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.
I’m sure readers of this book will be surprised at the extra layer of trauma women experience at the hands of their male coworkers (fire ‘men’ assumed as heroes). Readers, I ask that you do not focus on, or pity the women as victims. Instead put the spotlight on the men who commit the violence and never, ever (as the police officer did in the book) give men an excuse by saying, “boys will be boys.” A meaningful change can only happen when the men stand with the women. It is through partnership between the genders that we can all become more and better. This includes keeping those who stand by and say nothing accountable.
Rothrock’s book is about more than women victimized in the fire service. It is about all men and women in every profession. We can and we must do better.
Ali’s story, along with those of other survivors, helped me to untangle feelings of shame and isolation associated with my own sexual assault.
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.