"Treating Trauma"

Here's a replay of the webinar

Wow, we had a wonderful evening talking about and practicing trauma treatment. I was so grateful that an experienced psychotherapist like Martha Paradis joined us for this important and enlightening discussion. We covered a lot of ground in one hour: the brain … our nervous system … “Big T” versus “little t” trauma … and the techniques of Somatic Experiencing, the system of healing Martha uses with her patients.

(We even had a brief demonstration of the therapy, with me as the patient!)

It was a unique opportunity to learn from someone who has dedicated her professional life to helping people who’ve suffered all kinds of assaults—everything from natural disasters to acts of terrorism. Martha does good work, essential work, and she generously gave us a thorough grounding in what she does every day. We learned what it means to suffer trauma … and to heal from trauma. Which, after all, is the theme of Good Eye, Bad Eye.

Here are a few of the resources mentioned during the webinar:

• Martha’s memoir about her unusual childhood—a mix of beauty and trauma: http://www.flowersandlocusts.com

• Main website for Somatic Experiencing (SE):

  https://traumahealing.org

• How to find a practitioner of SE:

  https://directory.traumahealing.org

And here is the recording of that rich hour we spent with Martha. You can’t see them on the replay, but there was a nice-sized crowd of people there. They Zoomed in from all over the place: California, Kansas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, Vermont.

After you watch the video, please feel free to share your reactions in the comments below. As you know, my aim with these webinars is to enrich your reading experience of Good Eye, Bad Eye and to open up discussion within our reading community. I’d love to hear from you!