Wilton resident Jacqueline Jackson was going to call her new book Stress Nation, and with good reason.
“Our lives today in the United States [and] locally, we’re just a nation in need of healing,” she says — a sentiment that echoes through every chapter of her newly titled Holistic Trauma Healing: Strategies to Integrate the Body, Mind & Spirit, which will be released on Aug. 8.
Drawing on over two decades of diverse experience in yoga, meditation, mindfulness and other healing practices, Jackson offers what she says is a practical, how-to guide that blends ancient wisdom with modern resilience strategies — aimed at anyone seeking a more integrated path to dealing with trauma and stress.
Whether for anxious students, sandwich-generation parents, PTSD sufferers, or anyone else seeking healing, Jackson says there is a critical need for an integrated, holistic approach.
“What’s really missing these days in trauma recovery — or we could just call it stress reduction — is an integration of information,” she said. “We go see all these specialists who give us a little piece of the puzzle, and we’re left to make sense of the disparate pieces.”
Jackson says trauma or stress can present itself as muscle tension, digestive issues, fatigue, and myriad other ways. The tools outlined in her book are meant to be “complementary” to traditional medicine and other treatments.
“I would always suggest people use all the information at their disposal — not pitting [one] therapy against [another], but all of it together,” Jackson said. “To me, ‘holistic’ is using all tools available.”
Describing herself as a lifelong learner, Jackson is an experienced registered yoga teacher (ERYT-500), a continuing education provider with Yoga Alliance since 2001, and a member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists. She completed a year-long yoga therapy certification in 2013 and a trauma-informed yoga certification in 2016. She also works as a group facilitator with the online parenting support network, Other Parents Like Me.
While Jackson noted that her book cites numerous academic and research sources, she is also clear about her own credentials.
“I’m not a therapist or a scientist,” she said. “I’m interested in distilling this information into digestible parts to see how they fit together for a more holistic approach to healing.”
She calls her book a “menu of options people can draw on.” Each chapter includes case studies, practical applications and resources presented in a “non-clinical” way people can understand.
The menu options are wide-ranging. A do-it-yourself tapping technique using acupressure points for calming benefits, and elements of a resilience training method used by the U.S. Army are just two of the many tools and tips.
Whether dealing with trauma or stress, Jackson emphasizes that the “toolbox” is often the same.
Jackson believes her book can help individuals on a healing journey but also families dealing with generational trauma. She says trauma can go beyond isolated memories to become deeply rooted and perpetuated in harmful behaviors and beliefs.
“As we heal ourselves, it helps to heal our family,” she said. “The person begins the work of transformation… they can create the possibility of strength and healing for the whole family.”
“It’s impossible to be perfect as a parent or human, and life on earth is challenging, but the good news is that we [can] heal ourselves,” Jackson said, in the same warm, compassionate tone she used throughout GMW‘s interview.
Wilton resident and mental health advocate Vanessa Elias — founder of Thrive with a Guide and certified parent coach — gave a positive review for the book, calling it “a highly accessible, empathetic, and valuable guide on how to thrive, and not just survive trauma and significant stress.”
Holistic Trauma Healing is available now for pre-order, before its official release on Aug. 8. Jackson will headline a book talk at the Angel Cooperative (51 Ethan Allen Hwy., Ridgefield) on Aug. 9. More information about Jackson, her practices and books can be found on her website.