Stories for Survivors

Sometimes all you need in life is a good book. Reading stories that you can relate to can make you feel less alone in your healing process. It’s always nice to know someone went through something similar as you did. You can take their lessons they learned and implement them into your life and grow from them. Here are five stories I have recently read and loved, non-fiction and fiction, about trauma and survivors and their journey throughout the ups and downs of recovery and finding a new normal. 

What My Mother and I Don't Talk About: Fifteen Writers Break the Silence What My Mother and I Don't Talk About is a book of short stories each talking about their respective relationship with their mothers.Whether they are stories are about forgiveness, acceptance, or indifference, each story is so complex and unique. Some will make you cry. Some will make you laugh. Some you may be able to relate to, while some may be able to teach you a few things. It’s also a lesson, in our society we put mothers on a pedestal, crafting the perfect idea of what a mother should act like and do. We sometimes fail to recognize the humanity in the role of motherhood, and how even our mothers are not perfect, though very close to it. 

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma (Bessel Van Der Kolk) 

This book dives deep into the psychology of your trauma, and how you can figure out the best way for you to grow and heal from it. Either by using some techniques therapists help victims recover from trauma or the book can help assist you find your own ways. The Body Keeps the Score, has become a very popular read amongst readers trying to learn about themselves to unpack their damage. 

On Earth, We’re Briefly Gorgeous (Ocean Vuong) 

Ocean Vuong asks the tough questions in this book, the big one being, “how can we heal and rescue each other without forsaking who we really are?”. He does this while navigating the trauma of his own life and looking back on how his mother took part in it unknowingly. This book is an expedition throughout his life, how he found peace within that. This was a very interesting read, as it makes you reflect on your own life. 

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest (Cheryl Strayed) 

This book Wild:From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest follows Cheryl Strayed, 22 at the time, on her journey to find herself on a hiking trail in the Pacific Crest in the wake of her mothers death and her divorce. She sets out to find herself on a 1,100 mile hike and finds more than that in the end.

My Body (Emily Ratakjowski) 

Emily Ratajkowski, “My body” is a journey through the very thin line of empowerment and objectification. She writes about the traumatic parts of her life that she has never talked about publicly before. She also writes about how she once saw herself, and how she sees herself now. As well as how she lost herself and how she found her way back again. This book also dives deep into the unrealistic beauty standards women are held to (I know this doesn't seem like something you would want to hear coming from a supermodel), but Emily’s perspective is a very unique one, as she has seen a lot being in the industry. I believe everyone can learn something from this book. 

Here's to reading, and healing!

For support, healing and resources, visit Survivors.org.

Written by: Fall 2022 Intern Miranda Carroll