This volume comprehensively explores the life trajectories of nine child/adolescent Holocaust concentration camp survivors as recollected when the subjects were elders.
Based on extensive face to face interview material, enduring psychological and symptomatic effects were evident. Survivors retained vivid recollections of the horror of internment and expressed ongoing grief for the multiple losses they had experienced. Unresolved grief contributed to a sense of existential loneliness, particularly prominent in their late life reflections. Despite indications of resilience and life productivity, a ‘Trauma Trilogy’ of inter-linked catastrophic grief, anger, and survivor guilt contributed to a sense of pain and struggle in negotiating Erikson’s final life task of Integrity versus Despair.
Tracey Farber worked full time as a clinical psychologist, supervisor, and trainer in private practice for 24 years in Johannesburg, where she specialized in treating traumatized adults, adolescents and children. After completing her PhD in 2019, she moved to Israel. At present she works as a clinical psychologist at Psychological Services, Student Success Centre, Tel Aviv University, and as a psychotherapist in private practice in Tel Aviv. She developed a psychoeducational program called “Understanding Trauma and Building Resilience” that was developed from her PhD research. This program has been taught to mental health workers, students, teachers, and parents as well as employees and managers.
Gill Eagle is Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of the Witwatersrand. She lectures primarily on the master’s program in Clinical Psychology and is also a core member of the doctoral team overseeing research work. Her research interests lie in the field of psychosocial studies, with a particular focus on traumatic stress and gender and issues. She runs a small private practice, working primarily within a relational psychoanalytic psychotherapy framework.
Cora Smith is Adjunct Professor in the Division of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of the Witwatersrand. She also holds a joint appointment post as the Chief Clinical Psychologist at the Child, Adolescent and Family Unit at Johannesburg Hospital. Her interests are in the development of personality pathology through the life cycle with a particular focus on attachment. She has a keen interest in the ethical dilemmas that emerge in clinical practice.
Source: https://www.academicstudiespress.com/out-of-series/9781644696347
