San Francisco Book Review on “The Joy Thief” by Sean McCallum

The Joy Thief is an inspirational tale about overcoming one’s fears. The author, a firefighter and crisis intervention specialist, tells a story about a girl who becomes traumatized by a seemingly ordinary experience. The terrifying day began with a spider jumping on the little girl’s face. When the girl reacted (by screaming), her mother arrived in a huff, insisting that she keep down the noise. When she left, the door slammed behind her, causing the girl to feel an overwhelming amount of fear. This social-emotional rhyming story proves children can experience events that alter their way of thinking.

The girl’s “joy thief” (which is visually represented as a spider) follows her wherever she goes, reminding her of the fear she felt that day and preventing her from experiencing heightened feelings of happiness. She is finally able to talk with her mother and opens up about how she’s felt controlled by her fear lately. Adults may not realize that a certain event can contribute to a heightened state of panic that can continue to grow, making it difficult to participate in daily activities. The author encourages open communication by providing a guide for adults to stay present and open with children.

Read the whole review here

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Author Sean McCallum
Star Count 5/5
Format Trade
Page Count 32 pages
Publisher Loving Healing Press
Publish Date 01-Apr-2022
ISBN 9781615996667
Bookshop.org Buy this Book
Issue June 2022
Category Children’s
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Pretreatment Across Multiple Fields of Practice [HC]

SKU 978-1-61599-858-6
$39.95
Trauma Informed Approach to Homelessness
1
Product Details
UPC: 978-1-61599-857-9
Brand: Loving Healing Press
Binding: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Author: Jay S. Levy with Louise Levy
Pages: 228
Publication Date: 11/15/2024

Jay and Louise Levy and their co-authors have distilled years of diverse experience serving people with complex psychological and physical needs into a much-needed roadmap for providers. This book clearly outlines working principles that will guide practitioners in the art of building authentic and effective working partnerships with people experiencing homelessness and other traumas, while minimizing re-traumatization and creating psychological safety. Carefully chosen case studies beautifully illustrate how these principles can be put into practice in a variety of settings--from street outreach to shelters to special education classrooms--and are attentive to the impact of racism and other forms of oppression. --Kiko Malin, MPH, MSW, Public Health Director, Amherst, Massachusetts

As a representative of the Street Medicine Institute, and more importantly the global street medicine movement, Jay's work is a beacon not just to light the path we are on, but to guide us towards a better place. --Jim Withers, MD, Medical Director and Founder of Mercy's Operation Safety Net and the Street Medicine Institute (Pittsburgh)

This new collection demonstrates that Pretreatment-thinking offers people working with all kinds of human services a powerful, practical framework for engagement, for change, and ultimately for healing. --Alex Bax, Chief Executive (London), Pathway - Homeless & Inclusion Health

As Levy, Connolly, and others argue in this important book, the concept of Pre-treatment Therapy is of major applicability way beyond the field of homelessness. Its ideas and concepts should be core reading for psychologists and psychiatrists, and indeed anybody hoping to work with people affected by chronic experiences of trauma in a psychologically informed way. --Dr Peter Cockersell, DPsych, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist, Psychologically Informed Environments Consultant, Chief Executive of Community Housing and Therapy

Learn more at www.JaySLevy.com

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Pretreatment Across Multiple Fields of Practice [HC]

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