Abstract
Christiane Sanderson, Introduction to counselling survivors of interpersonal trauma. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2010, 287 pp. (not including resource list and index), £27.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781843109624
This book sets out to give a clear and full view of the nature and impact of interpersonal abuse and aims itself at a wide range of professionals working in the field, including counsellors, therapists, social workers and GPs. It would seem that this would be a very useful book to have on the shelf for any of these people.
The introduction sets out clearly the parameters of the problem and defines the nature of what is being explored, explaining and justifying helpfully the use of language within the book. Sanderson gives check lists and diagrammatic representations of the impact of abuses and includes vignettes within the chapters of part two of the book. Each chapter gives a final summary and in part two there is suggested further reading. A list of resources is offered at the end giving a wide range of organizations both in the UK and abroad.
Part one discusses the nature of interpersonal trauma and clinical practice. Here we are given clear explanations with useful advice, but also discussion of the complexities involved in such trauma. Part two takes us through a range of different types of abuse from rape to elder abuse, child sexual abuse to institutional abuse.
Chapters 6 and 7 in part two consider child abuse and child sexual abuse. Here Sanderson takes us through the prevalence of the issue and the definitions, going on to discuss the dynamics of the trauma and the impact. It seemed to me that social workers would find this very useful to read, either as a reminder or as a new look at the subject. She focuses on the child’s (distorted) reality and helps us to consider the long-term implications that this may have and for parents who were abused themselves and how this might impact on work being done in terms of safeguarding.
Chapter 11 is a very useful reminder of the importance of attachment theory and gives us a good explanation and understanding of this in terms of how it is important not just with children but it also significant in terms of understanding and working with elder abuse. Christiane Sanderson also challenges us to consider our own assumptions and cultural prejudices here.
The author then gives a final section (part three) that is one chapter but it is a useful and a timely reminder that this work impacts on the worker. She offers sound advice about keeping grounded as we may ‘habituate to trauma and become inoculated to pain and suffering’ (p. 283). This is something we need to remind ourselves about and to remember to look up from our work from time to time.
This is not a book whose title would necessarily make it seem of direct use to social workers. However, it contains a wealth of helpful and important information. This is not a book to read from cover to cover, but one that should be on the shelf to consult. I recommended it to two colleagues because it seemed to me that it was full of sound information and timely reminders of the impact of abuse.