Working with Childhood Memories and Avoidance in Trauma Counselling

The Power of Remembering

Kate Mikhailouskaya

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2026
• Print ISBN:
  9781041089896
  9781041089902
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781040682098
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: History & Theory in Psychology
• Index: Psychology

Advocating for the active exploration of childhood memories and the natural avoidance that accompanies them, this book provides a clear entryway into complex and childhood trauma work, particularly in cases where tangled histories and overwhelming symptoms make it challenging for both counsellor and client to prioritize focus areas.

Childhood history often serves as a record and a preliminary foundation for therapeutic work, yet childhood memories rarely become substantial material for ongoing exploration. This leaves childhood "ghosts" hidden, unattended, and unexplored, yet powerful drivers of psychological symptoms that keep individuals stuck and make trauma difficult to treat. To address this, Mikhailouskaya offers a trauma counselling framework built on two key pillars: working with early memories and actively engaging with the avoidance that naturally arises around them. Filled with actionable insights, strategies, and case examples, the text provides a roadmap for addressing hard-to-reach trauma cases and resolving key therapeutic dilemmas, such as balancing client choice with therapeutic expertise and navigating the tension between avoidance, clinical judgement, and the guidance needed to support recovery.

Designed to transcend any single therapeutic approach, this book is an engaging read for psychotherapists, counsellors, and mental health practitioners seeking to enhance their practice with a deeper understanding of the role memories and avoidance play in trauma recovery.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• About the Cover
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Part I Childhood Focus: Exposing Hidden Trauma
• 1 The Haunting Echoes of Childhood Ghosts
• 2 How Can Childhood Memories Be of Service?
• 3 The Invisible Trauma of ‘Unremarkable’ Childhoods
• 4 ‘What if?’: Keeping the Ghosts in Their Closets
• Part II The Power of Remembering: Working with Childhood Memories
• 5 Elusive Ghosts: Reporting Versus Zooming In
• 6 Describing Memories: Pulling ‘Ghosts’ from Their Closets
• 7 ‘What if?’: The Risks and Rewards of Remembering
• Part III Avoidance Unmasked: How to Identify, Understand, and Respond Therapeutically
• 8 Humans and Their Natural Avoidance
• 9 The Taboos
• 10 Fear of Loss
• 11 Desire to Move On
• 12 ‘What if?’: The Hidden Intelligence of Avoidance
• Part IV Therapy as a Chance to Heal: Give It Your Best Shot! (Counsellor’s Role)
• 13 ‘Judge Judy’
• 14 Counsellor as an Active Participant
• 15 ‘What if?’: Exploring the Practitioner Responsibility
• Part V Therapy as a Chance to Heal: Give It Your Best Shot! (Client’s Role)
• 16 Mental Health Services and Consumers
• 17 Raising a Capable Self-Parent
• 18 Counselling That Goes Beyond Appointments: A Central, Not Sideline, Task
• 19 ‘What if?’: The Heavy Demands of Trauma Work
• 20 Conclusion
• Index