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The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook -- What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us About Loss, Love, and Healing Paperback – December 25, 2007
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In this classic work of developmental psychology, renowned psychiatrist and the coauthor of the #1 New York Times bestseller What Happened to You? reveals how trauma affects children—and outlines the path to recovery
How does trauma affect a child's mind—and how can that mind recover?
Child psychiatrist Dr. Bruce D. Perry has helped children faced with unimaginable horror: genocide survivors, murder witnesses, kidnapped teenagers, and victims of family violence. In the classic The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog, Dr. Perry tells their stories of trauma and transformation and shares their lessons of courage, humanity, and hope. Deftly combining unforgettable case histories with his own compassionate, insightful strategies for rehabilitation, Perry explains what happens to children’s brains when they are exposed to extreme stress—and reveals the unexpected measures that can be taken to ease such pain and help them grow into healthy adults. Only when we understand the science of the mind and the power of love and nurturing can we hope to heal the spirit of even the most wounded child.
- Print length288 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherBasic Books
- Publication dateDecember 25, 2007
- Dimensions5.25 x 0.75 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100465056539
- ISBN-13978-0465056538
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Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Maia Szalavitz is an award-winning journalist who specializes in science and health. She is the author of Help at Any Cost: How the Troubled-Teen Industry Cons Parents and Hurts Kids and Recovery Options: The Complete Guide with Joseph Volpicelli, M.D., Ph.D. She lives in New York City.
Product details
- Publisher : Basic Books; Reprint edition (December 25, 2007)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 288 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0465056539
- ISBN-13 : 978-0465056538
- Item Weight : 8.6 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.25 x 0.75 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #82,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #65 in Child Abuse (Books)
- #212 in Post-Traumatic Stress
- #331 in Popular Psychology Pathologies
- Customer Reviews:
About the authors
Maia Szalavitz is an award-winning author and journalist who covers addiction and neuroscience. Her next book, Unbroken Brain (St. Martins, April, 2016), uses her own story of recovery from heroin and cocaine addiction to explore how reframing addiction as a developmental disorder could revolutionize prevention, treatment and policy.
She’s the author or co-author of six previous books, including the bestselling The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog (Basic, 2007) and Born for Love: Why Empathy Is Essential— and Endangered (Morrow, 2010), both with leading child psychiatrist and trauma expert Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD.
Her book, Help at Any Cost: How the Troubled-Teen Industry Cons Parents and Hurts Kids, is the first history of systemic abuse in “tough love” programs and rehabs and helped spur Congressional hearings, GAO investigations and proposed legislation to regulate these groups. She also co-wrote the first evidence-based consumer guide to addiction treatment, Recovery Options: The Complete Guide, with Joe Volpicelli, MD, PhD. (Wiley, 2000).
Currently, she writes a bi-weekly column for VICE on drugs and addiction. From 2010 to 2013, she wrote daily for TIME.com and she continues to freelance there and for other publications including the New York Times, Scientific American Mind, Nature, New York Magazine online, Pacific Standard, Matter, Nautilus, and The Verge.
Szalavitz has won major awards from organizations like the American Psychological Association, the Drug Policy Alliance and the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology in recognition of her work in these areas.
She lives in New York with her husband and a Siamese shelter cat.
Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.
Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D. is the Senior Fellow of The ChildTrauma Academy, a not-for-profit organization based in Houston (www.ChildTrauma.org) and adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Northwestern University School of Medicine in Chicago. Dr. Perry is the author, with Maia Szalavitz, of The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog, a bestselling book based on his work with maltreated children and Born For Love: Why Empathy is Essential and Endangered. Over the last thirty years, Dr. Perry has been an active teacher, clinician and researcher in children’s mental health and the neurosciences holding a variety of academic positions.
Dr. Perry was on the faculty of the Departments of Pharmacology and Psychiatry at the University Of Chicago School Of Medicine from 1988 to 1991. From 1992 to 2001, Dr. Perry served as the Trammell Research Professor of Child Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. During this time, Dr. Perry also was Chief of Psychiatry for Texas Children's Hospital and Vice-Chairman for Research within the Department of Psychiatry. From 2001 to 2003, Dr. Perry served as the Medical Director for Provincial Programs in Children's Mental Health for the Alberta Mental Health Board. He continues to serve as a Senior Consultant to the Ministry of Children’s Services in Alberta, Canada.
Dr. Perry has conducted both basic neuroscience and clinical research. His neuroscience research has examined the effects of prenatal drug exposure on brain development, the neurobiology of human neuropsychiatric disorders, the neurophysiology of traumatic life events and basic mechanisms related to the development of neurotransmitter receptors in the brain. His clinical research and practice has focused on high-risk children - examining long-term cognitive, behavioral, emotional, social, and physiological effects of neglect and trauma in children, adolescents and adults. This work has been instrumental in describing how childhood experiences, including neglect and traumatic stress, change the biology of the brain – and, thereby, the health of the child.
His clinical research over the last ten years has been focused on integrating concepts of developmental neuroscience and child development into clinical practices. This work has resulted in the development of innovative clinical practices and programs working with maltreated and traumatized children, most prominently the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT). The ChildTrauma Academy has multiple partners in various sectors of the community and has created many programs in context of public-private partnerships with the goal of promoting positive change within the primary institutions that work with high risk children such as child protective services, mental health, public education and juvenile justice.
His experience as a clinician and a researcher with traumatized children has led many community and governmental agencies to consult Dr. Perry following high-profile incidents involving traumatized children such as the Branch Davidian siege in Waco, the Oklahoma City bombing, the Columbine school shootings, the September 11th terrorist attacks, Katrina hurricane, the FLDS polygamist sect and many others.
Dr. Perry is the author of over 300 journal articles, book chapters and scientific proceedings and is the recipient of numerous professional awards and honors, including the T. Berry Brazelton Infant Mental Health Advocacy Award, the Award for Leadership in Public Child Welfare and the Alberta Centennial Medal.
He has presented about child maltreatment, children's mental health, neurodevelopment and youth violence in a variety of venues including policy-making bodies such as the White House Summit on Violence, the California Assembly and U.S. House Committee on Education. Dr. Perry has been featured in a wide range of media including National Public Radio, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Nightline, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, ABC and CBS News and the Oprah Winfrey Show. His work has been featured in documentaries produced by Dateline NBC, 20/20, the BBC, Nightline, CBC, PBS, as well as dozen international documentaries. Many print media have highlighted the clinical and research activities of Dr. Perry including a Pulitzer-prize winning series in the Chicago Tribune, US News and World Report, Time, Newsweek, Forbes ASAP, Washington Post, the New York Times and Rolling Stone.
Dr. Perry, a native of Bismarck, North Dakota, was an undergraduate at Stanford University and Amherst College. He attended medical and graduate school at Northwestern University, receiving both M.D. and Ph.D. degrees. Dr. Perry completed a residency in general psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine and a fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at The University of Chicago.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book easy to read and informative. They appreciate the author's insights and approach to trauma awareness. The content is described as emotional, moving, and touching. Readers praise the pacing and empathy of the author. Opinions differ on the stories, with some finding them relatable and heartwarming while others find them heartbreaking.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They say it's an essential read for anyone who works with or has care of young people. The author has a wealth of knowledge from research and experience, and the science writer is talented.
"...have no children and never plan to work with them, this book is worth reading...." Read more
""The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog" is an excellent book full of real-life examples of children who have experienced severe trauma and successful..." Read more
"...a way that advances his themes, repeats key points, and highlights contrasts in the outcomes for some of his patients...." Read more
"...explaining the science behind everything in a way I was able to follow and understand. It was very insightful and definitely emotionally moving." Read more
Customers find the book insightful and informative. They appreciate the author's approach, which explains the science behind everything in a way they can understand. The narrative stories are weaved with research and academic knowledge in an engaging manner. Readers describe the book as eye-opening and essential reading for parents.
"...You will find some excellent stories about how touch therapy can renew and enhance neural pathways or how dance and movement can help a child regain..." Read more
"...well-narrated, and Dr. Perry's writing style is easy to read and interesting...." Read more
"...This book is a fascinating read if you just wonder what happens to kids who've been through terrible traumas, or wonder why some seem to turn out..." Read more
"...He did a great job explaining the science behind everything in a way I was able to follow and understand...." Read more
Customers find the book helpful for understanding children with trauma and child development. They appreciate the author's balance between science and psychology. The book provides real-life examples of children who have experienced severe trauma, with a good balance between a biological and neurological view. It is highly informative for parents who care about children but aren't into academia.
"...some excellent stories about how touch therapy can renew and enhance neural pathways or how dance and movement can help a child regain natural..." Read more
"...Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog" is an excellent book full of real-life examples of children who have experienced severe trauma and successful therapies..." Read more
"...structured as a series of case reports, but in a way that advances his themes, repeats key points, and highlights contrasts in the outcomes for some..." Read more
"It was a great read. I feel like the author did a good job balancing the traumas with the science...." Read more
Customers find the book insightful and emotional. They say it makes them relate to each person in the book, opening their eyes to many problems. The content is both heartbreaking and heartwarming, as it shows the author as a compassionate advocate for children with very difficult life experiences. It's inspiring to hear about someone who is doing so much to help.
"...He approaches them slowly and with the utmost respect for their personhood...." Read more
"...for the need for community, extended families, cooperation and empathy in our lives in order for our brains to develop healthily...." Read more
"...It was very insightful and definitely emotionally moving." Read more
"This book is very emotional." Read more
Customers appreciate the book's pacing. They find the author a skilled clinician and child psychiatrist. The book provides valuable insights into cases beyond the abilities of average therapists. It is a good read for anyone interested in child psychology or raising children.
"...Dr. Perry is one of the greatest living therapists/psychiatrists working with highly traumatized children...." Read more
"...someone remarkable - not just a very fine writer, not just a magnificent clinician, but oh, so great a human being...." Read more
"...how to deliver therapy in cases that appear to be beyond the abilities of the average therapist...." Read more
"...The author is a doctor and a child psychiatrist...." Read more
Customers have different views on the stories in the book. Some find them informative and well-written, depicting Dr. Perry's work with children. Others describe the stories as heartbreaking, intense, and hard to read, but helpful for understanding children's lives. The book is structured as a series of case reports that progress the themes.
"...The book is carefully structured as a series of case reports, but in a way that advances his themes, repeats key points, and highlights contrasts..." Read more
"I found this book so interesting. The stories used are heartbreaking, but the methods used to help the victims are fascinating." Read more
"...The book is also broken into manageable chapters." Read more
"powerfully chilling and horrifying stories of abuse of children" Read more
Reviews with images
Excellent book
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2010Dr. Perry is not just a psychiatrist who spends his time listening to and diagnosing clients. He is a maverick, willing to break the rules whenever needed and play detective rather than assert his expertise. By taking this approach to his young clients and studying not just their symptoms, but the treatment they were given from birth, he follows the brain as it develops. What he learns is of value to everyone. We were all children once.
As he talks us through each of the cases covered in this book, we get a strong sense of his love for and understanding of the traumatized children. He approaches them slowly and with the utmost respect for their personhood. Like Alice Miller, he is acutely aware of the ways in which we seek to control or diminish small lives and the horrific consequences that sometimes result. But his quest is not just to address the psychological, it is to probe the way the brain itself forms and what can be done when its components lag or turn off.
You will find every kind of child in this book, those who murder, those lacking normal social responses and those unable to thrive physically. In each case Dr. Perry reaches back into their past to uncover how the brain was encouraged to or discouraged from developing in corresponding ways. What is different about Perry's work is how he uses with this information. You won't find the perfect drug to control a child mentioned here. You will find some excellent stories about how touch therapy can renew and enhance neural pathways or how dance and movement can help a child regain natural psychological and physical cycles. In every case he fully explains what he did and why and gives full credit to those who taught him along the way. I am not talking about other doctors here, but people such as a foster mother and the children themselves.
Even if you have no children and never plan to work with them, this book is worth reading. If you are an adult who has always felt out of sync with the world, you may find an explanation here.I found quite a few ah-ha moments and a great deal of personal food for thought. If you are an adherent of mind/body medicine, much of what he says will appeal to you as well.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2016"The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog" is an excellent book full of real-life examples of children who have experienced severe trauma and successful therapies administered to them.
As an educator, I have found myself reflecting on the many "problem" children I've encountered in school settings, and wondering how many of them had been exposed to trauma at young ages, or even currently. I truly enjoyed reading about each case presented in this book, and the way each of these children overcame their painful pasts and experiences with the help of Dr. Perry.
As I've observed students and their family lives over the years as a teacher, I've come to agree more and more on the importance of stability, love and quality time spent in the family for children. I've often theorized that the lack of quality time spent with parents have diminished children's linguistic abilities, but after reading this book, I've come to realize that the damages are far more extensive.
Dr. Perry's concluding chapter outlines the needs for children to be cared for in healthy environments, as early as in their infancy. He contends for the need for community, extended families, cooperation and empathy in our lives in order for our brains to develop healthily. It is a good commentary on our familial and societal issues, and we cannot argue that many of the issues we face today stem from broken relationships in the smallest units.
The stories in the book are well-narrated, and Dr. Perry's writing style is easy to read and interesting. If you are interested in reading a book about neglected and abused children and how to help them, this book is an excellent choice.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2014As a parent to children adopted from foster care, Dr. Perry's perspective on the many separate facets of brain development (and how they impact behavior and learning) was eye opening and helpful. The book is carefully structured as a series of case reports, but in a way that advances his themes, repeats key points, and highlights contrasts in the outcomes for some of his patients. He sets his tone in the first chapter, relating advice from a classical (Freudian) authority figure as well as from one more founded in neuroscience. If you laugh, you'll like the rest of the book. If you think Dr. Perry is being mean, you may not. You'll notice every time he gets to relate a 20-year old story and be the guy who was right all along.
This book is a fascinating read if you just wonder what happens to kids who've been through terrible traumas, or wonder why some seem to turn out just fine. There is a chapter covering his time with the children released from the Branch Davidian compound, before and after the siege that killed most of their parents.
Having been through many hours of therapy with an attachment disordered teen, I really wish there had been a professional with Dr. Perry's background involved. Continually trying to revisit the life experience was not effective, and without a plan for addressing any underlying development issues related to the long-term trauma, there was no other point to the therapy, and therefore, little result. A reader who picks up this book in hopes of exploring their own or their children's struggles after early trauma will finally start to get answers that make sense.
- Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2023It was a great read. I feel like the author did a good job balancing the traumas with the science. He did a great job explaining the science behind everything in a way I was able to follow and understand. It was very insightful and definitely emotionally moving.
Top reviews from other countries
- Amazon CustomerReviewed in Canada on October 23, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Loveeeeee this book
I love this book, I've read it about 5 times and lend it out to everyone I know. It explain trauma and how to help people over come it (and allows hope for those working with children with significant trauma)
- Buen producto a buen precioReviewed in Mexico on May 19, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Such an incredible book!!!
I read it in Spanish but old version, and then last year on November if I remember well I got this new edition and is spectacular with the new notes and stuff.
Fully recommended!!
Buen producto a buen precio
Reviewed in Mexico on May 19, 2024
Fully recommended!!
Images in this review - marteenReviewed in the United Kingdom on February 23, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Important book to better understand how to help traumatised children.
One of the best, if not the best, books on how caring for our babies and very young children can have profound impacts on their developing brain and how this can affect behaviours & mental health in later years. Essential reading for people who want to better understand the importance of love, nurturing and connection in raising healthy children and the impact of negative early childhood experiences and how this affects a child’s brain development. Many case studies also detailing the author’s therapeutic approach in treating trauma in young children to help them lead improved lives as they grow and become adults . A fascinating & important book.
- Saurabh TiwariReviewed in India on August 18, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars A book to touch your heart!
An eminently readable book on childhood trauma that'll touch your heart and help in better understanding of individuals who behave oddly.
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GabriellenReviewed in Italy on January 13, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars Molto educativo
Ho comprato questo libro dopo aver letto “The body keeps the score” e devo dire che segue molto quella linea di pensiero. Mi è piaciuto molto, rispettoso dei pazienti citati senza mettere in evidenza dettagli degli abusi.