Abstract
I was delighted to be asked to review this book as it is the field of clinical work that I have chosen to specialise in. This book highlights the power of human relationships to heal and repair past trauma. In their introduction, the editors, Joy Hasler and Anthea Hendry, two therapists with a great deal of experience in this field, describe how the book aims to ‘provide information about therapy for families living with traumatised children who are not able to live with their birth families’ (p. 13). This incorporates children in foster care, kinship care or children who have been adopted. Joy Hasler is a music therapist who set up Catchpoint in Bristol, a registered adoption support agency. Anthea Hendry was formerly a teacher and social worker and now works in private practice as an art psychotherapist, supervisor and trainer. They have brought together an array of practitioners specialising in this field who each make their own unique contribution to the book. The chapters are concise and the writing is easily accessible with clear chapter headings that detail their contents. This is, therefore, a book that can be read as a whole or dipped in and out of.
Since the inception of the Adoption Support Fund, children who are not able to live with their birth families have access to government funding for assessments and therapeutic intervention. This book is, therefore, a welcome addition to trauma literature as it is helpful in informing both families and clinicians of the importance of taking a therapeutic approach which is collaborative. The book emphasises using a creative approach which involves the family, school staff and therapists communicating effectively with one another for the benefit of the child.
The structure of the book is very helpful. It begins by explaining what complex trauma actually means and how developmentally traumatised children experience specific difficulties including neurobiological functioning, cognitive impairments, difficulties with affect and behaviour regulation, relational difficulties and their view of themselves and the world around them. The chapters then lead into assessment and treatment approaches through organisations such as Catchpoint and Family Futures. There follows a wide variety of chapters from different clinicians specialising in this field looking at specific ways of working. There are contributions from within art therapy, music therapy, drama therapy, dance movement therapy and play therapy. Relevant case study material brings the clinical work alive and further strengthens the clinical practice detailed within the book, highlighting how children impacted by early neglect and abuse need a creative therapeutic model involving parents and therapeutic services to aid in their recovery.
The final two chapters of the book look at innovative therapeutic practice within education. This is such an important addition to the book as research into early trauma shows that it can lead to behaviour and learning difficulties which are specific to developmentally traumatised children. These chapters highlight struggles but also suggest possible strategies to help children in school.
The book is rooted in the contemporary research of Dan Siegel, Bruce Perry, Dan Hughes, Bessel van der Kolk and Stephen Porges to name but a few and therefore highlights the growing evidence base that supports the use of arts therapies in enabling developmentally traumatised children not just to survive but to thrive. The chapters are well referenced and many give recommendations for further reading around the topics covered which is also helpful. The book is, therefore, very useful in applying research and knowledge to current practice.
I highly recommend this book. Within a variety of settings music therapists receive referrals for children who are in foster care, kinship care or who have been adopted. This book enables us to have invaluable knowledge and insight into this very specialist field of clinical work, informing the way in which we practice.