This week Ann and I wanted to share some of our favorite resources for the various areas of focus we work in within our counseling practice:

• From Maggie:
  • In the realm of sex and sexuality: Come As You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life (2021) by Emily Nagoski
    • While geared towards women’s sexuality, this book is great for anyone who is wanting to explore and understand their sex life. Nagoski looks at the factors that go into building a healthy and vibrant sex life including sexual desire, arousal, mood, trust and body parts. My favorite section is where she explains sexual desire with the analogy of a car-–we all have accelerators that get us going and breaks that shut desire down. This book is easy to read and makes the topic fun and accessible.
  • On Trauma: The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma (2015) by Bessel van der Kolk
    • Considered an authority on trauma, van der Kolk’s work in The Body Keeps the Score has been helping us understand the impacts and effects of trauma for more than a decade by explaining how trauma changes and reshapes our brains and bodies in ways that keep us from being able to enjoy and engage our lives. Even more, he offers hope for those who have survived trauma to heal from these past experiences and begin to reclaim their lives. This book is a must read for anyone who has experienced trauma or is close to someone who has. 
  • For engaging in Story Work: The Place We Find Ourselves Podcast by Adam Young
    • Adam Young is a licensed social worker and psychotherapist out of Colorado who explores themes of abuse and trauma through the lens of story. He is also a fellow at the Allender Center where he teaches and trains people in the Narrative Focused Trauma Care methodology. On the podcast you’ll find a mix of psychoeducation and story engagement. A lot of clients tell me how helpful this podcast has been for them in their healing journeys.  
• From Ann:
  • On Religious Trauma: Holy Hurt by Hiliary McBride – Both a BOOK and and PODCAST.
    • As discussed in last week’s blog post, Holy Hurt is a great introduction to the issues of spiritual trauma and basis for understanding what it is and the various ways it can affect people. As a therapist herself, McBride has not only done extensive research on this topic, but she also has experience sitting with many people navigating this issue. Her podcast makes this content accessible to all and the book is a great way to go a little deeper.
  • For Parenting and Play Therapy: Raising Kids with Big, Baffling Behaviors: Brain-Body-Sensory Strategies that Really Work (2023) by Robyn Gobbel
    • Gobbel summarizes research on neuroscience and breaks it into bite size pieces for parents to better help them understand what is going on in their children’s brains and how it impacts their behaviors. Beyond explaining the science of what is happening for our kids, she also shares strategies that help parents regulate their own emotions while they help their children calm theirs. She also has a podcast and many free resources linked on her website.
  • For Women: Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger (2018) by Soraya Chemaly
    • Too often women are expected to be silent and encouraged to repress their anger. It’s seen as an ugly or an unacceptable emotion, but in actuality, feeling angry is a core part of the human experience, and an important one to have at that. This book is an empowering read for women who want to re-discover their anger and learn to listen to and use it well.

What are some of your favorite resources? Drop them in the comments!