NO STICKS OR STONES NO BROKEN BONES

A therapist reveals seldom-recognized signs of childhood trauma and offers methods of treatment.

Author Fleming writes that she saw clients with symptoms of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (cPTSD) almost every day in her therapy practice. Many of them had survived physical abuse or prolonged neglect in their childhoods, but others reported to her that they’d had happy early years and were raised by capable, loving parents. Patients in the latter group had sometimes struggled with parental disapproval and inattention, but they felt too ashamed to acknowledge that such “lesser” intangible traumas might have had lasting impacts on their mental health. To describe this phenomenon, Fleming coined the term “non-physically-assaultive, attachment-based Chronic Covert Trauma” (naCCT). In her first book on the topic, Fleming illustrates the lasting effects of such quieter traumas in a series of fictional case studies of several patients. The book is geared toward people who identify with symptoms of naCCT, as spelled out in these pages, but who haven’t fully come to terms with its effects on their adult lives. Its focus effectively steers it away from questions of blame; instead, it encourages readers to turn their focus inward. Accounts of Fleming’s own patients’ journeys—coming to terms with their trauma, identifying triggers, and working to mitigate cPTSD flares—are helpfully supplemented by journaling prompts, fill-in-the-blank exercises, and visualizations that readers can complete to investigate the roots of their own symptoms and soothe their effects. Fleming encourages a holistic approach throughout, but she prioritizes evidence-based methods. Some suggestions become repetitive over the course of the book, but the work as a whole nonetheless serves as an excellent resource.

Practical advice for addressing a common but underrecognized disorder.