“An encyclopedic knowledge of acute stress reactions underpins this highly readable book. Both researchers and clinicians will take this book from the shelf and refer to it repeatedly. It deserves a wide readership among those interested in the impact of community disasters as well as individual traumas of all kinds. This book will prove to be a benchmark reference for the traumatic stress field.”

—Alexander C. McFarlane, MD, Director, Center for Traumatic Stress Studies, University of Adelaide, Australia


“Bryant is the rock star of ASD, having done the most important clinical research in the field for the past 20 years. This is one of the most valuable and most readable books I have encountered in a long time. It should be on the bookshelf of all therapists and trainees to give them the knowledge to help humanity recover from life’s traumas. The volume provides everything professionals need to know to treat ASD, including the research on initial reactions to trauma, scripts for describing the treatment to patients, and session-by-session instructions for intervention.”

—Barbara Olasov Rothbaum, PhD, ABPP, Professor of Psychiatry, and Director, Emory Healthcare Veterans Program and Trauma and Anxiety Recovery Program, Emory University School of Medicine


“Accessible, thoughtful, and comprehensive. Remarkable for its scholarship, this book represents a seamless synthesis of historical, cultural, scientific, and clinical perspectives. Bryant focuses on the most important questions relevant to acute stress responses, all the while infusing the discussion with a healthy dose of common sense and firsthand clinical experience. Mental health clinicians, behavioral scientists, and those involved in mental health policy will all find this text both useful and engaging.”

—Jennifer J. Vasterling, PhD, Chief of Psychology, VA Boston Healthcare System; Professor of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine