Presented under the auspices of the AGPA Community Outreach Task Force

Presenter:          

Wright Williams, Ph.D., CGP, ABPP, Clinical Psychologist, Michael E. DeBakey VAMC, Houston, Texas

This is a presentation about the use of film to help trauma survivors, and how filmmaking can help group therapists communicate their message. Nine former WW II POW’s talk about their traumas, their lives, and the effects of trauma over their lifecycle in the Telly award winning film “Resilience to Trauma.”

Learning Objectives:

The attendee will be able to:

1. Identify four key elements in resilience to trauma.

2. Evaluate situations in which they might use  film to communicate their message as group therapists.

3. Identify the symptoms of PTSD which persist over the lifecycle..

Course References:

1. Bonanno, G. (2004). Loss, trauma, and human resilience: Have we underestimated the human capacity to thrive after extremely aversive events? American Psychologist, 59, 20-28.

2. Daws, Gavan (1994). Prisoners of the Japanese. New York: William Morrow and Company.

3. Herman, J (1992). Trauma and Recovery. New York: Basic Books.