Hi All,

I wanted to update you on recent events, and ask for a bit of advice as my team gears up for the paperback release of Childhood Disrupted: How Your Biography Becomes Your Biology, And How You Can Heal — which will be out on July 26th.

Earlier this week I was happy and honored to give the opening talk at a conference on “Trauma Informed Healing” at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. It meant so much to deliver a speech on healing childhood trauma to a group that is so devoted to helping patients thrive.

Johns Hopkins Trauma PresentationAfterwards, Baltimore’s Ivy Bookshop held a book signing. It was a powerful day with several hundred chaplains, health care educators, hospital administrators and clergy coming together from the Mid-Atlantic area to learn about how early life trauma impacts patients facing both acute and chronic illnesses in adulthood, so that they can better serve the patients they encounter in hospital settings each day.

Meanwhile, the paperback release for Childhood Disrupted is right around the corner: July 26th! As our team gears up for pub date we’d Iove to have your feedback on the eCards we’ve been creating (for use on social media) which speak to how deeply trauma affects us on a biological and emotional level.

Which of these six eCard images speaks most to you, and why?

Thanks, as always,

Donna

Old man quoteMother son quoteMiddle-aged-woman-smiling-in-sweater (Optimized)Donna Nakazawa Mother daughter (sweaters) quoteDonna Jackson Nakazawa Child crying aloneWorld is a scary place Quote#1

 

 

 

#2

 

 

 

 

#3

 

 

 

 

#4

 

 

 

 

#5

 

 

 

#6

 

 

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38 Responses

  1. So happy to know that your book will be more available. I’m such a fan.

    I think #1 is really good. Needs bold type for easier reading.
    I also like #4. I would like #6 if it wasn’t a black man. I think if it was a white person it might communicate a message that sometimes white people are afraid of “others” based on their own trauma, not based on the color of another persons’s skin.
    I would like to see #2 a picture of an African American father and child. Often there is a false idea that men of color are not loving fathers.
    Best of luck. Rona

  2. If the purpose is to sell the book, number 6. Women will be drawn to the “hurt child”. Men who have experienced early trauma will be saying in their head “that was/is me”.
    congratulations and best wishes, linda

  3. #4 speaks to me because this is what I’ve tried to do with my 3 adult children; so far 2 have responded and are open to communication regarding their hurts with both of us .
    That said, I would post all of these on FB and think it might be good to use various images ….for example….the black man image could be used with a black son in #4 as well as other ethnic representatives.
    The boy in the corner could be a girl sitting on front porch steps ( waiting like me, for a father who has been gone for months to return )….
    I’d love to see the pictures rotated among the comments to attract as many as possible. To consider Donna’s work… It is that important and could be life- changing for readers.

  4. 2, 5 and 6 all speak to me. Though 2 is my favourite. No matter how different we are we deserve to be loved by our family of origin. #5 was my life living with parents but #6 is now. Always waiting for somebody to push the fear buttons my parents instilled.

    1. Thank you for sharing the different ways in which these messages resonate with your lived experience. Beautifully said.

  5. #6 speaks volumes to me. Still living with fear but hopeful having just finished your books. Thank you

  6. #s 1 and 4 spoke to me because of the hopeful message that it’s never too late to improve your situation. I also liked #5. #3 has a typo! The word adverse is misspelled.

  7. They’re all good. Of course the text in 5 is so true. But 4 speaks to me the most : it is up to the adults to put things right, and the Grandmother’s role is paramount, as she now has hopefully more wisdom to put things right with her daughter.

  8. #5 The child draws you in for the read. Content of text is clear, concise, and exactly what the book is about.

  9. #4
    They are all powerful. Is the message you are interested in getting across more positive or negative? I believe #4 cuts through a myth which is destructive and gets at a very powerful truth which we all need to hear. I found your book personally very helpful.

  10. #1 and #3 because they both acknowledge and validate the devastating effects childhood adversity or trauma can have on an adults physical and emotional well being . However, they both also give the message that one is not doomed to what they once could not take control of in their lives . That it is truly possible to grow, regain health and be even stronger than one would have been had one not faced difficult times. Neuroplasticity is real and powerful.

  11. A gentle reminder to all from Donna’s team. Our book giveaway celebrating the paperback relaunch of Childhood Disrupted ends on Wednesday, July 20th, at noon. Instructions to enter are simple:
    1. Write a sentence about how Childhood Disrupted speaks to you or has helped you on your healing journey, and send it to donnajacksonnakazawabooks@gmail.com with subject line “Review.”
    2. Copy, paste and post this sentence as an Amazon review. To be eligible for our team’s giveaway, your review needs to be posted on the Amazon customer review page for Childhood Disrupted. You simply scroll down (past editorial reviews and product details) to the section on customer reviews, then click on “write a customer review,” fill in the stars and paste your review there!
    https://www.amazon.com/Childhood-Disrupted-Biography-Becomes-Biology/dp/1476748357/ref=cm_rdp_product
    3. Done! You’ll be entered for our giveaway to receive a signed copy of the book for you, as well as a second signed copy for a friend — sent directly to your mailbox. Keep one, give one away to someone who can benefit from the book, too.

    Thanks from Donna’s team!

  12. Number 3. I think it best encompasses your important message. We have had adverse childhood experiences but we can change our lives and not have to look back with regret on what has happened to us

  13. No. 1.. the one with the black man speaks the most to me. I am getting back to the me I was intended to be… I think that’s true of so many of us who suffered childhood trauma. It is beautifully said. Just discovered your work thru the huffpo article and am so glad. Looking forward to reading Childhood Disrupted. Thank you.

  14. I am drawn to number 3 most. I am currently in therapy at the age of 52, finally beginning to see the truth of this, despite an appalling background of emotional neglect and sxual abuse, my amazing therapist has helped me reach a place where I feel reconnected with my child self and where I feel like I wouldnt want to change the life I have had. I nowI feel like it has been a privelege to be able to experience the full depths and heights of being human.
    Donna, I have just finished reading Childhood Disrupted and I am counting myself very very lucky that despite scoring 6 on the ACE survey, I seem to have come through relatively unscathed physically, except for a 2 year encounter with chronic fatigue in my 30s. It has left me wondering why I have escaped. My therapist has suggested that being a musician has always given me an emotional outlet and maybe that helped. I think your message is a very powerful one and I hope it spreads, FAST. Is anyone doing any research into why some people do not develop physical illnesses despite awful beginnings?

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