Recommended Reading
For further support integrating your health & wellbeing through a therapeutic, trauma informed lens.
Therapeutic Bookclub Books 2025
Scattered Minds
Gabor Maté, M.D.
While acknowledging that genetics may indeed play a part in predisposing a person toward ADD, Dr. Maté moves beyond that to focus on the things we can control: changes in environment, family dynamics, and parenting choices. He draws heavily on his own experience with the disorder, as both an ADD sufferer and the parent of diagnosed children.
Breath
James Nestor
Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again.
No Bad Parts
Richard C. Schwartz, PhD
Dr. Schwartz’s Internal Family Systems (IFS) model has been transforming psychology for decades. With No Bad Parts, you’ll learn why IFS has been so effective in areas such as trauma recovery, addiction therapy, and depression treatment―and how this new understanding of consciousness has the potential to radically change our lives.
The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety
Timothy R. Clark
Psychological safety is progress through four successive stages: Belonging Safety, Learning Safety, Contributing Safety and Challenger safety. Clark draws on psychology, social science, and his own experiences to demonstrate that if we banish fear and create nurturing environments, the discovery of optimal human potential, innovation and healthy environments become the norm.
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Trauma Informed Awareness &
Post Traumatic Growth
Scattered Minds
Gabor Maté, M.D.
While acknowledging that genetics may indeed play a part in predisposing a person toward ADD, Dr. Maté moves beyond that to focus on the things we can control: changes in environment, family dynamics, and parenting choices. He draws heavily on his own experience with the disorder, as both an ADD sufferer and the parent of diagnosed children.
The Body Keeps the Score
Bessel Van Der Kolk M.D.
Dr. Bessel van der Kolk uses recent scientific advances to show how trauma literally reshapes both body and brain, compromising sufferers’ capacities for pleasure, engagement, self-control, and trust. He explores innovative treatments - from neurofeedback and meditation to sports, drama, and yoga - that offer new paths to recovery by activating the brain’s natural neuroplasticity.
Breath
Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again.
When You're Ready, This Is How You Heal
Brianna Wiest
In her follow-up collection to the international bestseller 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think, Brianna Wiest shares 45+ new pieces that will help you find your inner sanctum and embark on the path of true transformation. Wiest’s words are a balm for any soul on the journey of their own becoming.
the deepest well
Nadine Burke Harris, M.D.
Through vivid storytelling that combines both scientific insight with deeply moving stories about her patients and their families, Burke Harris illuminates her journey of discovery from the academy to her own pediatric practice in San Francisco's poverty-ridden Bayview Hunters Point. She reroots the story of childhood trauma and its aftermath in science to help listeners see themselves and others more clearly.
The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog
Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D. and Maria Szalavitz
In the classic The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog, Dr. Perry explains what happens to the brains of children exposed to extreme stress and shares their lessons of courage, humanity, and hope. Only when we understand the science of the mind and the power of love and nurturing can we hope to heal the spirit of even the most wounded child.
When The Body Says No
Gabor Maté, M.D.
When the Body Says No is an impressive contribution to research on the physiological connection between life's stresses and emotions and the body systems governing nerves, immune apparatus, and hormones. With great compassion and erudition, Gabor Maté demystifies medical science and, as he did in Scattered Minds, invites us all to be our own health advocates.
Waking The Tiger
Peter A. Levine
People are often traumatized by seemingly ordinary experiences. The reader is taken on a guided tour of the subtle, yet powerful impulses that govern our responses to overwhelming life events. To do this, it employs a series of exercises that help us focus on bodily sensations. Through heightened awareness of these sensations trauma can be healed.
ADHD & Post Traumatic Growth
Scattered Minds
Gabor Maté, M.D.
While acknowledging that genetics may indeed play a part in predisposing a person toward ADD, Dr. Maté moves beyond that to focus on the things we can control: changes in environment, family dynamics, and parenting choices. He draws heavily on his own experience with the disorder, as both an ADD sufferer and the parent of diagnosed children.
DBT Skills for Adults with BPD, ADHD, PTSD and Trauma Workbook
Mavis D. Castille
Do intense emotions feel like a rollercoaster you can't get off? Do past traumas, self-doubt, or relationship struggles hold you back from the life you want? If you're tired of feeling out of control, the "DBT Skills for Adults with BPD, ADHD, PTSD, and Trauma: Your Actionable Workbook..." is your lifeline.
Addiction and Healing Trauma
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts
Gabor Maté, M.D.
Dr. Maté argues persuasively against contemporary health, social, and criminal justice policies toward addiction and how they perpetuate the War on Drugs. The mix of personal stories—including the author’s candid discussion of his own “high-status” addictive tendencies—and science with positive solutions makes the book equally useful for lay readers and professionals.
Unbroken Brain
Maia Szalavitz
Challenging both the idea of the addict's "broken brain" and the notion of a simple "addictive personality", Unbroken Brain offers a radical and groundbreaking new perspective, arguing that addiction is a learning disorder, and shows how seeing the condition this way can untangle our current debates over treatment, prevention, and policy.
Attachment Trauma and Healing
Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors
Janina Fisher
Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors integrates a neurobiologically informed understanding of trauma, dissociation, and attachment with a practical approach to treatment, all communicated in straightforward language accessible to both client and therapist.
Integrative Attachment Family Therapy
Dafna Lender, LCSW
Instead of viewing the child as the problem, IAFT addresses the crux of the issue: a misalignment in the parent-child relationship. In this treatment guide, Dafna walks readers through the IAFT framework, providing therapeutic insight and concrete strategies to help families achieve meaningful and lasting change.
cPTSD, PTSD & Developmental Trauma Healing and Growth
Complex PTSD
Pete Walker
This book is a practical guide to recovering from lingering childhood trauma. It is copiously illustrated with examples of the author’s and his clients’ journeys of recovering. It is a comprehensive self-help guide for working through the toxic legacy of the past and for achieving a rich and fulfilling life.
Healing Developmental Trauma
Laurence Heller, PhD and Aline LaPierre, PsyD
Heller and LaPierre introduce the NeuroAffective Relational Model® (NARM), a method that integrates bottom-up and top-down approaches to regulate the nervous system and resolve distortions of identity such as low self-esteem, shame, and chronic self-judgment that are the outcome of developmental and relational trauma.
Emotional Regulation & Healing the Nervous System
Anchored
Deb Dana
In Anchored, expert teacher Deb Dana shares a down-to-earth presentation of Polyvagal Theory, then brings the science to life with practical, everyday ways to transform your relationship with your body. Using field-tested techniques, Dana helps you master the skills to become more aware of your nervous system moment to moment―and change the way you respond to the great and small challenges of life.
Polyvagal Card Deck: 58 Pratices for Calm and Change
Deb Dana
With her new Polyvagal Card Deck: 58 Practices for Calm and Change, she further extends the reach of this groundbreaking perspective on mental wellness. These informational cards enable clients to enhance a broad understanding of their nervous system as well as help clinicians to guide them through a process of tuning in.
The Nervous System Reset
Jessica Maguire, BHSci, MPhysio
In The Nervous System Reset, Jessica Maguire shares the wisdom of her popular Nervous System School masterclasses and shows listeners how to unlock the power of their Vagus nerve. Drawing on the science of polyvagal theory and drawing on decades of her own study and coaching experience, Jessica teaches listeners neural exercises, breathwork, and somatic practices to widen their window of tolerance
Heal Your Nervous System
Dr. Linnea Passaler
Despite its advances, conventional medicine has often overlooked the importance of nervous system regulation in our health and quality of life. This is especially true for highly sensitive individuals, who may be more susceptible to a dysregulated nervous system. Instead of merely treating the symptoms, Dr. Passaler shows you how to make a profound shift from reactive treatment to proactive healing.
Creating Trauma Informed & Therapeutic Cultures in Organizations and Schools
Trauma Doesn't Stop at the School Door
Karen Gross
This book explores how educational institutions have failed to recognize and effectively address the symptoms of trauma in students of all ages. Drawing on real-life examples and scenarios that will be familiar to educators, this resource provides concrete suggestions to assist institutions in becoming trauma-responsive environments, including replicable macro- and microchanges.
The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety
Timothy R. Clark
Psychological safety is progress through four successive stages: Belonging Safety, Learning Safety, Contributing Safety and Challenger safety. Clark draws on psychology, social science, and his own experiences to demonstrate that if we banish fear and create nurturing environments, the discovery of optimal human potential, innovation and healthy environments become the norm.
Making Work Human
Eric Mosley & Derek Irvine
From the pioneers of the management strategy that’s transforming businesses worldwide, Making Work Human shows how to implement a culture of performance and gratitude in the workplace―and seize a competitive edge, increase profitability, and drive business momentum.
The Inclusive Organization
Netta Jenkins
This book will help any organization improve their DEI initiatives and create the sustainable and scalable change employees want to see within their workplace. Readers will be able to utilize worksheet examples and toolkits out of this book to build their own DEI roadmap.
Vicarious Trauma & Preventing Burnout in the Caretaking Professions
The Compassion Fatigue Workbook
The Compassion Fatigue Workbook is a lifeline for any helping professional facing the physical and emotional exhaustion that can shadow work in the helping professions. Since 2001 the activities in this Workbook have helped thousands of helpers in the fields of healthcare, community mental health, correctional services, education, and the military.
The Boundaries Flip Chart
The Boundaries Flip Chart is a must-have tool for any mental health clinician seeking to help their clients identify, set, and maintain healthy boundaries. Ideal for clients who struggle with codependency, poor communication, and unfulfilling relationships, the chart includes conversation starters, exercises, and checklists that extend far beyond “how to say no.”
Nonprofit Work is Killin' Me
This book starts a conversation about nonprofit community-based social services professionals, their important work, their suffering and the need to mitigate CSVT. Shedding light on the factors that create unmitigated and unacknowledged CSVT allows for the implementation of both short-term and long-term solutions.
Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness
David A Treleaven
Covering the role of attention, arousal, relationship, dissociation, and social context within trauma-informed practice, Treleaven offers 36 specific modifications designed to support survivors’ safety and stability. The result is a groundbreaking and practical approach that empowers those looking to practice mindfulness in a safe, transformative way.
*Your Cor Coach receives a commission from purchases made from the links on this page.
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