An inclusive, research-based guide to working the 12 steps: a trauma-informed approach for clinicians, sponsors, and those in recovery. Dr. Jamie Marich, an addiction and trauma clinician in recovery herself, builds necessary bridges between the 12-step's core foundations and up-to-date developments in trauma-informed care. Foregrounding the intersections of addiction, trauma, identity, and systems of oppression, Marich's approach treats the whole person - not just the addiction - to foster healing, transformation, and growth.
Written for clinicians, therapists, sponsors, and those in recovery, Marich provides an extensive toolkit of trauma-informed skills that:
- Explains how trauma impacts addiction, recovery, and relapse
- Celebrates communities who may feel excluded from the program, like atheists, agnostics, and LGBTQ+ folks
- Welcomes outside help from the fields of trauma, dissociation, mindfulness, and addiction research
- Explains the differences between being trauma-informed and trauma-sensitive; and
- Discusses spiritual abuse as a legitimate form of trauma that can profoundly impede spirituality-based approaches to healing.
