New edition provides updated concepts and ideas in simplified medical language The Body Bears the Burden: Trauma, Dissociation, and Disease, Second Edition is the update of the classic book that explains the reasons behind some of the most common symptoms and conditions that previously defied a medical explanation. Respected author, Robert C. Scaer, MD, has diligently simplified the complex medical language that was used in the first edition to make it easier for lay readers and patients to understand?all without sacrificing accuracy. This valuable text presents a new theory of the neurophysiology of traumatic stress and dissociation and includes several updated chapters and new concepts that have been developed since the previous edition. Human response is quite different than other animals’ response to trauma. This response is discussed in detail in The Body Bears the Burden: Trauma, Dissociation, and Disease, Second Edition, including the fight/flight/freeze cycle and how the human response causes abnormal regulation of many body systems which then may lead to many illnesses or conditions. The emotional and physical experiences of patients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and other syndromes such as whiplash are comprehensively examined. Patients and lay readers alike who have been told it is ?all in your head? may well feel like this book was specifically written about them and the unexplained complex symptoms they experience. Topics in The Body Bears the Burden: Trauma, Dissociation, and Disease, Second Edition include: the role of the fight/flight/freeze response in traumatic stress the neurophysiology of traumatic stress and dissociation the Whiplash Syndrome as a model for procedural memory in trauma analysis of traumatic repetition the theoretical concept of somatic dissociation the varied syndromes and medical diseases of trauma and dissociation a theoretical analysis or therapy for trauma illustrative case histories of trauma and the body and more! The Body Bears the Burden: Trauma, Dissociation, and Disease, Second Edition is valuable information for physicians, psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers, physical, occupational, and speech therapists, nurses, and those lay people looking to better understand the physiologic rationale for a large number of perplexing chronic medical diseases and syndromes.

Table of Contents:
Foreword (Bessel A. van der Kolk) Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1. Concepts of Traumatization: The Role of Boundaries The Concept of Boundaries The Role of Boundaries in Trauma Boundaries and Childhood Conclusion Chapter 2. Trauma, Instinct, and the Brain: The Fight/Flight/Freeze Response The Neurophysiology of Trauma Brain Responses to Stress Fighting, Fleeing, or Freezing Conclusion Chapter 3. The Whiplash Syndrome I: Symptoms in Search of a Meaning The History of Whiplash The Clinical Syndrome Physical Forces and Structural Injury The Pathophysiology of Whiplash Conclusion Chapter 4. The Whiplash Syndrome II: A Model of the Brain in Trauma Memory Mechanisms in Trauma Somatic Responses to Stress The Meaning of Speed The Physiology of Trauma Conclusion Chapter 5. Trauma and Brain Plasticity The History of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Psychiatry The Developing Brain The Development of Character Brain Plasticity in Trauma Objective Measures of Brain Change in Trauma The Permanence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Conclusion Chapter 6. Somatic Dissociation Examples of Dissociation Memory in Dissociation Cognitive and Emotional Features Dissociative Physical Symptoms Conversion Hysteria and Dissociation The Autonomic Nervous System in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder The Concept of Boundaries The Spectrum of Somatic Dissociation The Dissociative Capsule Conclusion Chapter 7. Diseases of Traumatic Stress The Pathophysiology of Stress Stress versus Trauma The Hypothalamic/Pituitary/Adrenal Axis Stress, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Immune Function The Diseases of Trauma Morbidity and Mortality Conclusion Chapter 8. Trauma Reenactment Introduction The Roots of Reenactment Clinical Features Gender Differences Anniversary Syndrome Reenactment Through Risk Taking Conclusion Chapter 9. Sources of Trauma The Definition of Traumatic Stress Exposure to Combat Child Abuse Societal Trauma Medical Trauma The Role of Past Trauma Awareness During Anesthesia Pediatric Medical Trauma Childhood Medical Trauma Conclusion Chapter 10. Trauma Therapy: Essential Ingredients Cognitive/Verbal Therapy Exposure and Desensitization Techniques Somatically Based Therapies Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Somatic Experiencing Energy Psychology The Search for the Essential Ingredient Pharmacotherapy of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Conclusion Chapter 11. Case Histories: The Somatic Spectrum of Trauma A State of Vulnerability Somatic Representations of Prior Trauma Medical and Forensic Trauma Multiple Chemical Sensitivities The Mysterious Piriformis Disorders of Speech in Trauma Spasmodic Torticollis: An Aberration of the Orienting Reflex Dissociation and Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Comments Epilogue Notes Index