From a young age, Ali Rothrock fell head over heels in love with
firefighting. But when she entered the fire service, she was ostracized
by those who weren't willing to accept a girl into their ranks. Constant
microaggressions, overt sexism, and instances of sexual violence wore
her down until she no longer believed she could safely exist in the
world. The trauma of her experiences eventually resulted in a diagnosis
of post-traumatic stress disorder, and that diagnosis was a first step
toward healing.
In the years since, Ali has worked as a domestic violence and sexual
assault counselor, an advocate for abused children, an inspirational
speaker, and a crisis counselor for first responders. On her journey of
recovery, she has collected other people's stories of resilience. After
Trauma explores the fallout from trauma, the ripples those experiences
have on our lives, and finally, a path toward healing.
After Trauma is a story of adversity, grit, defiance, choice, and
hope. Each chapter offers a lesson to help readers overcome their own
trauma, including concrete and actionable advice on how to re-story a
life after adversity. We all have the ability to re-define ourselves, to
feel hope about what lies ahead, and to choose our own way forward.