroys, Christ can and does restore. This book will convince you, too, of the healing heart of God. But it's not a fast process, instead much patience is required from family, friends, and counselors as they wisely and respectfully help victims unpack their traumatic suffering through talking, tears, and time. And it's not a process that can be separated from the work of God in both a counselor and counselee. Dr. Langberg calls all of those who wish to help sufferers to model Jesus's sacrificial love and care in how they listen, love, and guide. The heart of God is revealed to sufferers as they grow to understand the cross of Christ and how their God came to this earth and experienced such severe suffering that he too is "well-acquainted with grief." The cross of Christ is the lens that transforms and redeems traumatic suffering and its aftermath, not only for the sufferer, but it also transforms those who walk with the suffering. This book will be a great help to anyone who loves, listens to, and seeks to help someone impacted by trauma and abuse. There is no quick fix, but there is the hope for healing through the love of God in Christ.

Don't Waste Your Pain None of us escapes the heartache and disappointments of life. To live is to hurt, and we all have the wounds to prove it. Regardless of how we've been hurt, we all face a common question: What should we do with our pain? Should we stoically ignore it? Should we just "get over it"? Should we optimistically hope that everything will work out in the end? If we fail to respond appropriately to the wounds that life and relationships inflict, our pain will be wasted; it will numb us or destroy us. But suffering doesn't have to mangle our hearts and rob us of joy. It can, instead, lead us to life--if we know the path to healing. Healing is not the resolution of our past; it is the use of our past to draw us into deeper relationship with God and his purposes for our lives. If you're ready to shape a future characterized by love, service, and joy, now is the time to step out onto The Healing Path.

Are Christian treatments as effective as secular treatments? What is the evidence to support its success? Christians engaged in the fields of psychology, psychotherapy and counseling are living in a unique moment. Over the last couple decades, these fields have grown more and more open to religious belief and religion-accommodative therapies. At the same time, Christian counselors and psychotherapists encounter pressure (for example, from insurance companies) to demonstrate that their accommodative therapies are as beneficial as secular therapies. This raises the need for evidence to support Christian practices and treatments. The essays gathered in this volume explore evidence-based Christian treatments, practices, factors and principles. The authors mine the relevant research and literature to update practicing psychotherapists, clinical researchers, students, teachers and educated laypersons about the efficacy of certain Christian-accommodative therapies. Topics covered in the book include: devotional meditation cognitive-behavior therapy psychodynamic and process-experiential therapies couples, marriage and family therapy group intervention The book concludes with a review of the evidence for the various treatments discussed in the chapters, a guide for conducting clinical trials that is essential reading for current or aspiring researchers, and reflections by the editors about the future of evidence-based Christian practices. As the editors say, "more research is necessary." To that end, this volume is a major contribution to a field of inquiry that, while still in its infancy, promises to have enormous implications for future work in Christian counseling and psychotherapy. Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.

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Every person you know has either been through situations in their lives that have resulted in trauma or knows someone who has. The church has lost the art of wisely walking with someone as they experience the effects of trauma in their life. We are at a loss when a friend loses a child, a coworker finds out they have cancer, or we hear about someone being the victim of human trafficking. If you're a fireman, nurse, police officer, pastor, counselor, schoolteacher, or any other profession that touches the lives of people, you have encountered people in trauma ... you have probably experienced the effects of secondary or vicarious trauma yourself. You have felt the hopelessness and inadequacies of trying to help someone understand the explainable. As I searched for resources to help me do that from a biblical perspective, I found that there is very little help for the Christian involved in the work of trauma-informed care. Most biblical counseling doesn't adequately address how to engage with someone suffering from trauma, and no secular methodologies can provide the ultimate healing and hope these victims long for. The Heart of a Healer is an attempt from a layman's perspective to combine the wise compassion of a trauma-informed care approach with the authoritative and life-giving truths revealed in the scriptures. This book is neither clinical nor theological in the traditional understanding of those terms. The Heart of a Healer outlines a practical and biblical approach to dealing with trauma. You will learn how to deal with it in your own life and how to effectively help others who are suffering through trauma. This book was born out of much prayer and the searching of scriptures. It is my humble prayer that God uses this imperfect attempt at this important subject as a tool to help those who he calls into this work, and that as a result, many will see your good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven.