Past Trauma in Late Life

Preface. 1. Introduction. PART 1: TRAUMA AS THE STARTING POINT 2. Post Traumatic Re-Experiencing in Older People: Working Through or Covering Up? J N Schreuder, General Director of Centrum '45, The Netherlands. 3. Healing Early Sexual Trauma in Old Age, Maj-Briht Bergstrom-Walan, Director of the Swedish Institute for Sexual Research, Stockholm. 4. The Emotional Consequences of War Fifty Years On: A Psychiatrist's Perspective, Louis Crocq, consultant social psychiatrist, Secretariat Generale de la Defense Nationale. 5. Understanding and Treating the Long Term Consequences of War Trauma in World War II Veterans, Ian Robbins, Consultant Clinical Psychologist, North Devon Health Care Trust. PART 2: STARTING FROM THE HOLOCAUST. 6. Time Heals No Wounds, Elisabeth Brainin, psychologist, and Samy Teicher, psychoanalyst, Vienna. 7. Late Onset of Symptoms in Holocaust Survivors, David J de Levita, psychoanalyst, Amsterdam. 8. Cafe 84: Social Daycare for Survivors and their Children, Heidi Fried, psychologist, Hasselby. 9. Working with Elderly Survivors, Judith Hassan, Director, Shalvata. PART 3: OLD AGE AS THE STARTING POINT 10. Psychic Pain Surfacing in Dementia: From New to Old Sore? Bere Miesen, Clinical Psychogerontologist, Verpleghuis Marienhavan. 11. Out of Silence: What People Cannot Talk About, Laura Sutton, Clinical Psychologist, Moorgreen Hospital. 12. Listening to War Memories in Late Life: Depression and Dementia, Peter Coleman, Professor of Social Gerontology, and Maria A Mills, Visiting Fellow, University of Southampton. 13. We'll Meet Again: The Long Term Psychological Effects of Civilian Evacuations in World War II Britain, Stephen Davies, Head of Clinical Psychology Services for Older People, Essex and Herts Community NHS Trust. PART 4: THE JOURNEY CONTINUES Political Violence and Coping in Northern Ireland, Faith Gibson, Professor of Social Work, University of Ulster. 14. The Journey Continues, Linda Hunt, Mary Marshall and Cherry Rowlings. Index.

This is a unique book. It is the kind of text which prompts the reader to ask, `Why wasn't this written before?' The three editors are prominent authorities in this area, as both well-established researchers and social work practitioners. In this compilation, they have made a notable contribution to our understanding of post-traumatic stress. The readings are also designed to enable the practitioner to tap onto the skills and approaches of European practitioners on both sides of the English channel [and] insights are plentiful in this excellent text. The experience of these practitioners and their working models provide a starting point for further exploration into the best strategy to adopt when dealing with post-traumatic stress in later life.