Transforming Trauma

Connection and healing often happen amid our messiest, most vulnerable moments. The rawness of our experiences can create the space we need to welcome a new way of living, loving, and even learning. One clinical counselor has witnessed this truth repeatedly throughout her multifaceted career and personal life. Her ability to stay with discomfort and lend intuitive support has made her an effective...

Cultivating a culture of transparency is a challenge for any organization. Recording it for posterity on a podcast is a lesson in embodied connection. Transforming Trauma host Emily Ruth welcomes back Brad Kammer, Training Director and Senior Trainer at Complex Trauma Training Center (CTTC), and Stefanie Klein, CTTC's Assistant Training Director and Trainer, for a heartfelt and candid year-end con...

Milestones have a way of inviting reflection, and this one is no exception. This year-end review of Transforming Trauma also happens to be our 150th episode. CTTC Director and NARM® Senior Trainer Brad Kammer joins host Emily Ruth to reminisce about the incredible guests who have graced our current season and the many heartfelt conversations that have shaped the show since its inception in January...

Did you know that the diagnostic criteria for borderline personality disorder (BPD) has remained the same since it was officially added to the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders in 1980? Forty years later, BPD remains deeply misunderstood by the public and isolating for those who live with the condition. On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ru...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth welcomes Dr. David Richo, PhD, MFT, psychotherapist, teacher, and writer to share wisdom from his 50+ years of helping people identify and resolve relationship challenges that often mirror issues from their childhood. Dr. Richo points to growth that arrives in the form of triggers – adverse emotional responses that blur the distinction betwee...

Sex is one of the most complex barriers to true intimacy in a relationship. It's also one of the least-discussed topics in therapy. Therapists often avoid discussing sex due to their perceived lack of subject knowledge or confidence in their therapeutic skills.  Clinical Sexologist and Psychologist Rikke Pristed believes that therapists have already developed a baseline competency in sex-related i...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma, CTTC Director and NARM® Senior Trainer Brad Kammer welcomes Jessica Britt, Training Director of The Diamond Approach, to share wisdom from her decades-long journey of personal healing and professional development. Jessica says that creating more depth in the field requires therapists to do the hard internal work of self-healing. She invites us to feel our wa...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth is joined by Daniel Morehead, MD., a leading voice for mental health advocacy and author of Science Over Stigma: Education and Advocacy for Mental Health . Emily Ruth and Daniel examine what it means to be neurodivergent, the role variation plays in evolution, and the radical act of greeting neurodivergence with curiosity and humility. The pa...

It's no secret that incarcerated folks lack access to adequate mental health care while in prison. Reintegration support is even harder to come by once they are released. Sadly, women face even more significant challenges than men on both counts. But what if more trauma-informed professionals got involved in supporting formerly incarcerated women on both the individual and community levels? On thi...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma , host Emily Ruth welcomes back Dr. Jonathan Shedler, renowned psychologist, author, consultant, researcher, and clinical educator. In their conversation, they are delving deeper into the elements that make up good psychotherapy and the importance of connection between therapist and client. Dr. Shedler and Emily Ruth also explore critical flaws in the Diagnos...

When was the last time you took a break from learning new professional skills and, instead, carved out space to pursue self-discovery and community support?  On this episode of Transforming Trauma , host Emily Ruth welcomes back the faculty of the Complex Trauma Training Center (CTTC)––Brad Kammer, Stefanie Klein, and Marcia Black––to introduce SPACE , an innovative inner development program for t...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma , Brad Kammer, CTTC Director and NARM® Senior Trainer, invites Tobias Konermann, Ph. D., NARM Therapist, to share insights from his recent article: How the NeuroAffective Relational Model Expands the Psychotherapeutic Landscape.  Together, they discuss a broad range of topics, including what sets the developmentally-oriented, mindfulness-based aspects of NARM...

Most addiction treatment models focus on behavioral change. And yet, many of these models fail at helping people fully recover from their addiction. Perhaps it is time to try something different? Applying NARM® to addiction brings focus to areas that behavioral interventions miss, like understanding the role of trauma, attachment, relationships, and shame. Addressing these areas has a profound imp...

While many clinical modalities are designed for helping clients in individual therapy, trauma therapists are often looking for modalities that can better support their groups.  One therapist was inspired to take NARM principles and apply them to group therapy.  Her experience transformed how she thinks about the therapeutic group dynamic and the expanded role the NeuroAffective Relational Model pl...

There's a growing body of evidence suggesting that practices like weight lifting can support trauma-affected individuals on their healing journeys. On this episode of Transforming Trauma , Emily is joined by Mariah Rooney, LCSW, co-founder of Trauma-Informed Weight Lifting, the one-of-a-kind non-profit program dedicated to the training and education of trauma-informed movement practitioners as wel...

We often discuss the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) as it relates to the adult journey of healing from complex trauma, but what about younger clients? On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth is joined by Kami Black, LCSW, founder of ROOTs Transitions, a program that supports adolescent females ages 15 to 18 and their families by blending elements of outdoor therapy and resi...

Clinicians treating clients with complex trauma already understand the value of using the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) in 1:1 settings. Imagine, then, the transformative healing that might occur when applying NARM in group recovery and transitional living environments.  On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth welcomes Laura Sorte, LCSW, NARM Therapist and Executive Direct...

Many therapists are conflicted about how to show up with their clients. While there is lots of training to be highly emotionally engaged with clients, there is also training that therapists should be more distant in sessions to avoid possible countertransference––which is the evoking of emotions and reactions within the therapist. What if, instead of attempting to be overly engaged or maintaining...

A vital tenet of the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) is that, no matter how withdrawn or isolated one becomes due to complex trauma, humans remain instinctively and spontaneously drawn towards connection, just as plants are drawn towards the sun. On this episode of Transforming Trauma , Emily Ruth is joined by Joseph McCaffrey, LPC, LMHC, an Arizona-based NARM therapist specializing in ecot...

Telling our story––to a trusted friend, a therapist, or ourselves––is a continuous unfolding. Each layer shed is an opportunity to re-engage with the past and assess its significance on the present. If the subject matter includes trauma, the process of exposure requires extra care. On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth is joined by the inimitable writer and writing coach Jeanette...

All parents face challenges. Black fathers, however, navigate a unique combination of social and intrapersonal pressures, often without the benefit of culturally nuanced support. That's changing as more Black fathers, some of whom are also mental health clinicians, educators, or adjacent professionals, speak out about their experiences, create networks of knowledgeable care, and inspire others to...

On this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Emily Ruth welcomes back trauma bond expert and author Nadine Macaluso, LMFT, Ph. D., to introduce her latest book, Run Like Hell, A Therapist's Guide To Recognizing, Escaping, Healing From Trauma Bonds. The pair also discuss the markers of a trauma-bonded relationship and how to use NARM to address the complex PTSD that routinely develops as a result o...

The "goal" of incarceration varies depending on who you ask. Whether you consider prison fair retribution for engaging in criminal activity or an opportunity at redemption, most people agree that the punitive nature of the US criminal justice system neither rehabilitates nor curbs recidivism rates.  Emily Ruth invites Christine Marallen to share her extensive insight into the criminal justice reha...

Without early-stage therapeutic intervention, many at-risk youth face a higher likelihood of becoming adult inmates within the ill-equipped and wildly expensive US prison system. Two advocates, operating at opposite ends of the institutional spectrum, believe that change is possible, especially when we extend trauma-informed support to the youngest and most vulnerable members of our society.  In t...

Context is crucial to understanding the challenges faced by those in recovery from complex trauma perpetuated by religious leaders and authoritarian systems of spirituality. That's especially true regarding former members of Black Christian communities where the church represents more than just a home for shared worship.  In this episode of Transforming Trauma, Emily Ruth invites Vanessa R. Brooks...