The PTSD Workbook - 3rd Edition by Mary Beth Williams & Soili Poijula (Paperback)

About the Book

In the third edition of the best-selling The PTSD Workbook, psychologists and trauma experts Mary Beth Williams and Soili Poijula offer readers the most effective tools available for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this fully revised and updated workbook, readers will learn how to move past the trauma they have experienced; manage symptoms such as insomnia, anxiety, and flashbacks; and find important updates reflecting the new DSM-V definition of PTSD.

Book Synopsis

Struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)? You can heal--and reclaim your life.

If you're living with PTSD, trauma symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, intrusive memories, anxiety, emotional numbness, or insomnia may feel overwhelming. Whether your trauma stems from military combat, domestic or sexual violence, a car accident, workplace injury, natural disaster, or another terrifying event, the impact can interfere with relationships, work, sleep, and daily life.

You are not broken--and you are not alone.

In The PTSD Workbook, Third Edition, psychologists and trauma experts Mary Beth Williams and Soili Poijula provide a comprehensive, evidence-based program grounded in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), one of the most effective treatments for PTSD. This fully revised and updated edition offers practical tools used by trauma specialists worldwide to help you reduce symptoms and build emotional resilience.

In this workbook, you'll learn how to:

• Understand how trauma affects the brain and body
• Manage flashbacks, intrusive memories, and trauma triggers
• Reduce anxiety, insomnia, and emotional reactivity
• Address avoidance, numbing, and hypervigilance
• Strengthen coping skills and regain a sense of safety
• Build resilience after combat trauma, violence, accidents, or disaster

This updated edition includes expanded content for veterans with PTSD, new research on the role of cortisol and adrenaline in trauma response, guidance on the mind-body connection in PTSD recovery, and important updates aligned with the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria.

Designed for both trauma survivors and clinicians, this accessible workbook delivers structured, step-by-step exercises to help you process trauma, reduce distress, and move toward lasting recovery.

Healing is possible--and this workbook offers a clear path forward.

Review Quotes

"The PTSD Workbook is an outstanding aid to those recovering from exposure to traumatic life events and the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For use while in psychotherapy or by itself, this workbook provides an important guideline and template for moving forward with life. Derived from considerable clinical experience and up-to-date with recent research on recovery, The PTSD Workbook is an invaluable addition to the growing number of clinical tools to improve resiliency and enhance healthy outcomes."
--Terence M. Keane, PhD, associate chief of staff for research and development at the VA Boston Healthcare System, director of the behavioral science division of the National Center for PTSD, and professor of psychiatry and assistant dean of research at the Boston University School of Medicine


"This is a treasure trove of a book filled with up-to-date information on trauma, with the best collection of self-help methods in the field. It is easy to understand, and will be a resource for all individuals who are suffering from the effects of traumatic events, as well as for professionals."
--Atle Dyregrov, PhD, clinical and research psychologist, and head of professional issues at the Center for Crisis Psychology in Bergen, Norway; professor of clinical psychology at the University of Bergen, Norway; author of Disaster Psychology, Children in War, Grief in Children, and Supporting Traumatized Children and Teenagers; founding member of the European Society for Traumatic Stress Studies; and chair of the Children and War Foundation


"This is an extremely helpful book for trauma victims and facilitators, but also for you and me, to own and look into it daily."
--Hédi Fried, psychologist, writer, teacher, Holocaust survivor, author of The Road to Auschwitz, and winner of the 2015 Public Advocacy Award from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS)


"This update of The PTSD Workbook nicely reflects the authors' sensitive understanding of psychological trauma and resilience. It provides individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and their professional helpers with an impressive compendium of self-help and therapeutic techniques. Each of its twelve chapters is full of easy-to-use exercises that allow readers to decide which techniques are most suited to their individual situation. Anyone with a personal experience of, or exposure to, traumatic events will learn something useful from an encounter with this excellent work."
--Joseph H. Albeck, MD, clinical associate in the department of psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA; Chairman (Emeritus) for the Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma and Resilience Special Interest Group of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS); and cofounder of the New England Holocaust Memorial

About the Author

Mary Beth Williams, PhD, LCSW, CTS, is an author, researcher, lecturer, and trainer in the area of trauma. In addition, she treats trauma survivors in private practice at the Trauma Recovery Education and Counseling Center in Warrenton, VA. Williams is former president of the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists. She is a trainer for US Customs and Border Protection, cofounder of the proposed 501(c)(3) US Vet Source, and author of many articles, chapters, and books about trauma disorders.

Soili Poijula, PhD, is a clinical psychologist, licensed psychotherapist, and director at Oy Synolon Ltd., a center for trauma psychology in Finland, where she has done pioneering work as a developer of post-trauma psychotherapy.