OOTS Book Project

[Kizzie]

OOTS members are writing a book and we're inviting you to submit your story! We are focusing on bringing our experiences and realities to light as well as educating about Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder/Complex Relational Trauma Response (CPTSD/CRTR), from the point of view of survivors. The main audience for the book will be survivors and therapists, but will also be helpful for family/friends, medical providers, teachers, and others. Our goal in writing the book is to help survivors recognize that they have experienced trauma and to recognize potential symptoms of CPTSD/CRTR; to encourage survivors to seek out trauma-informed approaches to healing; and to educate mental health and medical providers on symptoms and the need for trauma-informed treatment and care. The book will have three main sections: 1) An anthology or our individual stories, told in our own voices, about the circumstances that led to CPTSD; 2) A section that describes CPTSD and relational trauma and the impact on our lives in terms of symptoms, relationships, and quality of life; and 3) A section that discusses what we need to heal. 

Please note that anything you submit can be anonymous; that is, if you do not want to use your real name you may use your forum name or another pseudonym. However, when submitting your story for consideration, please include your forum name so we know who you are and let us know what name you want to use for publication. 

We especially want to hear from male survivors, survivors from different countries and cultures, and marginalized groups such as BIPOC, disabled people, LBGTQIA+. Our trauma affects all parts of our lives, and that intersectionality deserves to be heard. We'd also like stories from members who developed CPTSD as adults (e.g., due to domestic violence, sexual abuse, etc).

At this time, we are looking for stories of your lived experience of CPTSD for the anthology section of the book: our individual stores, told in our own voices, of how we developed CPTSD. At a later date we will also seek short contributions for the other sections of the book as well. You do not need to submit an individual story to submit contributions to the other sections.

As on the forum, we ask that you do not include swear words or overly graphic details. Due to space limitations, stories should be approximately 1000 to 4000 words in length, and should be submitted by Friday, October 6th. We recognize that writing our trauma stories is a daunting task. If you find it difficult to edit your story to fit the word count guidelines, or to finish by the due date, please reach out to us and we can help provide some editorial suggestions. Above all, be gentle with yourself and take care. 

We will accept any OOTS member's writings, but please be aware the book is in the collection and planning phase, and we will not be able to include all stories due to space. If we do not use your story or a quote from it in the book, you are still welcome to have it published on the OOTS forum in the "Personal Stories" section of the web site if you wish.

Please PM Narc Kiddo or Cactus Flower on the forum if you would like to contribute or have a question. They will give you further information on format, etc. once you make contact.

[Kizzie]

I should add that there will not be any payment for your story as we don't anticipate much if any revenue from book sales.  What there is we will use to pay for ongoing costs incurred from running this web site and forum.

Thanks,

Kizzie

[Kizzie]

Another addition to our request above.     We thought we should let you know who is part of the core group who will be choosing the stories and editing them. 

We are: Bermuda, Armee, Cactus Flower, Narc Kiddo, Papa Coco, Butterfly, and Kizzie. 

[Bermuda]

What an exciting book project. So glad to be working on it together. *Bump!*

Sharing our stories to others living with CPTSD as well as professionals can be such a powerful thing to help them to better understand what our experiences were and what we experience now as a result.

I know I struggle a lot with feeling like my trauma wasn't bad enough, or that my symptoms are not severe enough, and it's easy for professiolnals to see my wishywashiness as a sign that I am actually fine. I hope we can change that, kind of. Can we get wishywashiness into the DSM? Half-joking, but just wanted to bump this.

[Healing Finally]

YES!  I would love to do this!  I have seriously been thinking of doing this myself! 

Like Bermuda says, "I know I struggle a lot with feeling like my trauma wasn't bad enough, or that my symptoms are not severe enough, and it's easy for professiolnals to see my wishywashiness as a sign that I am actually fine."  YES!!  Within 30 years of therapy my emotional trauma was not acknowledged, and I had to educate my therapist (after I found you all!)  I know there's a new movement of "trauma recovery" that is now coming to the forefront, and this book would be part of that.

I have actually written a story that was published in a book by the recovery program LifeRing (https://lifering.org/bookstore-shopping-cart/Humanly-Possible-p161743472) and it has been so rewarding to know that my story might help someone.

I will contact Narc Kiddo or Cactus Flower for next steps.  This is very exciting.

[Kizzie]

Lovely to have you Healing Finally!     Yes please do contact Narc Kiddo and/or Cactus Flower, happy to have you join the project.

[Armee]

 

Hooray! All our stories are worth telling and have the potential to really help others. So happy for all who have already raised a hand to contribute their story and I'm looking forward to others doing so, too. I know how much we all struggle with wondering if our trauma was that bad. It is that bad or we wouldn't have cPTSD. And we need the whole range of stories to help others recognize their own trauma.

[Kizzie]

Just giving this thread a bump so that anyone who wants their story included in the book can let NarcKiddo or Cactus Flower know. We are looking for stories in your authentic voice meaning it doesn't have to be of Pulitzer Prize standard. 

We'd love for you to add your voice to ours. 

 

[Healing Finally]

Thanks Kizzie for the reminder that it doesn't have to be of Pulitzer Prize standard   

[Kizzie]