The Trouble with Trauma

The Search to Discover How Beliefs Become Facts

By: Michael Scheeringa MD

Narrated by: Stephen R. Thorne

The Trouble with Trauma is the story of how the idea of psychological trauma appeals to the human mind. Trauma impacts many people psychologically, but the evidence on the long-term physical effect is incomplete. Theories that psychological trauma can permanently damage your brain, cause physical disease, and change your essential character have become staples of human thought worldwide.

Dr. Scheeringa explains how those theories are widely believed whilst not being true, and at the heart of the story is an explanation of how humans choose to ignore scientific evidence and practice self-deception based on heuristics for survival. Heuristics is a rapid and efficient method to make judgments about threatening situations, which may be especially relevant during an epidemic and the spread of misinformation.

But The Trouble with Trauma is more than a critique of social policy. This is a book for anyone who wants a better understanding on how groupthink and herd mentality works and improves our ability to understand scientific fact. Dr. Scheeringa sheds light on why we choose to ignore scientific evidence while engaging the listener in a lively conversation on how we come to believe.

©2021 Michael Scheeringa (P)2022 Tantor

Thoughtful push back vs. popular trauma narratives

Dr Scheeringa makes a strong case that much of what has become popular regarding “trauma” is distorted and exaggerated. He makes a lonely call for restraint.

Anyone in the field should read this and re-examine whether they have opinions based on firm science or not. It’s not a perfect book, but it offers much to consider.