The Complex PTSD Coping Skills Workbook: An Evidence-Based Approach to Manage Fear and Anger, Build Confidence, and Reclaim Your Identity

by Tamara McClintock Greenberg PsyD

Overview

Reclaim your life from C-PTSD with this powerful and compassionate workbook.

If you’ve experienced long-term or repeated trauma—such as childhood abuse or neglect, domestic violence, betrayal, or prolonged emotional abuse—you may struggle with intense feelings of sadness, anger, anxiety, shame, and distrust toward others. You should know that you aren’t alone, your pain is real, and there are ways to improve your mental health and begin to heal. This compassionate and evidence-based workbook can help you get started.

This workbook offers an integrative approach for coping with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD) using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mindfulness, mentalization, and relational therapy. You’ll learn the most effective strategies to manage symptoms, overcome painful memories, and build self-confidence. Most importantly, you’ll find validation that your feelings aren’t “crazy” or “outsized,” and discover the skills needed to help you reclaim your life.

This empowering workbook will help you:

• Identify and understand the root cause of your C-PTSD
• Overcome fear, hypervigilance, and avoidance
• Balance emotions before they interfere with daily life
• Seek out and maintain relationships based in equality and respect

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781684039708
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	09/01/2022
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	79,673
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Tamara McClintock Greenberg, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist and renowned expert in the treatment of depression, anxiety, trauma, and more. Her work has been published in HuffPost, Psych Central, Psychology Today, the San Francisco Chronicle, and she has been featured in Forbes, USA Today, Newsweek, Next Avenue (PBS), and The Washington Post. She has also been interviewed by major radio stations, including KQED’s Forum.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Complex PTSD vs. PTSD 5

Chapter 2 Monsters that Haunt: Conquering and Exploring Fear and Anger 21

Chapter 3 Beyond "Emotional Regulation": Advanced Techniques for Dealing with Anger and Fear 45

Chapter 4 Identifying, Understanding, and Managing Dissociation 65

Chapter 5 Mentalization and Authenticity: Strategies for Metacognition 81

Chapter 6 Dealing with Avoidance Mindfully: How to Know When Exposure May Be Helpful 105

Chapter 7 Dealing with Suicidal Thoughts and Feelings 123

Chapter 8 When Substance Use Becomes a Problem 145

Chapter 9 Finding a Therapist: Using Research to Find the Best Fit 161

Conclusion Continuing on the Road to Healing 177

Resources 179

References 191

Editorial Reviews

Trustfully inviting, this workbook is both intensely personal while universal in its helpful information and deep wisdom. As a physician witnessing women’s lives for over forty years, this single volume unlocks areas of confusion and frustration that increasingly have separated people from more joyful living. Greenberg shares stories from her many years as a therapist and guides the reader through an efficient, productive, and self-affirming healing journey.”
—Ricki Pollycove, MD, MS, FACOG, FNCBC, fellow of the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology, author of The Pocket Idiot’s Guide to Bioidentical Hormones, and coauthor of Mother Nurture

Ricki Pollycove

Quite simply the best workbook for clients dealing with trauma. It’s both incredibly insightful as well as accessible, with an astute sense of what clients who have lost their identities because of adult and childhood adversity need. This book provides nurturing and healing advice that will benefit all trauma survivors. Greenberg’s deep empathy and compassion is on every page. It also serves as a vital resource for clinicians working with clients who have C-PTSD. In time, this will be a staple of every clinician’s library.”
—Dan Hocoy, PhD, president of Goddard College, licensed clinical psychologist, and coeditor of APA Handbook of Humanistic and Existential Psychology

Dan Hocoy

The Complex PTSD Coping Skills Workbook provides an extraordinarily powerful road map for treating complex trauma. Tamara Greenberg’s respectful and inviting tone is sure to make this a classic workbook. All C-PTSD patients, families, and therapists need to get this book.”
—Louann Brizendine, MD, neuropsychiatrist, and New York Times bestselling author of The Female Brain and The Upgrade

Louann Brizendine

This has been such a wonderful read. This workbook is perfectly timed, and not only defines C-PTSD but reflects on its pernicious effects. Tamara really breaks down the impact of C-PTSD and provides practical tools for navigating through its challenges. This book is a wonderful resource for individuals interested in healing and understanding how to support others suffering from C-PTSD.”
—Ankhesenamun Ball, PsyD, clinical neuropsychologist; and clinical director of Being, A Psychological Corporation

Ankhesenamun Ball

A marvelous workbook! Tamara McClintock Greenberg writes a wonderfully accessible and practical guide for anyone who has experienced trauma, and in particular, for those who are living with C-PTSD. The stories, vignettes, explanations, checklists, and reflective exercises provide an exquisitely constructed, down-to-earth road map for promoting change. This resource destigmatizes C-PTSD and brilliantly leads the reader to take the fear out of facing trauma.”
—Erick Hung, MD, professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco

Erick Hung

In this workbook, Tamara Greenberg once again gifts us with her masterful blend of theory (defining C-PTSD), clarity of understanding underlying multiple issues such as dissociation and substance abuse, practical lessons for managing difficult emotions and relationships, and finding the right therapist—and finally always with her wise and compassionate voice.”
—Ilene A. Serlin, PhD, BC-DMT, coeditor of Integrated Care for the Traumatized

Ilene A. Serlin

Tamara McClintock Greenberg’s workbook engages readers in a conversation that brings into focus the real-life dilemmas posed by complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD), and provides very practical and nuanced ways to harness the power of four ‘A’s—acceptance, awareness, authenticity, and action. A truly valuable resource for people recovering from C-PTSD and their therapists.”
—Julian D. Ford, PhD, ABPP, past president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and professor at the University of Connecticut Health Center

Julian D. Ford

The Complex PTSD Coping Skills Workbook is a wonderful resource for anyone who has ongoing distress as a result of multiple negative or traumatic events. Incorporating clinical experience, research findings, and a deep, compassionate understanding of the issues, Greenberg has created a practical, supportive workbook that can be used alone or with a therapist to find ‘a path to feeling and being more in control of your life’.”
—Elizabeth McMahon, PhD, psychologist, and author of Overcoming Anxiety and Panic Interactive Guide and Virtual Reality Therapy for Anxiety

Elizabeth McMahon

An informative, engaging, and highly practical workbook. Greenberg provides the reader with a range of clearly articulated strategies for dealing with the aftermath of complex trauma: from noticing and accepting anger, to managing dissociation, to finding a therapist. The guidance is excellent: firmly rooted in theory, evidence, and the latest clinical wisdom. I highly recommend this book.”
—Mick Cooper, professor of counseling psychology at the University of Roehampton, London; and coauthor of Personalizing Psychotherapy

Mick Cooper