Printed/Media Materials

ATSS requires 30-days advance notice for any request to post information on our site. Please also note that ATSS lists only those services, organizations and resources that provide information specific to traumatic stress, response and/or treatment of trauma, PTSD, and critical incidents.

Apps for Smartphones

eCBT Trauma – This ambitious prolonged exposure app allows end users to assess their PTS symptoms, learn relaxation and grounding practices, identify and log their thoughts and feelings, challenge their assumptions and reduce the emotional charge of triggers through progressive exposure exercises. That’s a lot to expect from an app, being as how a lot of prolonged exposure recipients bail on a live therapist, but even if people only do the relaxation and grounding aspects, they’ll be ahead of the game. It also provides access to directories for finding local therapists, support groups and educational information on PTS.

Help Kids Cope — This free mobile app provides information to help parents and other caregivers, teachers, counselors, and others to prepare for and talk about disasters with kids. The app features tips and checklists to help with disaster preparation; information about how children typically respond to disasters; and links to kids’ books, activities, and other resources. Developed by the NCTSN and other organizations, the app runs on iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, as well as Android devices.

PFA Mobile™ — Available free of charge and compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android devices, this app is designed to help responders with providing Psychological First Aid in disaster-affected communities. The app identifies the eight core PFA actions, helps responders use interventions appropriate for specific survivor reactions, and expedites assessment and referral of survivors.

PTSD Coach – (The National Center for PTSD App) This is a pretty comprehensive, well designed, free app that allows users to pre-select friends & support networks; favorite, calming pictures and music. It offers info about PTS; a self-assessment tool; guided techniques, suggestions for managing symptoms and a place to find resources. The heart of this app is of course the symptom management. It randomly shuffles a breathing exercise; progressive relaxation; some plain but decent ‘positive imagery’; a cognitive behavioral intervention called RID; and quite a few suggestions for distraction, grounding and changing attitude/perspective. Altogether, this is a pretty complex and sophisticated app that offers a lot of strong interventions in a fairly simple, user-friendly way. The PTSD Coach app can help you learn about and manage symptoms that often occur after trauma.

PTSD Eraser – This app is a simple guided meditation using deep breathing, locating where stress is held in the body, and imagining blocked energy releasing and flowing again. It’s really a simple audio intervention with no interactivity, but it’s decent, non-emotional imagery that won’t trigger unwanted reactions from the listener. See more at

SAMHSA Behavioral Health Disaster Response Mobile App (Free)
Offers first responders immediate access to field resources for aiding disaster survivors. Has the ability to search for and map behavioral health service providers in the impacted area, review emergency preparedness materials, and send resources to colleagues.

The SAMHSA Disaster App allows disaster behavioral health responders to navigate resources related to pre-deployment preparation, on-the-ground assistance, and post-deployment resources. Users can also share resources from the app via text message or email and quickly identify local behavioral health

SAMHSA Disaster Recovery Kit – (Emergency Mental Health and Traumatic Stress Resource) Arms disaster recovery workers with a toolkit on mental health awareness. Includes materials for responding effectively to the general public during and after a disaster and in dealing with workplace stress. Also includes materials for the general public. Access the Disaster Kit right on your smartphone with the award-winning SAMHSA Disaster App. Learn more and download the app

T-2 Mood Tracker – This app encourages better self-attunement and connecting with feelings by allowing end-users to rate their moods, track and graph their results over time, and send or save status reports on: • PTS

Books

35 Ways to Help a Grieving Child. The Dougy Center. The Dougy Center for the Grieving Child provides 35 practical suggestions for helping children, teens, and their families cope with the loss of a loved one in this short but valuable book.

Guiding your Child through Grief, by Mary Ann Emswiler. The New England Center for Loss and Transition offers expert advice to help a child grieve the death of a parent or sibling.

Helping Children Cope with the Loss of a Loved One: a Guide for Grownups, by William Kroen. Age-specific advice detailing what children can understand.

How Do We Tell the Children? A Step by Step Guide for Helping Children Two to Ten Cope When Someone Dies, by Dan Schaeffer and Christine Lyons. A practical guide for anyone who works with children includes a “Crisis Checklist” with scripted answers to children’s frequently-asked questions.

Lifting Heavy Things: Healing Trauma One Rep at a Time – written by Laura Khoudari. Readers information sheet. Lifting Heavy Things excerpt.

No Open Wounds – Heal Traumatic Stress NOW by Dr. Robert L. Bray, Ph.D. discusses complete recovery with Thought Field Therapy and can be purchased via Dr. Bray’s website

Slay the Toxic Dragon – Police Leadership Impacting Member Wellness by  Dr Barbara Anschuetz, Brad McCay, and Syd Gravel. This book tackles workplace toxicity in police organizations with a unique perspective of what the peer support worker and clinician hears from those who are struggling. With our over 100 years combined experience, we felt it would be beneficial to share what we have learned. With endorsements from leaders around the globe, we hope that this book will influence culture change in a positive way.

Talking with Children about Loss — Words, Strategies, and Wisdom to Help Children Cope with Death, Divorce, and other Difficult Times by Maria Trozzi.

The Art of Grieving the Death of a Child by David Labrum and Judy Jones features stories of people grieving the death of a child

The Wounded Yellow Butterfly by Linda Diaz, LPC, CTS is a resource for children who have experienced a loss: and can be purchased via: [email protected]

Trauma Therapy and Clinical Practice — Neuroscience, Gestalt and the Body by Miriam Taylor weaves together neuroscience research and the experience of trauma, taking a fresh look at how original Gestalt theory informs our current understanding of trauma therapy:  / EBook ISBN: 978-0-335-26310-3

Walk the Talk First Responder Peer Support – A Boots on the Ground Peer and Trauma Support Systems Guide by Staff Sergeant (Retired) Brad McKay, CTSS and Staff Sergeant (Retired) Sylvio A. Gravel, describes a step-by-step approach to a boots on the ground peer support and wellness system for organizations:  / ISBN#9780988131668

When Children Grieve – For Adults to Help Children Deal with Death, Divorce, Pet Loss, Moving and Other Losses by John W. James and Russell Friedman. Concrete suggestions of things to say and do with a child to help acknowledge the loss and grieve in healthy ways.

The H.U.G.S. Program addresses the needs of traumatized and bereaved students who are socially and educationally struggling. For more information contact Christine Dernederlanden at [email protected]

Children's Books

Coping with Grieving and Loss, by Sandra and Owen Giddens. Ages 11 and up. Offers teens and pre-teens strategies for coping – explaining the stages of grieving, how to deal with friends and family, the funeral, anger, guilt and depression, changing emotions, and where to go for help.

Death, by Barbara Sprung. Ages 8-12. Discusses what it feels like to experience the death of a loved one, outlines the stages of grief and mourning, and describes ways to honor or remember someone who has died.

Lifetimes: a Beautiful Way to Explain Death to Children, by Bryan Mellonie. Ages 3-8. This book explains to children that death is a part of life and that, eventually, all living things reach the end of their own special lifetimes.

Part of Me Died, Too – Stories of Creative Survival Among Bereaved Children and Teenagers, by Virginia Fry. Ages 8 and up. True stories of young people reflecting on their experiences with the deaths of pets, family members, or friends. Straight Talk about Death for Teenagers: How to Cope With Losing Someone You Love, by Earl Grollman. Ages 11 and up. A poetic and thought-provoking book for teens who have experienced the death of a friend or relative.

The Saddest Time, by Norma Simon. Ages 5-8. In these three stories, children come to terms with the death of an uncle, a classmate, and a grandmother. Help Me Say Goodbye : Activities for Helping Kids Die: A Guide to Understanding Death, by Laurie Krasny Brown and Mark Brown. Ages 4-8. Explains in simple language the feelings people may have regarding the death of a loved one and the ways to honor the memory of someone who has died.

Children's Picture Books

Badger’s Parting Gifts by Susan Varley. Ages 3-8. After Badger dies, his friends take comfort in the special memories they have of the things they did together.

A Story for Hippo: A Book About Loss by Simon Puttock. Ages 3-7. Hippo and Monkey are best, best friends and when the wise old Hippo dies, Monkey is very sad until Chameleon helps him remember the stories he and Hippo shared.

Manuals

Healing after trauma skills (H.A.T.S.) is a manual for professionals, teachers, and families working with children after trauma and disasters / National Child Traumatic Stress Network: (NCTSN)

New York Disaster Interfaith ServNew York Disaster Interfaith Servicesices is a comprehensive resource tool designed to enable NYC religious leaders to best serve their congregations and the public as they respond to and recover from disasters

SAMHSA Disaster Kit arms disaster recovery workers with a toolkit on mental health awareness. Includes materials for responding effectively to the general public during and after a disaster

Spiritual Care and Mental Health for Disaster Response and Recovery provides information on disaster preparedness, response and resources

Video/Documentary

Mindfulness: Tao of Living not Surviving | Jeff Cartwright | TEDxJIBC

6 Tips to Help Someone You Love with PTSD provides “hands on” tools for helping

Point of View – PBS Documentary on PTSD “Of Men and War” follows over the course of five years the men and their families on their grueling paths to recovery as they attempt to make peace with their past, their loved ones, and themselves: http://www.pbs.org/pov/ofmenandwar/ Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Resilience provides information on how to prevent and manage trauma

PTSD Documentary addresses the possible causes, effects and potential treatment of PTSD told through the stories of three brave veterans