Published by Kregel Publications on February 11, 2025
Genres: Healthcare, Non-Fiction, Christian Life, Social Justice
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"You will be gripped by the author's honesty and authenticity throughout the chapters of this book. More than that, you will gain the tools to move from survival mode to wholeness. If you or someone you know has experienced trauma, this is one of the most important books you can read."
—Carol Kent, speaker, founder and executive director of Speak Up Ministries, and author of When I Lay My Isaac DownTrauma doesn’t have to define you.
Trauma is a liar. It claims that all hope is lost and that pain dictates your life. Lisa Saruga understands this struggle deeply. As a licensed counselor, trauma therapist, and a victim of sexual assault, she's been there, and she knows the way out.
The Trauma Tree is a companion for your healing journey. Saruga walks with you through her own story and the stories of survivors, demonstrating how you can move through trauma, avoid re-traumatization, and grow stronger in your mind, body, and spirit.Woven throughout is a parable of Saruga's front-yard pear tree, a representation of life and longevity . . . until it was crushed by what seemed like irreparable physical trauma. For the pear tree, and maybe for you, too, a devastating event has transformed life from flourishing to simply surviving.
But mere survival doesn't have to be the goal.
Discover the God-given resources you were created with and learn to process emotions, find a healthy support system, and start an effective therapeutic path to healing. Move toward God's goal for you: healing and wholeness.
I have read a large number of books about trauma, and this one stands out as an especially helpful one. The guidance in The Trauma Tree flows from the author’s experiences as a trauma survivor and as a licensed trauma therapist, and this book is full of helpful information and heartfelt encouragement. Lisa Saruga assures her readers that their trauma does not have to define them, and she walks people through what trauma is, how trauma affects the body, mind, and soul, and how people can care for themselves in the immediate aftermath of trauma and pursue healing long-term.
Each chapter is brief and easy to understand. Saruga shares key research findings and scientific concepts about trauma through simple terms and helpful metaphors, and she primarily focuses on the implications for life. Throughout the book, she shares lots of practical takeaways for her readers, and she recommends home exercises and potential therapy options that people may find helpful.
Each chapter concludes with reflection questions and a Bible verse. The author weaves Scripture and biblical messages into the book in a very natural way, and I appreciated the Christian themes and biblical examples about persevering through trauma, experiencing God’s love, and holding onto hope. However, even though the author wrote this for a Christian audience, readers from other belief backgrounds can still find this helpful. The faith elements reflect a Christian perspective without feeling forced or preachy, and the majority of the practical advice applies to everyone, regardless of one’s spiritual beliefs.
Throughout this book, the author shares stories and insights from her own trauma experiences, and she also shares stories from other trauma survivors. These examples reflect different types of trauma, and they are all free of graphic details. It is very common for books about trauma to include intense, explicit details about life’s horrors, and I appreciate this author’s different approach.
Her restraint keeps this book more accessible for traumatized readers, and this book also stands out because of its very practical, down-to-earth focus. The author focuses on everyday living aspects of trauma instead of doing a deep dive into psychology, and this will be especially helpful for trauma sufferers who do not have the attention span or desire to read books that are more clinical and scientific in nature.
One quick note I want to add is that this book’s font size is fairly small. Although this was not a problem for me, people who have vision difficulties or struggle to focus on small text may prefer to read the ebook version, so that they can adjust the font size to something more comfortable for them.
The Trauma Tree: Going Beyond Survival, Growing Toward Wholeness is an excellent resource for understanding and healing from trauma. I recommend this to people who are suffering from trauma, as well as to counselors, ministry leaders, and loved ones who are supporting trauma victims. Whether someone is already knowledgeable about the realities of trauma or is just beginning to learn about the subject, this book provides a clear, helpful, and compassionate voice to guide someone further on their journey.