You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
“… in the medicine of the future the interdependence of mind and body will be more fully recognised, and that the influence of the one over the other may be exerted in a manner which is not now thought possible.”
The editors of this “sourcebook”, that hopes to provide a “comprehensive, evidence-based review summarising and synthesising the recent academic and clinical research of prominent scientists, researchers and theorists in the field of psychological trauma”, appear to share John Bowlby's strong reforming drive: he saw psychotherapy as preventative medicine that would help to change not just individuals but also society (Holmes, 1993).
It proposes a new diagnostic strategy involving consideration of the very earliest experiences, not only for the field of psychiatry and mental health, but also medicine, and society in general. As a consequence the authors argue, and I would agree, that there is an urgent need to reconsider the structure of medical, public health, and social services.
The book aims to capture and integrate the study and research of early life trauma with a blend of clinical observation and sophisticated technical investigation. It is organised in three sections;
context of childhood trauma
neurobiology of childhood trauma
clinical aspects
The first section explores the epidemiological and historical themes, and then outlines a trajectory for the subsequent development of mental and physical health effects of childhood trauma.
The second section collates the psycho-biological impacts in children, and then in adults.