Common Shock: Witnessing Violence Every Day--How We Are Harmed, How We Can Heal

by Kaethe Weingarten

A ground-breaking work from a renowned trauma expert reveals a problem that profoundly affects us all - and shows what we can do about it.

Every single day, whether we realize it or not, we witness and are affected by violence - often with serious, long-term consequences.

At times the violence is extraordinary, impossible to neglect: the terrorist attacks of 9/11 make us anxious - even panicky - unable to sleep. More often the violence is mundane: the customer ahead of us in the cafeteria line berates the cashier and we feel inexplicably edgy for hours. Most of the time we don't even notice: our 12-year-old watches a murder on television (one of the more than 100,000 acts of TV violence he has seen by that age) and zones out.

In her revolutionary new book, Common Shock, Harvard Medical School psychologist Kaethe Weingarten, Ph.D., defines a problem that up until now had no name. Drawing on the latest scientific research and her years of clinical and community experience, Kaethe Weingarten describes common shock — the biological and psychological responses that are triggered when we witness violence. It is common, because it happens all the time, to everyone in any community. It is a shock, because whether our response is spaciness, distress, or bravado, it affects our mind, body and spirit.

Addressing the full range of violence we all experience, Dr. Weingarten then offers us tools to take effective action, including:
* How to manage the physical symptoms of common shock
* How to cope with the suffering of those who are ill or dying
* How parents can help children who witness violence
* How ordinary citizens can make a difference
Practical, hopeful, and inspirational, this breakthrough guide lets us discover what we can do in our homes and neighborhoods to transform common shock into a compassionate prescription for healing ourselves, our families, our communities, and the world.

Author Biography:: Kaethe Weingarten, Ph.D., associate clinical professor in Harvard University's Department of Psychiatry, has been on the faculty of the Harvard Medical School since 1979. Dr. Weingarten also teaches at the Family Institute of Cambridge and has taught across the United States and in Africa, Australia, Canada, Europe, and New Zealand.

Genres: Psychology

400 pages, Hardcover

First published August 25, 2003

Reviews

[Naomi Pattirane Balshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaethe Weingarten describes in human terms how witnessing and experiencing trauma, from seemingly inconsequential small events to personal tragedies and armed conflict affect our perspective of the world and how we relate to ourselves and others. She poignantly examines how personal events in her life, from her parents testifying in the McCarthy trials to her daughter's disability and father's death have shaped her world view. She describes the stories of victims of genocide and war from Kosovo to Uganda with compassionate insight and wisdom, providing steps that can lead to transformational healing and reconciliation.

[Justin Zamora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exposure to violence on a daily basis has caused us to be desensitized not only within ourselves but towards others. The author does a marvelous job showing how our frenetic schedules, movies, and media reports have caused us to minimize what horrors we experience through a felt sense she calls "common shock." By bringing awareness to common shock, the author invites us to become more aware of what we experience, but also calls us to attune to what others go through. Her simple framework of fostering awareness, safety, aidos (i.e. reverence and right integrity, and honor), and compassion allow us to step outside of ourself and reach out to others who are also in common shock. For the psychotherapist, this is an important read as the book urges us to see past the banality of pain and suffering, and to hold onto, or witness, what our clients share. For the layperson, this book invites us to become aware of our own common shock state, how to address it, and how to be a witness for others.

[Cindywho]

I'm not good at absorbing non-fiction. I usually need a narrative. I did go see the author talk about her book a few months ago because the subject seemed interesting and relevant. Most incidents of overt violence I've only seen on video or news stories on the radio but she also talks about dealing with the violence of illness, unkindness, etc... I did have a difficult time reading it because she describes the unforgivable violences of genocide and how people respond. The therapy of listening and small kindnesses? Sometimes it seems closer to nothing than anywhere near enough. I probably didn't absorb as much as I should, but hopefully enough to help me know what to do. (November 26, 2003)

[Elizabeth]

very good condition