Having trauma is hard. Being in a relationship is hard. Having to navigate trauma histories while being in a queer relationship in today's society is really freaking hard! Trauma changes us-our sense of safety, our beliefs about ourselves and the world, and even our body chemistry. However, it is possible to identify it, explore it, and work through it to create healthier and more positive relationships. It is possible to develop compassion for yourself and your partner(s), to better understand various reactions and ...
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Having trauma is hard. Being in a relationship is hard. Having to navigate trauma histories while being in a queer relationship in today's society is really freaking hard! Trauma changes us-our sense of safety, our beliefs about ourselves and the world, and even our body chemistry. However, it is possible to identify it, explore it, and work through it to create healthier and more positive relationships. It is possible to develop compassion for yourself and your partner(s), to better understand various reactions and responses. And it is possible to work individually and together to get everyone's needs met, while also holding space for each other's journey. In Our Deepest Roots: Navigating Past Trauma to Build Healthier Queer Relationships, Dr. Jen Towns shares stories from her own personal and professional experiences to explore how trauma in childhood or adulthood, combined with being part of the queer community, can impact intimacy, attachment, and our everyday interactions with those closest to us. By noticing the underlying attachment needs that drive our emotions and somatic reactions, we can be more aware of our patterns, better understand ourselves and our partners, and open the door to enhanced communication and compassion. Dr. Towns offers a guide to pull back the curtain and clear the path to deeper connections, intimacy, and healing.
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Add this copy of Our Deepest Roots: Navigating Past Trauma To Build to cart. $24.90, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2023 by Publish Your Purpose.
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Fine. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 266 p. Contains: Illustrations. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
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Add this copy of Our Deepest Roots: Navigating Past Trauma To Build to cart. $34.21, new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Publish Your Purpose.
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New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 266 p. Contains: Illustrations. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Add this copy of Our Deepest Roots: Navigating Past Trauma To Build to cart. $34.34, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2023 by Publish Your Purpose.
Add this copy of Our Deepest Roots: Navigating Past Trauma To Build to cart. $44.61, like new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Publish Your Purpose.
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Fine. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 266 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Our Deepest Roots is a brave and illuminating book about how traumaââ?¬"especially the kind rooted in queerness and relational woundsââ?¬"intertwines with the mess and beauty of love. Dr. Jen Towns doesnââ?¬â?¢t just discuss trauma in the abstract. She lays bare her own experiences, not as case studies or distant theory, but as raw, beating-heart truth. Through her lens as a queer trauma therapist and partner, she unpacks how our ââ?¬Å"partsââ?¬Â? (the internal voices, reactions, and protections we develop) shape, distort, and sometimes save our relationships. She explores this through concepts like attachment theory, the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model, and a blend of hard-earned wisdom from both the therapy room and the kitchen table.
Reading this as a gay man who's wrestled with his own ghosts, I felt seen in a way that knocked the wind out of me. The opening scene where Dr. Town's wife (also a trauma survivor and therapist) writes about storming out of a fight, numb to her partner�s sobbing felt uncomfortably familiar. That terrifying push-pull of needing space but fearing abandonment? Yep. Lived it. And the self-loathing inner monologue she transcribes after the fallout was brutally spot on. It�s one thing to read about trauma reactions. It�s another thing entirely to read someone gently dissect their own and realize, oh god, that�s me too.
What sets this book apart is the refusal to shy away from the complicated, layered ways trauma shows up in queer love. Towns doesnââ?¬â?¢t romanticize healing, and she doesnââ?¬â?¢t offer cheap fixes. Instead, she walks us through her fights, her therapy, her missteps, and the hard-won tools she now teaches. When she talks about ââ?¬Å"fawningââ?¬Â? in queer identityââ?¬"where we perform caretaking to stay safeââ?¬"it hit like a freight train. She describes fawning not as a flaw but as a strategy, born of survival.
Towns also brings a refreshingly down-to-earth voice. Itââ?¬â?¢s not clinical or cold. Itââ?¬â?¢s like a trusted friend walking with you, swearing a little, crying with you, laughing with you when you realize, yes, weââ?¬â?¢re all a little messed up but still deeply worthy of love. And her exercises, like the PEACE TALKS framework and the ââ?¬Å"Zhuzhââ?¬Â? reminders, are actually doableââ?¬"not just filler. She brings everything back to the body, the relationship, and the now. Itââ?¬â?¢s healing work you can feel.
I recommend Our Deepest Roots wholeheartedly, especially to my fellow queer men who grew up believing we had to shrink to be loved, who still brace for rejection when things get close. This book isnâ��t just for therapists or couples in crisisâ�"itâ��s for anyone tired of repeating old patterns and ready to face themselves with honesty and tenderness. Itâ��s raw, smart, sometimes painful, and deeply human. And if youâ��re anything like me, youâ��ll find parts of yourself on every page.