hey all! i’m going into my senior year of undergrad and we covered some of kolk’s work on trauma in my class focusing on the biopsychosocial perspective.

i recently picked up the book at a thrift store and was chatting with my LICSW about it during therapy as i’ve found it fascinating despite only having read a couple of chapters, but she told me she wasn’t sure that i should read it and should look into better books by better people, and that she found him to be problematic.

when i asked more, she told me about the allegations made against him, and while doing a little digging, i have also seen people claim his work as problematic in its portrayal of victims of trauma. i haven’t read far enough yet to really understand what about his portrayals are traumatic, but i’d like some expertise from people who’ve been in school, and in the field, for longer than me.

should i keep reading?

Originally posted by u/TooExcitable on Reddit.

Top comment by u/arisol96

It may be worth reading to get a general sense of the academic context, but I have seen "What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma" by Stephanie Foo cited as a more compassionate and inclusive dive into trauma.