Books Have Been Healing Since Ancient Times

Since I was little girl books have played a powerful role in my life.

Books helped me see a world beyond the world I was living in. In fact, education as a whole provided me with a glimpse of "a way out", at least when it came to poverty.

Books became even more critical for me when I started to intensely look at my complex childhood trauma.

There are countless books that have helped me gain greater insight into myself, the world, and the people around me.

All About Love by bell hooks helped me appreciate what it really means to love.

E Squared by Pam Grout made me clearly see my sheer power to co-create.

The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk helped me understand about the complexities of trauma and how it manifests in our lives.

And the list goes one.

Although books are good for all of us with research showing that "regular" readers have a 20% lower mortality rate , when it comes to trauma survivors, data shows books can improve coping skills and reduce depressive symptoms, for example.

This is why I'm so excited to announce the 7th episode on our Trauma & Healing podcast series centered on my book Me Too: A Therapists's Journey to Heal, Find Liberation, & Joy is with? Tonya Melendez , ?award winning psychic and retired librarian for an episode called,The Inspirational Healing Power of Bibliotherapy . We'll be talking about the power of books to help us liberate - especially in terms of trauma. Tune in here to listen now!

If you haven't picked up Me Too yet, I would highly encourage you to do so for its ability to both inspire change and provide a clear pathway forward for change, for survivors and their allies.?

Pick up your copy now here !

And if you're ready to amplify your ability to use your voice in ways that will help you curate more of the life you want, check out our Ink Your Pain writers retreat on September 21 in the great city of Detroit here .

In the spirit of reading to rise,

Demarra West

Founder