The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma: Using the NeuroAffective Relational Model to Address Adverse Childhood Experiences and Resolve Complex Trauma
Product details
ASIN : B097QQK8PQ
Publisher : North Atlantic Books (July 26, 2022)
A clinician’s guidebook for treating developmental trauma–Apply the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) to help clients overcome complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD), recover from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and map post-traumatic growth.
The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma introduces a cutting-edge therapeutic model for addressing attachment, relational, and developmental trauma in a clinical setting. NARM is an integrated mind-body framework that identifies and treats the complex ways childhood trauma can manifest in interpersonal difficulties, maladaptive patterns, identity issues, and disrupted affect regulation.
Integrating the latest research on adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, it arms psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and trauma-informed therapists with the skills and tools they need to help clients break free from the lasting effects of childhood trauma.
The Guide is a go-to tool that explains:
The four pillars of the NARM therapeutic model
Cultural and Intergenerational trauma
Shock vs. Complex trauma
Adverse Childhood Experiences and Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
How to differentiate NARM from other therapeutic modalities
NARM’s organizing principles
How to integrate NARM into your therapeutic practice
30 reviews for The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma: Using the NeuroAffective Relational Model to Address Adverse Childhood Experiences and Resolve Complex Trauma
Rated 5 out of 5
Kristen Donigan (verified owner)–
The authors successfully articulate a powerfully transformative model, both beautifully humane and clinically sophisticated. NARM is not just an effective form of therapy, it’s a way of being – relating, growing and healing. Heller and Kammer embody the NARM philosophy and their words transmit ease, confidence and humility. The reader is held in respect and compassion, invited to be at once client and therapist, acknowledging we all have the capacity for greater wholeness. NARM illuminates how, on the part of both clients and therapists, even subtle or well-intended adaptations to trauma can get in the way of meaningful change. This discernment holds promise to resolve the perpetuation of trauma throughout our lives, but especially in therapeutic relationships.
As a NARM practitioner, visual learner and lover of language, this book satisfied a desire to have a detailed and thorough reference I can return to as I continue to relate to the model in ever deepening ways. My gratitude to Heller and Kammer for this careful articulation of their work. I eagerly await the next book(s) that will take us even deeper into the spiritual underpinnings of NARM.
Rated 5 out of 5
Irem Akduman (verified owner)–
Neuro Affective Relational Model (NARM) is an amazing model that gives us a very comprehensive framework in understanding developmental trauma and its effects on our lives. Although it seems so simple at first sight, you are fascinated more and more as you perceive its depth. It is a very compassionate and humanistic approach and most importantly it has a non-pathologizing language. This new book is a very comprehensive manual for the therapists. It enables them to integrate this framework with their practice, widen their perspectives in making sense of developmental trauma, how it effects individuals’ development and their adulthood. In addition, it is an amazing support because it teaches how to develop a good relationship with the clients by respecting their boundaries and agency. The authors, Heller and Kammer, explained in considerable detail how NARM is used in the sessions and how change happens in the process, with actual case examples. As a NARM therapist, I find it very useful in understanding the framework and in applying it during the therapy session. The book also contains some reflective exercises which deepens the readers’ experience. I recommend it not just to psychotherapists, but also to anyone who is interested in self-growth. The Model’s view of the development makes it easier for us to understand ourselves, people around us and our relationships better, which might be an excellent starting point for changes that we want. Amazing resource for everybody.
Rated 5 out of 5
Amy Wheatley (verified owner)–
After reading the first NARM book “Healing Developmental Trauma” I immersed myself in all the NARM content I could find. A few years ago I was surprised at how little I could find about applying NARM online. This book was exactly what I was seeking! I signed up for Level 2 training with NARM in May 2022. While my experience has been nothing short of amazing this book has enhanced and reinforced my understanding of the NARM model. I am amazed at how well Brad and Larry were able to translate a model like NARM into an informative, but often spiritual and poetic book. This book is wonderful for a practitioner curious about NARM or wanting to implement NARM/ a trauma informed approach into their practice. I wholeheartedly believe any human being would benefit from learning even the basics of NARM. It has changed my perspective on life and what humans truly need to heal, grow, and thrive. I have found this guide to be an amazing resource to help deepen my understanding of trauma, NARM, and implementing the model into my counseling practice. While clinical training is a worthwhile investment it is not accessible to everyone. This book lays out the same concepts, tools, and education provided by the institute. I love the therapy session transcripts included in the book. The authors include their intentions and concept use within the transcript. It is a great way to see how this nuanced model is actually applied. I also love the lists of NARM language and phrases included in the book. It serves as a wonderful guide when I am practicing. I have been so excited every time I open the book to read. Trauma is one of, if not the greatest cause of human suffering. Researching and reading about it can often be difficult. NARM has this unique way of educating on the devastation of trauma, but also the hope and desire to heal that lives within us all. I am so grateful for the release of this book and the impact it will have.
Rated 5 out of 5
Stefanie Klein, LCSW (verified owner)–
Brad Kammer and Dr. Laurence Heller opened a vault full of resources, information and heart in this new book about NARM. A must read for mental health professionals as well as any helping professionals working with developmental and complex trauma. This guide is also very informative for anyone seeking to understand the impact of their own adverse childhood experiences on their current life. I read Healing Developmental Trauma in 2012 and it fundamentally changed the way I approach my work as a psychotherapist as well as the way I experience myself in the world. This 2nd book on NARM gets into the nuts and bolts of the model. I love the exercises that can be used for personal growth or can be used with your clients. The transcripts of actual sessions really bring the model to life in a way that feels more experiential. Great book. Great contribution to the field of Trauma!
Rated 5 out of 5
Leslie Filsinger (verified owner)–
The Practical Guide For Healing Developmental Trauma is an invitation for clinicians to develop a deeper understanding of who we are as humans, what we bring to therapeutic relationships, and how best to support our clients in developing authentic connection with themselves. The reflective exercises found throughout the book create opportunities for the reader to feel the principles of NARM in a deep and meaningful way. As a practioner of NARM, and a Clinical Supervior, I am excied to share my passion for NARM and this book provides a comprehensible guide to implimenting the modality. For non-clinicians, this book also creates a foudation for deeper curiosity in how we relate to ourselves, opening a path to greater self compassion and authentic connection.
Rated 5 out of 5
IGHM (verified owner)–
You can’t learn swimming by correspondence. And you can’t learn NARM–an advanced modality for healing complex trauma–by reading a book. But whether or not you have already trained in NARM or you are just trying to figure out what it is, this book as as close as you’ll get to learning this model without taking the course.
Let me first say, that NARM profoundly affected my personal and professional life, as both a client of a NARM therapist and a provider of NARM myself. It’s a profound, heartfull, and nuanced approach to healing complex trauma which has given me tools for coping with my own trauma, as well as help the clients who come to me for therapy. It has also helped me improve my interpersonal relationship, including my marriage.
Both authors of this book have been my teachers. They have poured their hearts into this book and gave it their all. They generously attempted to convey as much of their knowledge as possible using the medium of writing. With the help of reflective exercises, transcripts, and very clear, digestible, non-jargony language they sought to give an experiential taste of how this model works.
I hope this book gets the exposure and popularity it deserves.
Rated 5 out of 5
Rhonda Mills (verified owner)–
This book is a wonderful, easy-to-read resource which supports me in working with my coaching clients, and also in my own learning process. The authors both are extremely knowledgeable and clear in how they distill the NARM process. I recommend this book for professionals and people from all walks of life who are interested in healing, wholeness, and living an integrated and connected life. It lays out the most up-to-date models used in NARM which have transformed and simplified my work and my own process.
The chapter on the Emotional Completion Model is one of the best I’ve seen on working with emotions related to trauma, and generally. Other chapters such as Reinforcing Agency, the NARM Relational Model, and the NARM Organizing Principles are also powerful and transformative. I’m imagining I will re-read this book again and again!
Rated 5 out of 5
Katy (verified owner)–
I’ve had the experience of coming to NARM first as a client in therapy, second as a therapist-student at the Training Institute. This wonderful book encapsulates the wisdom, experience, depth, and reach that the NARM model of trauma treatment offers. This book (I’m only half way through so far) “talks” to my cells, my heart, and intellectual mind by offering clear, simple language for concepts and content that resonate and “land” for me as a human being, a therapist, and a life long learner.
This is a must read for anyone wanting non-fluffy, direct, well researched content from experienced clinicians who have respect and patience for the full depth of the human experience.
Having witnessed Brad and Larry–with trainees and in demo sessions of clients, I trust the content of this book as what I’m reading here is truly what these clinicians are doing, have been doing for decades, and fully grasp in a grounded, wise, intellectual and human way.
As a clinician, NARM trainings and this book specifically provide clear interventions for complex trauma versus other books and models where I’ve been left with abstract ideas of trauma, general “trauma informed” words and minimal confidence of what to actually do in my sessions with clients. I feel more confident, inspired in my work, and at peace when in relationship with clients who are coming for support for trauma healing, because of NARM.
A must read!
Rated 5 out of 5
Maureen Kebo (verified owner)–
With equal parts intellect and heart, Dr. Heller and Brad Kammer have provided a practical and comprehensive guide for anyone seeking to understand and work with complex developmental trauma. Complex developmental trauma is riddled with layers of complexity and can be overwhelming for clients and clinicians. The NARM model is unique in presenting a framework that holds the client as well as the clinician in a relational environment where change, healing and growth occur organically. Whether you are reading to apply to your work or take into your own recovery from complex developmental trauma, this book will support your journey.
Rated 5 out of 5
Laura Carr, MA (verified owner)–
This book is an excellent guide to learning about how NARM considers the clinician an essential vehicle for joining the client on their healing journey. This practical guide clarifies how complex post-traumatic stress disorder produces adaptive survival strategies that can get in the way of what our clients want most for themselves. It has helped me to look at the client’s adaptations and not the trauma as a way to work with what comes up in the session moment-by-moment. It also offers the reader, who may not be a clinician, valuable information about how the adaptations may present in their lives. The book is sprinkled with experiential exercises as an additional bonus to invite a more embodied understanding of this depth-oriented model. The most helpful chapter consists of annotated transcripts of actual NARM sessions and how it is applied in a clinical setting. This practical guide communicates the necessity for relating to our clients through heartfulness which sets NARM apart from other modalities.
Rated 5 out of 5
Crystal (verified owner)–
As a NARM trained therapist who’s been taught by both authors I can say that this book aligns with the title. It’s practical, applicable, and invaluable. NARM is a complex modality for good reason. However, the way the authors are able to synthesis NARM is so helpful and has deepened my learning even more. I often refer back to the book when wanting clarity or to understand something deeper and it seems that each time I pick it up I learn even more. I can’t say enough about how much NARM has impacted my life both personally and professionally and I find comfort in knowing that I have this book as an additional support in my life. I believe complex trauma is a public health crisis and the more people who learn about trauma and get support from NARM the more we can collectively heal. This book is one solution towards offering education, awareness, and healing for all who have endured complex trauma.
Rated 5 out of 5
Emily Ruth (verified owner)–
The “opportunity for becoming more fully human” feels even more attainable having read this book. I have so much gratitude for the NARM model, and the first book, “Healing Developmental Trauma: How Early Trauma Affects Self-Regulation, Self-Image, and the Capacity for Relationship.” This second book, “The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” expertly weaves the theoretical concepts along with the practical knowledge we all crave, when reaching to understand ourselves better. These are not quick tips, or simple tricks. Instead, this book beautifully brings together concepts that feel true and grounding in my body, into an easy-to-read, almost conversational manner. The authors Heller and Kammer have clearly put their hearts and souls into this work, and have contributed something really profound to the field. I grateful for the accessibility of the language (I don’t need a Phd to understand it) which allows this work to sink deeper into my bones.
Rated 5 out of 5
Michelle K (verified owner)–
The Practical Guide For Healing Developmental Trauma is an open invitation for understanding developmental trauma and its effects on our lives. The Neuro Affective Relational Model (NARM) is an amazing model that gives us a very comprehensive framework for addressing complex trauma. I don’t have words to express how grateful I am to have learned from Larry and Brad so early in my career. I cannot say enough about how helpful NARM has been for me personally and professionally. As we heal developmental trauma we become more fully human and help heal the world.
Rated 5 out of 5
Deborah Mulgrew (verified owner)–
“The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” is exactly what it says: a down-to-earth resource for clinicians working in the trauma field as well as anyone interested in learning what developmental trauma is and how to heal from these early wounds. I’ve read Dr. Heller’s first book on “Healing Developmental Trauma” and am currently being trained as a NARM therapist; this book really solidifies what I’ve been learning. It is a refreshing and much needed approach to understanding the complexities of developmental trauma – whether in individuals we with work with or in ourselves. The book includes a concise summary of the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) along with reflective exercises that can be done alone or in partnership. Highly recommended as a resource which offers hope and support to those on their own personal journey of healing and growth!
Rated 5 out of 5
T. C. (verified owner)–
I’ve been a student of NARM since 2018 and am on my 5th time trough the Level 2 practitioner training as either a student or training assistant. I’ve taken the master class and am in my second year of post-master training. I share this because though I’ve been steeped in NARM for the past 4 years I found so much in this book to deepen my knowledge and understanding of NARM. I found myself having many personal and professional insights and highlighted so many parts that I want to revisit. I particularly loved going through each pillar and the emotional completion model. The chapter on agency was probably my favorite. For any NARM students wondering if this book is just a revisiting of the material in class, it’s not. It has and will continue to deepen my learning, my personal healing, and my capacity and knowledge as a therapist and training assistant. Thank you Brad and Larry for this stellar piece of work that will be an essential part of my trauma healing library!
Update: the audio book is out now and I’m so grateful. Brad and Larry are reading the book to us with warmth and presence. I’m sensitive to audio book voices and their reading is so listenable and engaging for me. I didn’t have to rewind and listen again due to me tuning out mentally (something I do with monotonous or clinical voices). I’m happy to have the physical copy and the audio book – the physical for reference and the audio for listening again to see what new gems stick out. Thanks to both of you for reading the book yourselves!
Rated 5 out of 5
inlori Customer (verified owner)–
The NARM framework presented in this book helps to organize a complex subject in a way that makes healing accessible. As a therapist, this book and the NARM model has been immensely beneficial in my work and in the lives of those I work with. As a human, it is not only insightful and depth oriented but provides a supportive and heartfelt way of honoring the ways that we adapt to survive in childhood, while supporting increased capacity to live our lives in true connection with others and with our authentic selves. I cannot recommend this book enough and am so grateful to have this resource to refer to again and again.
Rated 5 out of 5
Regina (verified owner)–
This book, with it’s practical guidelines has the power to transform the healing process for clients and therapists alike. I found myself immediately thinking about how each concept will be so helpful to many of the clients I am working with. I have taken so many notes! And I have been using NARM for four years! I can’t recommend this book enough. Thank you Larry and Brad for continuing to give us so much insight into what it means to be human and to heal.
Rated 5 out of 5
Dr. Martin Lemon (verified owner)–
After 24 years in private practice, I began my NARM training journey. And what a richly rewarding journey it has been! The NARM model has helped me understand and support my clients and myself in ways I could not have fathomed before. I am much more effective in my work whether with individuals, couples or groups. NARM allows me to support my clients in a very different kind of exploration of how they are relating to their own internal emotional worlds, and very often it has helped them open up life-changing new capacities. But let’s be honest . . . NARM is a complex model that is challenging to learn. Fortunately, the NARM Training Institute offers abundant resources, several training levels, many videos of NARM sessions with helpful instruction and commentary, as well as supervision and peer collaborations. And now, a second book, “The Practical Guide to Healing Developmental Trauma.” Whether you are seeking an introduction to NARM or you’re wanting to deepen and strengthen your NARM skills and insights, this book will hit the mark. It’s written in a way that’s consistent with the first levels of NARM training in that it does not assume a prior level of knowledge or skill. It’s both practical and full of helpful perspectives that can challenge and help shift basic assumptions of how we can engage our clients. You’ll probably find yourself highlighting and re-reading many sections over and over. And, in my experience, my learning efforts have been rewarded very well. I’ve always felt like I’ve actually gotten as much or more from NARM training as I’ve invested in it, and that’s what I’ve experienced with this book as well.
Rated 5 out of 5
MMD (verified owner)–
I stumbled upon Healing Developmental Trauma in my desperate attempt to understand and help my clients. It was in these pages that I saw myself more clearly however, and the ways in which I show up, even in how desperately I wanted to help. I’m grateful for this follow up book because it generously provides the “how” in addition to graciously helping to uncover the why of our struggles.
Many of us have had a rough start in life; some have been heartbreakingly overtly traumatized. As a mental health provider, I’ve been grateful for all the wonderful research and efforts toward recognizing and treating “trauma”. In therapy however, many more clients presented with more subtle, yet severely impactful experiences that negatively influenced present life; ways of being unmet that contributed to a sense of not being enough, flavors of unworthiness, being unfulfilled and destructive patterns that “I couldn’t talk them out of.”
The excerpt attached captures my favorite aspects of the NARM approach. I’m learning how to work less hard in therapy and to show up with more authenticity in life and with clients. This book is an easy read, though not a fast one. There are many reflective exercises that offer an opportunity to pause and see yourself more clearly, so that you can choose your path. (This is actually the best part.)
Whatever our story, however hard, we did survive. All of us. Now it’s time to live. Two thumbs up for this thoughtful, generous work in helping in this regard. Great for both therapists and clients.
Rated 5 out of 5
Jenn (verified owner)–
My experience with NARM has been like taking a breath of fresh air! This book helps understand the basic fundamentals of the NARM approach and how to apply them in real life experiences.
The art of healing truly comes from the heart through genuine connection….. with that being said this book gives stepping stones to facilitate the process of connection and healing for anyone who wants to walk the path of healing with another being. We are all here to walk each other home and these stepping stones have given me a deeper understanding of how to explore the complexities of being human.
Rated 5 out of 5
Dylan (verified owner)–
As a therapist drawn to depth-oriented therapeutic styles and less to manualized forms of therapy, it has been revelatory and refreshing to read this book (aloud to my husband who is NOT a clinician) in the practical application of NARM therapy.
For both of us – myself and my husband – it has been an insightful read, full of talking points, reflective exercises to practice and mull over, and to take back to our own personal therapists. For this book is clear in its assertion that what is going on inside the therapist is AS IMPORTANT as what is going on inside the client. Tending to both sides of the relationship in a clinical setting is key, and this book is singular in explaining why this is so.
It is a readable, and understandable both for a clinician and for the lay person working on their own trauma although it might take a little more work for a lay person to parse some of the sections.
Because it is not simply page after page of text, it is broken up by reflective exercises, information, how to apply the information, and short-cuts, in each chapter, reading this book moves along at a fast clip and various sections are easy to reference.
Reading along with taking the NARM training will help any student to assimilate and integrate the information, also. For myself, a NARM trainee, this book has been an immeasurable help in integrating the information Brad Krammer has taught, and will be a go-to reference going forward.
Rated 5 out of 5
Heidi Winn (verified owner)–
This book is a clear, heartfelt, articulate capture of a journey from the painful experience of being misattuned as a child to the splendor of being able to experience my wholeness in post traumatic growth. It’s written in an intelligent form which allows professionals to comprehend and apply to their practice with clients but also for any person seeking to explore their relationship with themselves and understand what lies beneath the symptoms or behaviors that prevent feeling connected to oneself and others. I am grateful beyond words for my experience with NARM which is culminated in this insightful, transformative, and necessary book.
Rated 5 out of 5
Sarah J. (verified owner)–
The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma gives me hope for the future of trauma healing. This is a book that I would recommend not only to my therapist friends, but to my friends and family members. The information is relatable and presented in a way that makes this highly complex topic easier to digest and evokes a lot of compassion and understanding for my own challenges and for those of the people around me. I love the reflective exercises that supported me to slow down, connect to myself as I read the content. Love this book!
Rated 5 out of 5
Olga S. (verified owner)–
Lays out the history of the CPTSD diagnosis, offers reasons why it hasn’t yet made it to the DSM (and why it should) and presents a clinical model for treatment. That said, the book is still well suited for someone who is curious about this diagnosis and wants to learn about the causes and impacts of CPTSD for personal growth reasons. I found it helpful to read Dr. Heller’s previous book before this one, but I think it will be great as a standalone resource as well.
Rated 5 out of 5
Emily (verified owner)–
I read Dr. Heller’s earlier book “Healing Developmental Trauma” several years ago and was very excited when I learned that a second book was going to be published. I am a NARM trained therapist and anticipated that the book would probably be mostly a review for me (which I still felt would be very helpful!) but I haven’t even been able to finish the book yet and have already found myself finding valuable new pieces. Some of those pieces are sections that supported a deeper understanding of the concepts for me, while other sections have the concepts written in a way that I feel could be helpful to share with clients. I am very impressed with how well Dr. Heller and Brad have been able to take a model that is so complex and experiential and break it down into such accessible language.
I feel this a must read for any clinician, not only because of the reasons mentioned above, but also because it brings attention to BOTH parties in the therapeutic relationship: the client AND the therapist. I have trained in a number of different modalities over the years, most of them specifically geared towards working with trauma, and I’ve found that this piece was missing or minimal in many of them. As this book explains much more eloquently, if we are only focused on “doing to” the client we are not only objectifying our clients, we are also missing a big piece of the equation.
I am so excited to have this book as a resource, not only for myself, but to be able to share with others.
Rated 5 out of 5
Ellen Byrne (verified owner)–
“The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” is a major contribution to the field of trauma therapy that will be useful in the classroom, clinic, and private libraries of therapists as well as medical professionals, parents and counselors. The organizing principles, or “pillars” of NARM set a useful field of respect, intention and open-minded observation for both the client and therapist. Within this framework, NARM supports a deepening connection to self for the client and fosters exploration of their core dilemmas. The book delineates the difference between shock and developmental trauma and presents a humane and empowering explanation for how we adapt to adverse circumstances and lack of resources. The NARM method is clearly explained via text, diagrams, stories, and full transcripts of client sessions. It is noteworthy that the authors also include self-reflective exercises for the reader to better understand their trauma responses and their need for connection.
There are several generations now of skilled trauma therapists and we have extensive tools and neuroscience to guide us. The NARM model breaks new ground and provides a profound interweaving of neuroscience, embodiment practices, the study of attachment and much more. We live in a world of political, cultural and personal trauma, and the need for connection and healing grows every day. This guide offers a very real opportunity for clinicians to contribute to mental health and healing. It is equally a must for any therapist struggling with burn-out, and a rich source of material for the new therapist.
Rated 5 out of 5
Melissa Taylor (verified owner)–
About NARM: It is impossible to overstate the impact the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) has had on my life, personally and professionally. As Complex Trauma (C-PTSD) and its subset, developmental trauma, become more recognized and better understood, NARM is the only model that so effectively and reliably addresses this (ubiquitous?) phenomenon. It draws from attachment, psychodynamic, somatic, and interpersonal neurobiology theories and manages to integrate all of my previous experience and learning into a seamless whole. As a client, it finally helped me (after trying all of the things) to experience my life with hope, ease, and clarity. As a practitioner, the transformation I get to witness and support is profoundly inspiring. The model is deeply respectful of the client, the practitioner, and the sacred space in between.
About The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma: NARM is a complex and nuanced model. Certainly, mastery requires deep study and practice. However, this new book gives a comprehensive lay of the land and ways to start applying the model right away. The many reflective exercises offer opportunities to get a taste of the experiential nature of working with NARM. This book is a significant contribution to the resources available to clinicians and clients who are working with developmental trauma. I have enormous gratitude to Laurence Heller and Brad Kammer for bringing this work to the world. Thank you!
Rated 5 out of 5
Brian (verified owner)–
The Practical Guide to Healing Developmental Trauma is a gamechanger. The lessons, exercises and outright deconstruction of real therapy sessions give incredible insight. I recommend this book to anyone supporting or dealing with complex or developmental trauma. Even if it is you going through your learning and healing journey. This book is written in an accessible and supportive way. I am a business leader, coach and consultant and find practical applications for this work in every one of those settings on a daily basis. Thank you for writing this book, creating this model and sharing it in such an accessible way.
Rated 5 out of 5
Marie (verified owner)–
Thank you both, Larry and Brad, for this gift of a guide. It is one of the few books that has, with its practical aspects backed up by a deep philosophy of how to be in life, the potential to change the world. If more humans read it and take one learning away from it, we would be in a better place!
Kristen Donigan (verified owner) –
The authors successfully articulate a powerfully transformative model, both beautifully humane and clinically sophisticated. NARM is not just an effective form of therapy, it’s a way of being – relating, growing and healing. Heller and Kammer embody the NARM philosophy and their words transmit ease, confidence and humility. The reader is held in respect and compassion, invited to be at once client and therapist, acknowledging we all have the capacity for greater wholeness. NARM illuminates how, on the part of both clients and therapists, even subtle or well-intended adaptations to trauma can get in the way of meaningful change. This discernment holds promise to resolve the perpetuation of trauma throughout our lives, but especially in therapeutic relationships.
As a NARM practitioner, visual learner and lover of language, this book satisfied a desire to have a detailed and thorough reference I can return to as I continue to relate to the model in ever deepening ways. My gratitude to Heller and Kammer for this careful articulation of their work. I eagerly await the next book(s) that will take us even deeper into the spiritual underpinnings of NARM.
Irem Akduman (verified owner) –
Neuro Affective Relational Model (NARM) is an amazing model that gives us a very comprehensive framework in understanding developmental trauma and its effects on our lives. Although it seems so simple at first sight, you are fascinated more and more as you perceive its depth. It is a very compassionate and humanistic approach and most importantly it has a non-pathologizing language. This new book is a very comprehensive manual for the therapists. It enables them to integrate this framework with their practice, widen their perspectives in making sense of developmental trauma, how it effects individuals’ development and their adulthood. In addition, it is an amazing support because it teaches how to develop a good relationship with the clients by respecting their boundaries and agency. The authors, Heller and Kammer, explained in considerable detail how NARM is used in the sessions and how change happens in the process, with actual case examples. As a NARM therapist, I find it very useful in understanding the framework and in applying it during the therapy session. The book also contains some reflective exercises which deepens the readers’ experience. I recommend it not just to psychotherapists, but also to anyone who is interested in self-growth. The Model’s view of the development makes it easier for us to understand ourselves, people around us and our relationships better, which might be an excellent starting point for changes that we want. Amazing resource for everybody.
Amy Wheatley (verified owner) –
After reading the first NARM book “Healing Developmental Trauma” I immersed myself in all the NARM content I could find. A few years ago I was surprised at how little I could find about applying NARM online. This book was exactly what I was seeking! I signed up for Level 2 training with NARM in May 2022. While my experience has been nothing short of amazing this book has enhanced and reinforced my understanding of the NARM model. I am amazed at how well Brad and Larry were able to translate a model like NARM into an informative, but often spiritual and poetic book. This book is wonderful for a practitioner curious about NARM or wanting to implement NARM/ a trauma informed approach into their practice. I wholeheartedly believe any human being would benefit from learning even the basics of NARM. It has changed my perspective on life and what humans truly need to heal, grow, and thrive. I have found this guide to be an amazing resource to help deepen my understanding of trauma, NARM, and implementing the model into my counseling practice. While clinical training is a worthwhile investment it is not accessible to everyone. This book lays out the same concepts, tools, and education provided by the institute. I love the therapy session transcripts included in the book. The authors include their intentions and concept use within the transcript. It is a great way to see how this nuanced model is actually applied. I also love the lists of NARM language and phrases included in the book. It serves as a wonderful guide when I am practicing. I have been so excited every time I open the book to read. Trauma is one of, if not the greatest cause of human suffering. Researching and reading about it can often be difficult. NARM has this unique way of educating on the devastation of trauma, but also the hope and desire to heal that lives within us all. I am so grateful for the release of this book and the impact it will have.
Stefanie Klein, LCSW (verified owner) –
Brad Kammer and Dr. Laurence Heller opened a vault full of resources, information and heart in this new book about NARM. A must read for mental health professionals as well as any helping professionals working with developmental and complex trauma. This guide is also very informative for anyone seeking to understand the impact of their own adverse childhood experiences on their current life. I read Healing Developmental Trauma in 2012 and it fundamentally changed the way I approach my work as a psychotherapist as well as the way I experience myself in the world. This 2nd book on NARM gets into the nuts and bolts of the model. I love the exercises that can be used for personal growth or can be used with your clients. The transcripts of actual sessions really bring the model to life in a way that feels more experiential. Great book. Great contribution to the field of Trauma!
Leslie Filsinger (verified owner) –
The Practical Guide For Healing Developmental Trauma is an invitation for clinicians to develop a deeper understanding of who we are as humans, what we bring to therapeutic relationships, and how best to support our clients in developing authentic connection with themselves. The reflective exercises found throughout the book create opportunities for the reader to feel the principles of NARM in a deep and meaningful way.
As a practioner of NARM, and a Clinical Supervior, I am excied to share my passion for NARM and this book provides a comprehensible guide to implimenting the modality. For non-clinicians, this book also creates a foudation for deeper curiosity in how we relate to ourselves, opening a path to greater self compassion and authentic connection.
IGHM (verified owner) –
You can’t learn swimming by correspondence. And you can’t learn NARM–an advanced modality for healing complex trauma–by reading a book. But whether or not you have already trained in NARM or you are just trying to figure out what it is, this book as as close as you’ll get to learning this model without taking the course.
Let me first say, that NARM profoundly affected my personal and professional life, as both a client of a NARM therapist and a provider of NARM myself. It’s a profound, heartfull, and nuanced approach to healing complex trauma which has given me tools for coping with my own trauma, as well as help the clients who come to me for therapy. It has also helped me improve my interpersonal relationship, including my marriage.
Both authors of this book have been my teachers. They have poured their hearts into this book and gave it their all. They generously attempted to convey as much of their knowledge as possible using the medium of writing. With the help of reflective exercises, transcripts, and very clear, digestible, non-jargony language they sought to give an experiential taste of how this model works.
I hope this book gets the exposure and popularity it deserves.
Rhonda Mills (verified owner) –
This book is a wonderful, easy-to-read resource which supports me in working with my coaching clients, and also in my own learning process. The authors both are extremely knowledgeable and clear in how they distill the NARM process. I recommend this book for professionals and people from all walks of life who are interested in healing, wholeness, and living an integrated and connected life. It lays out the most up-to-date models used in NARM which have transformed and simplified my work and my own process.
The chapter on the Emotional Completion Model is one of the best I’ve seen on working with emotions related to trauma, and generally. Other chapters such as Reinforcing Agency, the NARM Relational Model, and the NARM Organizing Principles are also powerful and transformative. I’m imagining I will re-read this book again and again!
Katy (verified owner) –
I’ve had the experience of coming to NARM first as a client in therapy, second as a therapist-student at the Training Institute. This wonderful book encapsulates the wisdom, experience, depth, and reach that the NARM model of trauma treatment offers. This book (I’m only half way through so far) “talks” to my cells, my heart, and intellectual mind by offering clear, simple language for concepts and content that resonate and “land” for me as a human being, a therapist, and a life long learner.
This is a must read for anyone wanting non-fluffy, direct, well researched content from experienced clinicians who have respect and patience for the full depth of the human experience.
Having witnessed Brad and Larry–with trainees and in demo sessions of clients, I trust the content of this book as what I’m reading here is truly what these clinicians are doing, have been doing for decades, and fully grasp in a grounded, wise, intellectual and human way.
As a clinician, NARM trainings and this book specifically provide clear interventions for complex trauma versus other books and models where I’ve been left with abstract ideas of trauma, general “trauma informed” words and minimal confidence of what to actually do in my sessions with clients. I feel more confident, inspired in my work, and at peace when in relationship with clients who are coming for support for trauma healing, because of NARM.
A must read!
Maureen Kebo (verified owner) –
With equal parts intellect and heart, Dr. Heller and Brad Kammer have provided a practical and comprehensive guide for anyone seeking to understand and work with complex developmental trauma. Complex developmental trauma is riddled with layers of complexity and can be overwhelming for clients and clinicians. The NARM model is unique in presenting a framework that holds the client as well as the clinician in a relational environment where change, healing and growth occur organically. Whether you are reading to apply to your work or take into your own recovery from complex developmental trauma, this book will support your journey.
Laura Carr, MA (verified owner) –
This book is an excellent guide to learning about how NARM considers the clinician an essential vehicle for joining the client on their healing journey. This practical guide clarifies how complex post-traumatic stress disorder produces adaptive survival strategies that can get in the way of what our clients want most for themselves. It has helped me to look at the client’s adaptations and not the trauma as a way to work with what comes up in the session moment-by-moment. It also offers the reader, who may not be a clinician, valuable information about how the adaptations may present in their lives. The book is sprinkled with experiential exercises as an additional bonus to invite a more embodied understanding of this depth-oriented model. The most helpful chapter consists of annotated transcripts of actual NARM sessions and how it is applied in a clinical setting. This practical guide communicates the necessity for relating to our clients through heartfulness which sets NARM apart from other modalities.
Crystal (verified owner) –
As a NARM trained therapist who’s been taught by both authors I can say that this book aligns with the title. It’s practical, applicable, and invaluable. NARM is a complex modality for good reason. However, the way the authors are able to synthesis NARM is so helpful and has deepened my learning even more. I often refer back to the book when wanting clarity or to understand something deeper and it seems that each time I pick it up I learn even more. I can’t say enough about how much NARM has impacted my life both personally and professionally and I find comfort in knowing that I have this book as an additional support in my life. I believe complex trauma is a public health crisis and the more people who learn about trauma and get support from NARM the more we can collectively heal. This book is one solution towards offering education, awareness, and healing for all who have endured complex trauma.
Emily Ruth (verified owner) –
The “opportunity for becoming more fully human” feels even more attainable having read this book. I have so much gratitude for the NARM model, and the first book, “Healing Developmental Trauma: How Early Trauma Affects Self-Regulation, Self-Image, and the Capacity for Relationship.” This second book, “The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” expertly weaves the theoretical concepts along with the practical knowledge we all crave, when reaching to understand ourselves better. These are not quick tips, or simple tricks. Instead, this book beautifully brings together concepts that feel true and grounding in my body, into an easy-to-read, almost conversational manner. The authors Heller and Kammer have clearly put their hearts and souls into this work, and have contributed something really profound to the field. I grateful for the accessibility of the language (I don’t need a Phd to understand it) which allows this work to sink deeper into my bones.
Michelle K (verified owner) –
The Practical Guide For Healing Developmental Trauma is an open invitation for understanding developmental trauma and its effects on our lives. The Neuro Affective Relational Model (NARM) is an amazing model that gives us a very comprehensive framework for addressing complex trauma. I don’t have words to express how grateful I am to have learned from Larry and Brad so early in my career.
I cannot say enough about how helpful NARM has been for me personally and professionally. As we heal developmental trauma we become more fully human and help heal the world.
Deborah Mulgrew (verified owner) –
“The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” is exactly what it says: a down-to-earth resource for clinicians working in the trauma field as well as anyone interested in learning what developmental trauma is and how to heal from these early wounds. I’ve read Dr. Heller’s first book on “Healing Developmental Trauma” and am currently being trained as a NARM therapist; this book really solidifies what I’ve been learning. It is a refreshing and much needed approach to understanding the complexities of developmental trauma – whether in individuals we with work with or in ourselves. The book includes a concise summary of the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) along with reflective exercises that can be done alone or in partnership. Highly recommended as a resource which offers hope and support to those on their own personal journey of healing and growth!
T. C. (verified owner) –
I’ve been a student of NARM since 2018 and am on my 5th time trough the Level 2 practitioner training as either a student or training assistant. I’ve taken the master class and am in my second year of post-master training. I share this because though I’ve been steeped in NARM for the past 4 years I found so much in this book to deepen my knowledge and understanding of NARM. I found myself having many personal and professional insights and highlighted so many parts that I want to revisit. I particularly loved going through each pillar and the emotional completion model. The chapter on agency was probably my favorite. For any NARM students wondering if this book is just a revisiting of the material in class, it’s not. It has and will continue to deepen my learning, my personal healing, and my capacity and knowledge as a therapist and training assistant. Thank you Brad and Larry for this stellar piece of work that will be an essential part of my trauma healing library!
Update: the audio book is out now and I’m so grateful. Brad and Larry are reading the book to us with warmth and presence. I’m sensitive to audio book voices and their reading is so listenable and engaging for me. I didn’t have to rewind and listen again due to me tuning out mentally (something I do with monotonous or clinical voices). I’m happy to have the physical copy and the audio book – the physical for reference and the audio for listening again to see what new gems stick out. Thanks to both of you for reading the book yourselves!
inlori Customer (verified owner) –
The NARM framework presented in this book helps to organize a complex subject in a way that makes healing accessible. As a therapist, this book and the NARM model has been immensely beneficial in my work and in the lives of those I work with. As a human, it is not only insightful and depth oriented but provides a supportive and heartfelt way of honoring the ways that we adapt to survive in childhood, while supporting increased capacity to live our lives in true connection with others and with our authentic selves. I cannot recommend this book enough and am so grateful to have this resource to refer to again and again.
Regina (verified owner) –
This book, with it’s practical guidelines has the power to transform the healing process for clients and therapists alike. I found myself immediately thinking about how each concept will be so helpful to many of the clients I am working with. I have taken so many notes! And I have been using NARM for four years! I can’t recommend this book enough. Thank you Larry and Brad for continuing to give us so much insight into what it means to be human and to heal.
Dr. Martin Lemon (verified owner) –
After 24 years in private practice, I began my NARM training journey. And what a richly rewarding journey it has been! The NARM model has helped me understand and support my clients and myself in ways I could not have fathomed before. I am much more effective in my work whether with individuals, couples or groups. NARM allows me to support my clients in a very different kind of exploration of how they are relating to their own internal emotional worlds, and very often it has helped them open up life-changing new capacities. But let’s be honest . . . NARM is a complex model that is challenging to learn. Fortunately, the NARM Training Institute offers abundant resources, several training levels, many videos of NARM sessions with helpful instruction and commentary, as well as supervision and peer collaborations. And now, a second book, “The Practical Guide to Healing Developmental Trauma.” Whether you are seeking an introduction to NARM or you’re wanting to deepen and strengthen your NARM skills and insights, this book will hit the mark. It’s written in a way that’s consistent with the first levels of NARM training in that it does not assume a prior level of knowledge or skill. It’s both practical and full of helpful perspectives that can challenge and help shift basic assumptions of how we can engage our clients. You’ll probably find yourself highlighting and re-reading many sections over and over. And, in my experience, my learning efforts have been rewarded very well. I’ve always felt like I’ve actually gotten as much or more from NARM training as I’ve invested in it, and that’s what I’ve experienced with this book as well.
MMD (verified owner) –
I stumbled upon Healing Developmental Trauma in my desperate attempt to understand and help my clients. It was in these pages that I saw myself more clearly however, and the ways in which I show up, even in how desperately I wanted to help. I’m grateful for this follow up book because it generously provides the “how” in addition to graciously helping to uncover the why of our struggles.
Many of us have had a rough start in life; some have been heartbreakingly overtly traumatized. As a mental health provider, I’ve been grateful for all the wonderful research and efforts toward recognizing and treating “trauma”. In therapy however, many more clients presented with more subtle, yet severely impactful experiences that negatively influenced present life; ways of being unmet that contributed to a sense of not being enough, flavors of unworthiness, being unfulfilled and destructive patterns that “I couldn’t talk them out of.”
The excerpt attached captures my favorite aspects of the NARM approach. I’m learning how to work less hard in therapy and to show up with more authenticity in life and with clients. This book is an easy read, though not a fast one. There are many reflective exercises that offer an opportunity to pause and see yourself more clearly, so that you can choose your path. (This is actually the best part.)
Whatever our story, however hard, we did survive. All of us. Now it’s time to live. Two thumbs up for this thoughtful, generous work in helping in this regard. Great for both therapists and clients.
Jenn (verified owner) –
My experience with NARM has been like taking a breath of fresh air! This book helps understand the basic fundamentals of the NARM approach and how to apply them in real life experiences.
The art of healing truly comes from the heart through genuine connection….. with that being said this book gives stepping stones to facilitate the process of connection and healing for anyone who wants to walk the path of healing with another being. We are all here to walk each other home and these stepping stones have given me a deeper understanding of how to explore the complexities of being human.
Dylan (verified owner) –
As a therapist drawn to depth-oriented therapeutic styles and less to manualized forms of therapy, it has been revelatory and refreshing to read this book (aloud to my husband who is NOT a clinician) in the practical application of NARM therapy.
For both of us – myself and my husband – it has been an insightful read, full of talking points, reflective exercises to practice and mull over, and to take back to our own personal therapists. For this book is clear in its assertion that what is going on inside the therapist is AS IMPORTANT as what is going on inside the client. Tending to both sides of the relationship in a clinical setting is key, and this book is singular in explaining why this is so.
It is a readable, and understandable both for a clinician and for the lay person working on their own trauma although it might take a little more work for a lay person to parse some of the sections.
Because it is not simply page after page of text, it is broken up by reflective exercises, information, how to apply the information, and short-cuts, in each chapter, reading this book moves along at a fast clip and various sections are easy to reference.
Reading along with taking the NARM training will help any student to assimilate and integrate the information, also. For myself, a NARM trainee, this book has been an immeasurable help in integrating the information Brad Krammer has taught, and will be a go-to reference going forward.
Heidi Winn (verified owner) –
This book is a clear, heartfelt, articulate capture of a journey from the painful experience of being misattuned as a child to the splendor of being able to experience my wholeness in post traumatic growth. It’s written in an intelligent form which allows professionals to comprehend and apply to their practice with clients but also for any person seeking to explore their relationship with themselves and understand what lies beneath the symptoms or behaviors that prevent feeling connected to oneself and others. I am grateful beyond words for my experience with NARM which is culminated in this insightful, transformative, and necessary book.
Sarah J. (verified owner) –
The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma gives me hope for the future of trauma healing. This is a book that I would recommend not only to my therapist friends, but to my friends and family members. The information is relatable and presented in a way that makes this highly complex topic easier to digest and evokes a lot of compassion and understanding for my own challenges and for those of the people around me. I love the reflective exercises that supported me to slow down, connect to myself as I read the content. Love this book!
Olga S. (verified owner) –
Lays out the history of the CPTSD diagnosis, offers reasons why it hasn’t yet made it to the DSM (and why it should) and presents a clinical model for treatment. That said, the book is still well suited for someone who is curious about this diagnosis and wants to learn about the causes and impacts of CPTSD for personal growth reasons. I found it helpful to read Dr. Heller’s previous book before this one, but I think it will be great as a standalone resource as well.
Emily (verified owner) –
I read Dr. Heller’s earlier book “Healing Developmental Trauma” several years ago and was very excited when I learned that a second book was going to be published. I am a NARM trained therapist and anticipated that the book would probably be mostly a review for me (which I still felt would be very helpful!) but I haven’t even been able to finish the book yet and have already found myself finding valuable new pieces. Some of those pieces are sections that supported a deeper understanding of the concepts for me, while other sections have the concepts written in a way that I feel could be helpful to share with clients. I am very impressed with how well Dr. Heller and Brad have been able to take a model that is so complex and experiential and break it down into such accessible language.
I feel this a must read for any clinician, not only because of the reasons mentioned above, but also because it brings attention to BOTH parties in the therapeutic relationship: the client AND the therapist. I have trained in a number of different modalities over the years, most of them specifically geared towards working with trauma, and I’ve found that this piece was missing or minimal in many of them. As this book explains much more eloquently, if we are only focused on “doing to” the client we are not only objectifying our clients, we are also missing a big piece of the equation.
I am so excited to have this book as a resource, not only for myself, but to be able to share with others.
Ellen Byrne (verified owner) –
“The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma” is a major contribution to the field of trauma therapy that will be useful in the classroom, clinic, and private libraries of therapists as well as medical professionals, parents and counselors. The organizing principles, or “pillars” of NARM set a useful field of respect, intention and open-minded observation for both the client and therapist. Within this framework, NARM supports a deepening connection to self for the client and fosters exploration of their core dilemmas. The book delineates the difference between shock and developmental trauma and presents a humane and empowering explanation for how we adapt to adverse circumstances and lack of resources. The NARM method is clearly explained via text, diagrams, stories, and full transcripts of client sessions. It is noteworthy that the authors also include self-reflective exercises for the reader to better understand their trauma responses and their need for connection.
There are several generations now of skilled trauma therapists and we have extensive tools and neuroscience to guide us. The NARM model breaks new ground and provides a profound interweaving of neuroscience, embodiment practices, the study of attachment and much more. We live in a world of political, cultural and personal trauma, and the need for connection and healing grows every day. This guide offers a very real opportunity for clinicians to contribute to mental health and healing. It is equally a must for any therapist struggling with burn-out, and a rich source of material for the new therapist.
Melissa Taylor (verified owner) –
About NARM: It is impossible to overstate the impact the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) has had on my life, personally and professionally. As Complex Trauma (C-PTSD) and its subset, developmental trauma, become more recognized and better understood, NARM is the only model that so effectively and reliably addresses this (ubiquitous?) phenomenon. It draws from attachment, psychodynamic, somatic, and interpersonal neurobiology theories and manages to integrate all of my previous experience and learning into a seamless whole. As a client, it finally helped me (after trying all of the things) to experience my life with hope, ease, and clarity. As a practitioner, the transformation I get to witness and support is profoundly inspiring. The model is deeply respectful of the client, the practitioner, and the sacred space in between.
About The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma: NARM is a complex and nuanced model. Certainly, mastery requires deep study and practice. However, this new book gives a comprehensive lay of the land and ways to start applying the model right away. The many reflective exercises offer opportunities to get a taste of the experiential nature of working with NARM. This book is a significant contribution to the resources available to clinicians and clients who are working with developmental trauma. I have enormous gratitude to Laurence Heller and Brad Kammer for bringing this work to the world. Thank you!
Brian (verified owner) –
The Practical Guide to Healing Developmental Trauma is a gamechanger. The lessons, exercises and outright deconstruction of real therapy sessions give incredible insight. I recommend this book to anyone supporting or dealing with complex or developmental trauma. Even if it is you going through your learning and healing journey. This book is written in an accessible and supportive way. I am a business leader, coach and consultant and find practical applications for this work in every one of those settings on a daily basis. Thank you for writing this book, creating this model and sharing it in such an accessible way.
Marie (verified owner) –
Thank you both, Larry and Brad, for this gift of a guide. It is one of the few books that has, with its practical aspects backed up by a deep philosophy of how to be in life, the potential to change the world. If more humans read it and take one learning away from it, we would be in a better place!
Caroline (verified owner) –
Well written.
Thoughtful.
Useful.