When I write, I draw from three life experiences.

  • I am a psychologist whose research centered on understanding how we overcome traumatic circumstances. The people whose lives I studied were being treated for cancer, or were living with debilitating chronic pain, or had experienced interpersonal trauma.
  • I am also an author, with a passion for “giving away” psychology as I translate psychological insights from the language of the scientist to the language of everyday lives.
  • And I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, where those experiences form the center of my focus on growth after trauma.

I am energized every day as I write, knowing that people begin a recovery journey informed by accurate information. We can grow after adversities in addition to experiencing distress and impairment. My writing expresses my desire that you learn about and create this growth for yourself no matter what your own life experiences have been.

a photo of Elizabeth (Betsy) Altmaier