"Trauma and addictive disorders are often a result of psychological injuries experienced as a child. These injuries typically produce long-term and harmful generational consequences on loved ones and other family members. Claudia Black presents a searing portrait of a broken family system, exploring how addiction and trauma develop and how their damaging repetition uproots and frequently destroys one's family tree. Filled with vignettes highlighting the various causes of trauma, Dr. Black helps readers understand its physiology and psychology and gives them healing, proactive steps to build healthier relationships"--Page 4 of cover.

Chaprter 1Getting to Know Trauma -- 1 -- What It Trauma? -- 3 -- Big T, Little t -- 7 -- Trauma and You -- 9 -- Losses of Trauma -- 10 -- What Influences Trauma -- 11 -- Childhood Resilience and Vulnerability -- 14 -- Biology of Trauma -- 16 -- Trauma and the Nervous System -- 20 -- Chapter 3 What We Know About Addiction -- 23 -- Addiction's Two Faces -- 24 -- Signs of Addiction -- 26 -- Addiction and the Brain -- 30 -- Where Trauma and Addiction Meet -- 33 -- When Various Forms of Addiction Interact -- 36 -- Addiction as a Family Disease -- 37 -- When Denial Fails -- 39 -- Chapter 3 Addiction, Trauma, and the Family -- 43 -- A Steadt Diet of Trauma -- 44 -- Trauma and Abandonment -- 47 -- Trauma of Physical and Sexual Abuse -- 50 -- Witnessing Abuse -- 54 -- Overlooked and Discounted Trauma -- 55 -- How Trauma Encourages Addiction -- 57 -- Trauma/Addiction Cycle -- 58 -- Bottom Line -- 61 -- Chapter 4 How Trauma Affects You -- 63 -- Inner World of Trauma -- 63 -- Delayed Responses to Trauma -- 67 -- How Disorders Pair Up-or Pile Up -- 82 -- Making the Turn -- 85 -- Chapter 5 Shame: The Hidden Darkness -- 87 -- How Shame Arises -- 88 -- How Shame Masks Itself -- 89 -- Chapter 6 Generational Reverberations: The Long-Term Effects -- 91 -- A Mother in Trouble -- 91 -- A Son in Trouble -- 97 -- Parenthood in Trouble -- 98 -- Trauma Bonding -- 99 -- New Faces, Old Dynamics -- 100 -- Love and Relationship Addiction -- 101 -- Details vs. Dynamics -- 102 -- Exploring Your Family Tree -- 103 -- Create a Family Tree -- 105 -- Chapter 7 Power of Self-Examination -- 109 -- Layer 1 Grounding -- 111 -- Layer 2 Exploring the Narrative -- 121 -- Layer 3 Moving into Your Emotions -- 123 -- Layer 4 Connecting the Past to the Present -- 127 -- Layer 5 Uncovering and Challenging Internalized Beliefs -- 128 -- Layer 6 Learning New Skills -- 131 -- Spirituality and the Healing of Trauma -- 135 -- Expectations in Healing -- 136 -- Chapter 8 Your Allies in Healing -- 139 -- Assembling a Team of Allies -- 141 -- Your Potential Allies in Recovery -- 142 -- Value of Group Processes in Addiction Recovery -- 145 -- Do You Need a Therapist? -- 146 -- Finding the Right Therapist -- 148 -- What You Need to Know about Trauma Therapy -- 151 -- Role of Medications -- 155 -- Reflecting on Your Resistance -- 155 -- Chapter 9 Family Expectations, Connections, and Disconnections -- 159 -- Sharing Your Recovery with Family Members -- 159 -- Staying Connected-with Limitations -- 162 -- Setting Healthy Limits and Boundaries -- 164 -- Connecting with Siblings -- 165 -- Confronting Family Members as an Adult -- 167 -- Symbolically Confronting Someone Who Has Died -- 171 -- Don't Try to Do It All Alone -- 172 -- Chapter 10 Forgiveness and Healing -- 173 -- What Forgiveness Is Not -- 174 -- What Forgiveness Is -- 175 -- When Forgiveness Goes Awry -- 175 -- Self-Forgiveness -- 176 -- Force Behind Forgiveness -- 177 -- Chapter 11 Creating Your New Narrative -- 179 -- Part 1 Describe Your Healing and Recovery Thus Far -- 180 -- Part 2 Describe Where You Are Now in Your Healing Journey -- 181 -- Part 3 Describe What You Will Do Next -- 182 -- Part 4 Envision How Your Healing and Recovery Will Evolve -- 183 -- Part 5 Embody Your New Narrative in a Few Key Words or Phrases -- 184 -- Part 6 Envision Your Life Five Years from Now -- 185 -- Healing Power of Narrative -- 190 -- Embracing Healing and Recovery -- 190.