The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook: What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us about Loss, Love, and Healing
About this title: Child psychiatrist Bruce Perry has treated children faced with unimaginable horror: genocide survivors, witnesses, children raised in closets and cages, and victims of family violence. Here he tells their stories of trauma and transformation.
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Your search:Books»The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook: What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us about Loss, Love, and Healing(13 available copies)
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Perseus Books Group
Date Published: 2007
ISBN-13:9780465056538ISBN:0465056539
Description: New. Deftly combining unforgettable case histories with his own compassionate strategies for rehabilitation, a child psychiatrist explains what exactly happens to the brain when a child is exposed to extreme stress--and reveals the measures that can be ta... read more
"This book was a hard read at times, but definitely worth it. The author describes the human brain and its development in such easy terms, it's amazing that doctors weren't recognizing the effects of trauma on kids before. It's actually a pretty recent addition to brain science.
I recommend this wholeheartedly to anyone interested in knowing why people are the way they are.
My favorite chapter dealt with two brothers. One is a completely criminal sociopath with no regard for anyone but himself; his older brother is an upstanding, contributing member of society. The difference between the two was established when the younger brother was an infant and his mother abandoned him for hours in his crib in an empty apartment. It's so sad, and when you read it, it makes so much sense.
"I loved this book, but I really wish it had a different title. (Am I the only one who thinks this?) It sounds a bit sensationalist and emotional more than factual. In reality, the book was presented as a series of case studies, much in the vein of my favorite works by Oliver Sacks. Each child profiled presented a case for an innovation in early brain development and conditioning, and really opened my eyes to basic things about what make us human."
"Informative and tragic, this collection of traumatized-kid stories manages to be compelling without being a pop-science freakshow. Perry presents a streamlined version of his nueroscience research in child trauma, illustrated with cases of kids brainwashed, tortured, assaulted...
I always want take-homes from disturbing books like this-- something to tie the jarring loose ends into a nice little bow. Although this is a descriptive rather than a prescriptive book, Perry delivers these appeasing little summaries for me:
p80: "the most effective treatments to help child trauma victims might be accurately summed up this way: what works best is anything that increases the quality and number of relationships in the child's life."
p235: "In order to keep our children safe, therefore, we need to form healthy relationships and connect with others; we need to hug our children. Protecting children needs to be done in ways that respect their needs by strengthening the community, not splintering it."
"Bruce Perry is a child psychiatrist who, in this book, explores what happens to a child's brain as a result of trauma and extreme neglect. He weaves stories of his actual heart-breaking patients with information from neuroscience and psychology to explain how a child injured in infancy can possess long-lasting effects far into adulthood. Perry also focuses on the healing process - how best to deal with children immediately after they suffer a horrifying experience, and how to retrain young adults who were mistreated when children. Each of Perry's chapters looks at a different example of trauma or abuse/neglect. For me, the most powerful looked at the long term effects of neglect. I think most people assume that unless kids experience affirmative abuse, that they will be fine. But Perry had examples of children with parents who did love them, but just did not know how to parent. They assumed if their infants were changed and fed that they would be fine - and so they would leave them alone in their cribs for hours. They did not read to them or talk to them much. As a result, physically, their brains were stunted and in some cases even shrank. They also were unable to attach and to experience or express emotions that most people take for granted. The impact of the treatment of these children in their first two years was incredible. Perry also talks about his work with children who were raised in the Branch Davidians (David Koresh). He also talks about the delicate work of determining whether children have actually experienced trauma or whether they have been coerced into making false accusations. Reading books like this always makes me so sad - I think about the fact that as I write this review there are children everywhere who are not receiving the attention and love that they deserve. But, at the same time, it makes me so grateful that such a book has been written in such an accessible format. I feel like this should be required reading for everyone, but particularly for people with children, people who work with children, and law enforcement that come into contact with child witnesses. It really provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the effects of trauma, and hopefully giving us all the tools we need to protect and help heal those who have experienced it."
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