Book Review, UNbroken: The Trauma Response is Never Wrong
This writer came across, UnBroken by Mary Catherine McDonald PhD, while looking up newly released trauma and mental health resources for personal and professional use. McDonald is a research professor and life coach who has been involved in the mental health world professionally since beginning her PhD in 2009. She now lectures, researches, and publishes on the neuroscience, psychology, and lived experience of trauma, including this more recent text (published 2023), as well as research articles, book chapters, and two previous titles focused on trauma.
This text includes an introduction with eight chapters, totaling about 150 pages. The text also includes about 15 additional pages that include acknowledgements, notes (citations), recommended resources (that the author may or may not reference within chapters), about the author, and publisher. McDonald’s casual yet engaging voice throughout this text makes its contents seem both important and complex, but also easy to read and remain engaged with.
The contents of each chapter typically begin with a related quote, and then delves into either the writer’s own experiences with trauma, or examples she has pulled from her work with her clients to help communicate themes. McDonald also helps explain concepts with subheadings, frequently including “takeaways/tools” and “trauma tools”, with some other distinct subheadings (for example, “mohawk of self awareness”) drawing attention to important concepts in memorable ways. The over-arching theme of this text seems to try and amplify the importance of acknowledging, understanding, and appreciating the trauma response, contrary to society historically connecting these responses to weakness and shame. While explaining some of these “Trauma Tools,” the author often gives step by step instructions as to how to utilize this tool/exercise, allowing the reader to try them in real-time if they felt inclined to do so.
In a quote on page 138, the writer uses imagery to help the reader visualize, and de-stigmatize the trauma response:
“…The body responds to a thorn or splinter by setting off an inflammatory reaction. We might not notice the splinter at first, but we will notice the inflammation, the throbbing, the skin warm to the touch, the oozing infection. Just because these symptoms are not pleasant does not mean they are unwarranted or a sign of our brokenness. They are the opposite. The body initiates this reaction to survive. It does so because it is strong. In a similar way the body begins a sophisticated response to thorns of the spirit. It does so in order to survive… If we don’t feel ashamed and weak when our body responds to protest us from physical thorns, then why should we feel ashamed and weak when it mounts its own response to spirit thorns?”
In Unbroken, McDonald asks us to push back on historical beliefs and social contexts of trauma, get curious to our own traumas, and encourages us to “sit with it” and lean into those that may be willing to sit with us. This writer recommends this text to any interested parties that may be curious as to McDonald’s passionate take on the trauma response.
Christine Perkins, MSW, SWLC
References
McDonald, M. PhD (2023). UNbroken: The Trauma Response is Never Wrong, and Other Things You Need to Know to Take Back Your Life. Sounds True.