Treating Abused Adolescents

With compassion and wisdom born of vast clinical experience, Eliana Gil's new book offers practical, step-by-step guidance for mental health professionals, demonstrating how they can communicate and work more effectively with adolescents who have suffered from abuse. Her book describes the impact of abuse on development, shows how "acting out" can be understood as a bid for attention and help, and details specific ways a therapist can overcome obstacles in treatment.

The first book to explore the issue of abuse in adolescents both the residual effects of earlier child abuse and current or cumulative abuse this volume provides a sensitive account of how to optimize the value of therapeutic contact with this challenging and compelling population. Illustrating her presentation with case examples from her extensive clinical experience, the author shows when and how to address the abuse to help adolescents move ahead in their development.

1. Adolescence and Abuse: An Overview2. Theories of Adolescent Development3. Current versus Cumulative Abuse of Adolescents4. Assessment and Treatment5. Structured Processing of Trauma6. General Principles in Working with Adolescent Abuse Survivors7. Treatment ModalitiesAfterwordReferencesIndex

Eliana Gil, PhD, is founding partner of the Gil Institute for Trauma Recovery and Education, a private group practice in Fairfax, Virginia. She is also Director of Starbright Training Institute for Child and Family Play Therapy. Dr. Gil has worked in the field of child abuse prevention and treatment since 1973. A licensed marriage, family, and child counselor; an approved marriage and family therapy supervisor; a registered art therapist; and a registered play therapy supervisor, she is a former President of the Association for Play Therapy, which honored her with its Lifetime Achievement Award. She is the author of The Healing Power of Play, Helping Abused and Traumatized Children, and Play in Family Therapy, Second Edition, among many other publications. Originally from Guayaquil, Ecuador, Dr. Gil is bilingual and bicultural.