After Trauma
out now!
“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.”
Representation: Wordserve Literary and Hertz Lichtenstein Young & Polk LLP.
Publisher: Broadleaf Books
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Where Hope Lives
Self-published in 2010, Where Hope Lives is Ali Rothrock’s debut memoir. Compiled from her personal journals, Where Hope Lives explores the true story of Ali’s entry into the adrenaline-fueled world of firefighting.
As a reverent relationship developed between Ali and her calling, she threw herself headlong into the male-dominated world of firefighting. Ali endured continued intimidation and abuse but grew in her determination to become a well-respected firefighter. Beyond any doubt Ali knew that even if she didn’t fit in at her first fire house, she belonged in that world. Where Hope Lives asks the question: How tenacious would you be in order to stay put in the world in which you know you belong?
All journeys through life have peaks and valleys of emotion. For Ali, her moments of happiness were as intermittent as flashing emergency lights, bright at times, but fleeting as quickly as they arrived. Ali was right where she belonged, but every time she turned around, her new colleagues were trying to force her to live up to their views of how women in firefighting should act.
Despite the subject matter, this is not just a book for firefighters. A firehouse is merely the backdrop for the story that took place in a small town in Pennsylvania. Ali's struggle and eventual success will resonate deeply in the soul of humankind. This story will certainly reach across all racial, cultural and gender divides to that universal place inside all of us where hope lives.
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Featured Articles
FIRE ENGINEERING
The Resilient First Responder | 2024
Crackyl Magazine
Reaching Resilience | Winter 2022 (Print)
Yoga for First Responders
Resilience in Action | 2021
FASNY
Women are the Key to Recruitment | 2021
RAINN
Equipping First Responders To Help Save Children | 2021
NVFC | Firefighter Strong
Coping Mechanisms for Stressful Times | 2021
Let’s Stop Calling It Bullying | 2018
Q&A With Ali Rothrock: Finding the Way Forward | 2020
Fire Engineering
Read Ali’s Psychology Today Blog
“This book began to change everything inside of me. Page after page, little by little.”
/ reader of where hope lives /
“After Trauma shines a light on the darkness that trauma leaves behind and guides survivors through the tunnel of recovery in a sensitive, supportive manner. Realizing I was not alone in my nonlinear journey of trauma recovery gave me a sense of peace and a feeling of solidarity with other survivors.”