Creative Interventions with Traumatized Children [Hardcover]

Cathy A. Malchiodi (Editor), Bruce Perry (Foreword)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1593856156 | ISBN-13: 978-1593856151 | Publication Date: January 8, 2008 | Edition: 1

Rich with case material and artwork samples, this volume demonstrates a range of creative approaches for facilitating children's emotional reparation and recovery from trauma. Contributors include experienced practitioners of play, art, music, movement and drama therapies, bibliotherapy, and integrative therapies, who describe step-by-step strategies for working with individual children, families, and groups. The case-based format makes the book especially practical and user-friendly. Specific types of stressful experiences addressed include parental loss, child abuse, accidents, family violence, bullying, and mass trauma. Broader approaches to promoting resilience and preventing posttraumatic problems in children at risk are also presented.

(20100416)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Malchiodi is a widely read and well-respected art therapist whose work on the treatment of childhood trauma is exemplary. This book addresses the rich array of therapies to which terrified youngsters respond. For the newcomer to the field who wishes to learn how drawings, doll play, music, relaxation, and storytelling may be used after devastating events--or for the old hand at working with kids who wants a good review of what's new--this is just the book."--Lenore C. Terr, MD, author of Magical Moments of Change

"This comprehensive resource delivers everything the title promises and more. Grounded in current trauma theory, the book presents creative, evidence-based therapeutic approaches developed specifically for children and adolescents. It also provides a clear understanding of childhood PTSD and its implications for treatment. Overall, the chapters emphasize an integrative perspective that interweaves counseling theory with creative modalities. I highly recommend this book to practitioners and would also use it as a training text for students."--Elizabeth A. Warson, MA, ATR-BC, Graduate Art Therapy Program, Eastern Virginia Medical School

"Malchiodi has put together an invaluable resource that is chock full of highly creative and innovative interventions for traumatized children. The all-star lineup of contributors have written solid, user-friendly chapters on doing effective expressive therapy work with children who have experienced many types of trauma. This is a timely, welcome contribution to the child trauma and psychotherapy literature--a terrific book that will greatly benefit therapists working in the trenches with these challenging children and their families."--Matthew D. Selekman, MSW, Codirector, Partners for Collaborative Solutions, Evanston, Illinois

"The book has a rich collection of black and white sketches that are worth the price of the book on its own merit. They speak when words fail....The book has good reference information, organized by chapters."--Illness, Crisis and Loss

(Illness, Crisis and Loss )

"This book provides a thorough look into expressive interventions used in trauma, grief, and crisis with children. Malchiodi''s carefully edited chapters are easy to read and absorbing....Each chapter illuminates a particular aspect of creative therapies [including] music therapy, art therapy, bibliotherapy, and play therapy. I would recommend this book as it provides step by step strategies and the thought-provoking examples of case work from Malchiodi''s own practice and other practitioners....Malchiodi''s book is an important contribution to the research in creative interventions and traumatized children and it''s no wonder, she is so highly regarded in the art therapy community."--Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal

(Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal )

About the Author

Cathy A. Malchiodi, ATR-BC, LPCC, CPAT, is a licensed clinical mental health counselor, art therapist, and expressive arts therapist, and is also a faculty member at the National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children and at Lesley University. She has more than 25 years of clinical experience in working with people of all ages and has worked as an art therapist with survivors of traumatic experiences, including domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, disaster, and serious or life-threatening illnesses. Ms. Malchiodi is a frequent presenter on art and health care throughout the United States, Canada, Asia, and Europe, and has given more than 250 invited presentations. She is the only person to have received all three of the American Art Therapy Association's highest honors: Distinguished Service Award (1991), Clinician Award (2000), and Honorary Life Member Award (2002). The author or editor of numerous books, including The Art Therapy Sourcebook, Understanding Children's Drawings, and the Handbook of Art Therapy, she has also published over 70 peer-reviewed papers on the use of art therapy and arts medicine with trauma survivors, survivors of child physical and sexual abuse, people with psychiatric disorders, and those with physical illness.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 332 pages
• Publisher: The Guilford Press; 1 edition (January 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593856156
• ISBN-13: 978-1593856151
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,279 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #28 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Family Relationships > Child Abuse

More About the Author

Cathy Malchiodi, PhD (www.cathymalchiodi.com) is an art therapy maven, leading international expert, independent scholar, and author in the fields of art therapy and art in healthcare. Cathy is a research psychologist, mental health counselor, and licensed and board certified art therapist. She is a co-founder of Art Therapy Without Borders, Inc, an world-wide group dedicated to providing art therapy information, educational programs, and service, and the founder of the global networking group, International Art Therapy Organization. A popular speaker, Cathy has given over 300 invited keynotes, workshops, and courses throughout the United States, Canada, and around the world. She has been an Adjunct Professor at Lesley University's Expressive Therapies Department for over 20 years and has been a visiting professor at numerous universities throughout the US and Europe.

Cathy is a recognized advocate, visionary, change-agent, and innovator of art therapy programs for children, adolescents, adults, and families, particularly with survivors of trauma. Cathy is a Board Certified and Licensed Professional Art Therapist, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, and Certified Trauma Specialist, Level III. She has been involved in a wide variety of community, national, and international agencies, including the National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children, Issues Deliberation America/Australia, American Art Therapy Association, and Save the Children Foundation, helping to create a global art therapy initiative for children in need in the West Bank and Africa. Cathy has also served on the boards of American Counseling Association (ACA), serving as the first Representative from the Association for Creativity in Counseling (ACC); Association for Humanistic Counseling (President); American Art Therapy Association (AATA); and on numerous national and international boards in mental health, counseling, arts, and public service. In honor of her clinical and academic contributions, Cathy is the only person to have received all three of the American Art Therapy Association's highest honors: Distinguished Service Award, Clinician Award, and Honorary Life Member Award. She has also received national honors from the Kennedy Center and Very Special Arts (VSA). She is an active participant in the Society for the Arts in Healthcare, serving on their ethics and research committees and as Special Interest Group Leader for Medical Art Therapy.

Cathy is regularly interviewed by the news media in publications such as Prevention, Better Homes & Garden, Family Circle, Cosmopolitan, Psychology Today, Congressional Quarterly, Alternative & Complementary Therapies, Boston Globe, New York Times, US News & World Report, and in other print and internet sources.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive Discussion of Interventions Involving Creativity, January 6, 2009

By 

Book Lady (WI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creative Interventions with Traumatized Children (Hardcover)

I am pleased with the book in that it is thorough in it's discussion of trauma and the artistic interventions that can benefit those who suffer from it. I was hoping that the book would be more of an overview of creative ideas and how to apply them, rather than a discussion of why to use interventions involving creativity. However, it is still a valuable resource.

39 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Tough Book to Rate, February 19, 2009

By 

Christopher J. Alexander, Ph.D. "Christopher ... (Rio Rancho, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Creative Interventions with Traumatized Children (Hardcover)

Rating this book is a tough endeavor for me. The authors acknowledge the impact trauma can have on children, drawing in particular from the insight and wisdom of Bruce Perry. In recent years, Perry has greatly informed our understanding of the effects of physical and psychological trauma on children in unique and profound ways. Unfortunately, whereas Perry's views have helped us to look forward with respect to childhood trauma, this book represents a step backward.

While art, music, and expressive therapies do play a role in the treatment of children with traumatic backgrounds, we increasingly find that these approaches do little to result in significant and long-term behavioral and emotional change. Parents may thus be intrigued by the approaches, but in general, many--if not most--do not report that it results in significant behavioral changes for the child, especially with those who act out their trauma at home and/or school.

The child welfare research is consistent in pointing out that the children who rebound the best from physical or psychological trauma are those who are provided with ample amounts of parental attunement and empathy. The approaches used and advocated by these authors cannot achieve this.

That stated, the majority of children with traumatic histories end up in play and expressive therapies. This book therefore offers guidance for therapists who utilize these approaches, and on that basis, I would normally give it 4- to 5 stars. It is a well-written book and the credentials of the writers are impressive.

In my work with foster and adopted children, however, I know directly and anecdotally that the kids who rebound the best from trauma are those who are provided with family-based approaches to their mental health treatment. Granted, an exception can be made for very young children (under age 6, for example), but if we look at the trends--and especially at what works at healing trauma--the approaches emphasized in this book fall short in many ways.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative Book, July 27, 2011

By 

Theresa Leone Davidson "bookcrazy" (Middletown, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creative Interventions with Traumatized Children (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book that details different therapies, all creative, to deal with children who have been traumatized. The original reason I had the library get me this was because one of the chapters, 'Grieving in the Public Eye,' was written by a friend and former roommate, Laura Loumeau-May. Laura is an artist and art therapist, and her chapter details how she treated specific clients, those who were the children of victims of the World Trade Center attacks. She used many creative ideas, including heart shaped collages and memorial projects, to help these kids deal with their grief and overwhelming sense of loss. Although I am a teacher, not someone in this field, I found it very interesting. Other chapters I particularly liked included one by P. Gussie Klorer, that dealt with treating children with attachment issues. One of the ideas is to have her clients create life sized dolls; one of her clients, a foster child who for a long time felt that it would be a betrayal of her biological mother to love her foster parents, used the doll to say and do the things she could not. Very interesting. Also, the chapter by Russell E. Hilliard about using music therapy with traumatized children in group therapy was fascinating, as was another chapter, by Craig Haen, about using drama therapy, something that is apparently somewhat uncommon, to treat children who have been the victims of abuse or trauma. Besides Loumeau-May's chapter, the two I enjoyed the most both dealt with literacy as a form of treatment (no doubt because I am a Language Arts teacher), one by Ann Cattanach entitled 'Working Creatively with Children and Their Families after Trauma: The Storied Life,' and another by the editor of the book, Cathy Malchiodi, and Deanne Ginns-Gruenberg, entitled 'Trauma, Loss, and Bibliotherapy: The Healing Power of Stories.' Very cool how they write about using literature as a form of intervention, including having their clients read specific stories, and by identifying with the characters, they gain increased understanding and insight into their own problems, and integrating ideas or themes from existing stories into their own stories, they come to better understand the issues they face. Lots of case stories and how these ideas work for their clients. If there is any criticism I have of the book, and I acknowledge I am NOT in this field so this is purely an opinion, it is with the chapter by Diane S. Safran and Elysa R. Safran, entitled 'Creative Approaches to Minimize the Traumatic Impact of Bullying Behavior.' I had issues with some of what they wrote, which seemed too pat and unrealistic, including the case study of a student who categorizes his victimization at school by bullies as being 'terrorized.' Yet after three months of drawing pictures he's all better and can handle the bullying by walking away. Either details were missing from this account or the results were skewed because if one is being truly 'terrorized' at school, which far too many students are, walking away is not usually an option. Nevertheless, an illuminating book that I would highly recommend.