What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing

by Oprah Winfrey, Bruce D. Perry Narrated by Bruce D. Perry, Oprah Winfrey

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

A simple perspective shift from effect to cause, this book encourages readers to look at the origin of their behaviors, to understand their past, and thus to build a more positive self-image.

"[Oprah Winfrey and Bruce D. Perry] are both capable, likable narrators who are sincerely engaged with their subject matter...The performances of these two humanitarians make this a must-hear for anyone recovering from their traumatic past." -AudioFile

This program is read by the authors.

Our earliest experiences shape our lives far down the road, and What Happened to You? provides powerful scientific and emotional insights into the behavioral patterns so many of us struggle to understand.

“Through this lens we can build a renewed sense of personal self-worth and ultimately recalibrate our responses to circumstances, situations, and relationships. It is, in other words, the key to reshaping our very lives.”-Oprah Winfrey

This audiobook is going to change the way you see your life.

Have you ever wondered "Why did I do that?" or "Why can't I just control my behavior?" Others may judge our reactions and think, "What's wrong with that person?" When questioning our emotions, it's easy to place the blame on ourselves; holding ourselves and those around us to an impossible standard. It's time we started asking a different question.

Through deeply personal conversations, Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry offer a groundbreaking and profound shift from asking “What's wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?”

Here, Winfrey shares stories from her own past, understanding through experience the vulnerability that comes from facing trauma and adversity at a young age. In conversation throughout the audiobook, she and Dr. Perry focus on understanding people, behavior, and ourselves. It's a subtle but profound shift in our approach to trauma, and it's one that allows us to understand our pasts in order to clear a path to our future-opening the door to resilience and healing in a proven, powerful way.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Where Hope Lives:

What we experience in childhood shapes us forever—and that is especially true for young victims of trauma. It’s a lesson Oprah learned as a child being raised by an abusive grandmother. She developed 'a keen sense of when trouble was brewing'—when she would be subjected to 'whuppings' at times so brutal, the welts left behind would bleed through her clothing.

As a result of this and other abuse she suffered, Oprah has had a lifelong interest in understanding and overcoming the profound effects of early trauma—and helping others do the same. Now, she’s teamed up with neuroscientist and child trauma expert Bruce Perry, MD, PhD, on this essential book. Revealing, intimate, and educational, it’s a testament to the authors’ wish for readers to come to grips with, and let go of, the past—and to move forward into 'post-traumatic wisdom.'"


—Leigh Haber, O Magazine

APRIL 2021 - AudioFile

A psychiatrist and veteran researcher on early abuse and loss combines his clinical knowledge with the personal experiences and observations of a well-known survivor of such trauma: Oprah Winfrey. They are both capable, likable narrators who are sincerely engaged with their subject matter. Their informative audio is an easily digestible blend of sections they have written and spontaneous conversations between them. This casual-sounding format is an effective way for overwhelmed survivors to learn about trauma recovery. It combines the psychiatrist’s light touch with sensitive information and facility explaining neurobiology with the comforting sound of Winfrey's voice, one that is familiar and trusted by millions of people. The performances of these two humanitarians make this a must-hear for anyone recovering from their traumatic past. T.W. 2022 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2021-05-17
A collaborative look at brain trauma and methods to alleviate the potentially lifelong effects.

Child psychiatrist and neuroscientist Perry teams with Winfrey to examine traumatic injury caused by an abusive childhood. The book is formatted in a conversational interview format, with Perry sharing his insights on stress, brain biology, and physiological response, offering new approaches to emotional and psychological pain. Using medical models, Winfrey’s personal experience, and Perry’s years of research, the authors demonstrate the brain’s resilience and ability to adapt to traumatic situations, particularly when paired with psychopharmacological remedies, natural interventions, and behavioral treatments. This process of neural recalibration works wonders in instances of deeply embedded trauma and abuse, allowing people to live better lives through newly invigorated self-worth. Winfrey candidly shares difficult memories of a childhood where regular whippings (as early as age 3) were “accepted practice” and there were expectations of silence and a smile in their aftermath. In addition to this early trauma, she recounts her difficult adult relationship with her mother, which culminates in a powerful scene in a nursing home when Winfrey froze at her mother’s bedside, unable to address her. She admits that while collectively these events manifested into her adult relationships and behavior, she eventually processed and embraced the trauma as an opportunity for healing and a way to move forward. With proactive conviction, the authors help readers to recognize their own internalized trauma and encourage the reshaping of personal paths toward wellness and “to excavate the roots that were put down long before we had the words to articulate what was happening to us.” Through therapeutic frameworks and the curative power of community, belonging, human connection, and mindfulness, the authors show how renewal of mind and spirit is attainable. Though many of these issues have been addressed before, Perry and Winfrey’s partnership is notable, and their book is worthy of attention.

A candid guidebook to exorcising mental trauma.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172941313
Publisher:	Macmillan Audio
Publication date:	04/27/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	296,114

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