Self-Help

“Wounds into Wisdom is for anyone who has suffered trauma, either directly or in a family whose generational trauma is buried. It helps readers uncover suffering and use it to help others―the final stage of healing. We may not be able to control what happens to us, but we can control what happens next.” ―Gloria Steinem

• 2020 Nautilus Book Award―GOLD/Psychology
• 2020 Book Award from the Jewish Women’s Caucus of the Association for Women in Psychology
• 2019 Book of the Year Award Finalist in Religion and Self-Help categories

Our past does not simply disappear. The painful history of our ancestors and their rich cultural wisdom intertwine within us to create the patterns of our future. Even when past trauma remains unspoken or has long been forgotten, it becomes part of us and our children―a legacy of both strength and woundedness that shapes our lives.

In this book, Tirzah Firestone brings to life the profound impact of protracted historical trauma through the compelling narratives of Israeli terror victims, Holocaust survivors, and those whose lives were marred by racial persecution and displacement. The tragic story of Firestone’s own family lays the groundwork for these revealing testimonies of recovery, forgiveness, and moral leadership.

Throughout, Firestone interweaves their voices with neuroscientific and psychological findings, as well as relevant and inspiring Jewish teachings. Seven principles emerge from these wise narratives―powerful prescriptive tools that speak to anyone dealing with the effects of past injury. At the broadest level, these principles are directives for staying morally awake in a world rife with terror.

Why do some people blossom through adversity while others fall apart?

Author Mark Matousek examines this phenomenon by seeking advice from well-known survivors like Joan Didion and Isabel Allende and experts like Jon Kabat-Zinn to show how disasters can be used to awaken and transform us.

From a Sudanese boy slave kidnapped at age seven to a Tibetan nun imprisoned by Chinese militia, Matousek sifts through extraordinary testimonies and recent breakthroughs in neuroscience to demonstrate how we are hardwired to evolve and adapt when faced with the impossible.