Touch After Trauma
A Practical Guide for Manual Therapists
by Alison Fraser

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Western medicine remains dominated by paradigms that separate physical and mental wellness, as if they were unrelated. This artificial boundary poses a challenge for manual therapists, as we see increasing signs of traumatic stress in the patients we serve. Modern research concedes that the mind and body are interdependent – they work seamlessly in tandem. This is especially evident in those who have experienced trauma: Psychological trauma is often expressed in physical signs and symptoms, and physical trauma often bears psychological echoes. What if we, as manual therapists, could integrate this research into our practices? What if we can better support trauma survivors within our scope of practice? Touch After Trauma offers manual therapists a new clinical framework, presenting the neuroscience of trauma in plain language and weaving in principles of trauma-informed care. This forms the foundation for discussing novel treatment approaches to support a more comprehensive recovery for trauma survivors. While practical techniques are discussed in detail, this guide does not aim to be prescriptive, but rather encourages clinicians to seek alternative, creative, and collaborative solutions to support patients in their healing journey.

www.alisonfraser.ca

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Alison Fraser has worked in healthcare since 2009, when she founded Flourishing Family Doula Care to support at-risk families in the transition to parenthood. Her work later took her into acute care, where she witnessed first-hand the profound power of bearing witness to patients’ experiences and meeting them with compassion and empathy. Having sought out massage therapy to help manage her own trauma-related challenges, Alison developed a keen interest in the field, eventually becoming a registered massage therapist. Today, she belongs to the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia and the Registered Massage Therapists Association of British Columbia. Alison believes that as more therapists adopt trauma-informed practices, survivors will be able to access more comprehensive healing. Her goal is that this guide may offer hope – not only to colleagues who are uncertain how to best support survivors, but most importantly to those patients who believe they have “tried everything” and are still struggling in the wake of trauma. Alison currently lives in a quiet community on the Sunshine Coast in Canada. When she is not working with clients – or doing further research to better understand trauma recovery – she enjoys kayaking, playing her string bass, and nurturing her many houseplants. She can be reached at her website: alisonfraser.ca

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Contributors

Author

Alison Fraser

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