Troy Terwilliger’s Reviews > Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence - From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror > Status Update
Troy Terwilliger
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The damage to relational life is not a secondary effect of trauma, as originally thought. Traumatic events have primary effects not only on psychological structures of the self but also on the systems of attachment and meaning that link individual and community. Mardi Horowitz defines traumatic life events as those that cannot be assimilated with the victim's "inner schemata" of self in relation to the world. (p.29)
— 10 hours, 57 min ago
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Troy Terwilliger
is on page 50 of 247
‘when a large group of children were followed from birth until adulthood, roughly one child in ten showed an unusual capacity to withstand an adverse early environment.These children were characterized by an alert, active temperament, unusual sociability and skill in communicating with others,& a strong sense of being able to affect their own destiny, which psychologists call "internal locus of control."’ (p.33)
— 10 hours, 14 min ago
Troy Terwilliger
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“No two people have identical reactions, even to the same event. The traumatic syndrome, despite its many constant features, is not the same for everyone. In a study of combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, for example, each man's predominant symptom pattern was related to his individual childhood history, emotional conflicts, and adaptive style.” (p. 32)
— 10 hours, 18 min ago
Troy Terwilliger
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The traumatic event thus destroys the belief that one can be oneself in relation to others.Unsatisfactory
resolution of the normal developmental conflicts over autonomy leaves the person prone to shame and doubt.These same emotional reactions reappear in the aftermath of traumatic events.Shame is a response to helplessness, the violation of bodily integrity, and the indignity suffered in the eyes of another person.
— 10 hours, 39 min ago
resolution of the normal developmental conflicts over autonomy leaves the person prone to shame and doubt.These same emotional reactions reappear in the aftermath of traumatic events.Shame is a response to helplessness, the violation of bodily integrity, and the indignity suffered in the eyes of another person.
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 50 of 247
A secure sense of connection with caring people is the
fondation of personality development. When this connection is shattered, the traumatized person loses her basic sense of self. Developmental conflicts of childhood and adolescence, long since resolved, are suddenly reopened. Trauma forces the survivor to relive all her earlier struggles over autonomy, initiative, competence, identity, and intimacy. (p. 29)
— 10 hours, 44 min ago
fondation of personality development. When this connection is shattered, the traumatized person loses her basic sense of self. Developmental conflicts of childhood and adolescence, long since resolved, are suddenly reopened. Trauma forces the survivor to relive all her earlier struggles over autonomy, initiative, competence, identity, and intimacy. (p. 29)
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 49 of 247
In Chapter 2 of Trauma and Recovery, Judith Herman connects Freud’s classic concept of the compulsion to repeat with psychiatrist Mardi Horowitz’s cognitive framework, the completion principle. Both concepts address the exact same psychological puzzle: Why do traumatized individuals continuously re-experience, re-enact, or relive terrifying experiences that cause them profound distress?
— Oct 06, 2026 04:01PM
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 48 of 247
Three of the men died by suicide during the course of the study. Thus, the very “threat of annihilation" that defined the traumatic moment may pursue the survivor long after the danger has passed. No wonder that Freud found, in the traumatic neurosis, signs of a
"daemonic force at work." The terror, rage, and hatred of the traumatic moment live on in the dialectic of trauma.
— Oct 05, 2026 11:47PM
"daemonic force at work." The terror, rage, and hatred of the traumatic moment live on in the dialectic of trauma.
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 47 of 247
Because post-traumatic symptoms are so persistent and so wide-ranging, they may be mistaken for enduring characteristics of the victim's
personality. This is a costly error, for the person with unrecognized post-traumatic stress disorder is
condemned to a diminished life, tormented by memory and bounded by helplessness and fear.
— Oct 05, 2026 11:42PM
personality. This is a costly error, for the person with unrecognized post-traumatic stress disorder is
condemned to a diminished life, tormented by memory and bounded by helplessness and fear.
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 46 of 247
They lack drama; their significance lies in what is missing. For this reason, constrictive symptoms are not readily recognized, and their origins in a traumatic event are often lost. With the passage of time, as these negative symptoms become the most prominent feature of the post-traumatic disorder, the diagnosis becomes increasingly easy to overlook.
— Oct 05, 2026 11:42PM
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 45 of 247
The psychiatrist Mardi Horowitz postulates a "completion principle" which "summarizes the human mind's intrinsic ability to process new information in order to bring up to date the inner schemata of the self and the world." …The trauma is resolved only when the survivor develops a new mental "schema" for understanding what has
happened.
— Oct 05, 2026 08:59PM
happened.
Troy Terwilliger
is on page 44 of 247
In his use of language, Janet implicitly recognized that helplessness constitutes the essential insult of trauma, and that restitution requires the restoration of a sense of etticacy and power.
— Oct 05, 2026 08:54PM