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The world is a big place, and it is full of adventures. Especially for children aged three to twelve, life holds something new and exciting in store every day. Not infrequently, however, children feel overwhelmed by the complexity of everything they encounter. It is hardly surprising, then, that the little people can feel discouraged, and that certain situations, such as the death of their beloved grandmother, or the daily feeling of isolation at kindergarten, can lead to major anxieties. As children are not able to understand and control mental anguish in the way adults can, let alone express them in words so as to tell their parents, their specific fears often remain hidden, or may only be revealed in indirect ways, perhaps through certain symptoms. This makes it all the more important for parents to find ways of engaging their children in a conversation, and so to confront any anxieties they may experience. To assist parents in this endeavour, Christian Lüdke has written this read-aloud book "Der kleine Samurai Mio Mio Mausebär" – featuring a character who acts as a fearless companion for parents and children alike, so that together they can set out to uncover specific fears and anxieties children may harbour through problem-based story lines, and then help the children verbalise their thoughts and feelings through simple language, eventually conquering the fear with practical solutions. The book comes with the Mio Mio Mausebär parental guide which outlines the symptoms associated with specific types of fear and shows how parents can help their children, and how to apply solutions to practical situations. In addition, parents will learn how to steer the conversation with their child towards a positive outcome, and how to decide whether to involve the services of a paediatrician and therapist.
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Learning from life

Crises, assaults, accidents, misfortune, serious setbacks and traumatic events are all part of the fabric of life. Yet crises and traumatic events should not affect us forever. Crises are part of the process of human development, change and evolution. Traumatic events cause wounds that can heal over time. The term trauma describes not only the wound; it also stands for the natural process that can heal the wound. A trauma is an interrupted fight-flight process which has the natural tendency to be brought to a conclusion. Stressful and extreme events, crises of identity, authority and sexuality as well as traumatic events are among the key experiences in the development of the human personality, and therefore in the process of understanding and utilising the natural powers of self-healing. In a great many descriptions of instances of emotional hardship, the power of natural strategies for overcoming crisis situations and the healing of trauma sustained is greatly underestimated. Our understanding of the way crises and traumatic events develop and can be resolved rests on the fundamental assumption that every person has the innate ability to not only overcome extremely stressful life events and crises using inner strength and resources, but to gain greater maturity as an individual by living through such events. Crises are essential to life. We learn through experiencing crises. There can be no development without crises and no life without trauma.

Life works in wondrous ways:

"…when I passed my driving test, I thought I knew how to drive a car. But it was only through continued driving that I learned how to drive properly.” “When I got married, I thought I knew what it means to be a man. But through my wife I learn every day how to become a man.” “When I gave birth and became a mother, I thought I knew what it means to be a mother. But my children are teaching me little by little each day how to be a mother." “When I gained my license to practise a helping profession, I thought I knew how to help people. But it was really only through those seeking help that I learned what helping really means.”

What we are and what we are capable of, we really only learn once we are confronted with a new major task in life, a challenge, a situation, an experience or role that is new to us, and which we did not even know it existed. It is in such borderline situations, when we face new, previously unknown circumstances, that our lives change. Every human being harbours an infinitely rich store of unimaginable abilities and skills. Many of these date back to time immemorial. To reveal this treasure, we sometimes need others to help us find it. The help of situations that require a new way of being in the world, that trigger a change in the way we live our life. The way to find out about our own strengths leads via other people, situations, events and experiences. Our real strengths are only discovered and awakened when they are needed. Some of these strengths are held in reserve and only become activated when all other resources have been exhausted. That is when we discover our new, old strengths. Life is change, development, transformation and growth. Life is other people! And yet, to grow and mature, one must not compare oneself with others. We each must realise our own potential for growth, encounter new life situations, find new bearings and start the process of personal growth and development anew. Life changes us, and we can change life, if we learn to learn from life!

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Victim support needs to be provided from an early stage, be of sufficient complexity and be networked. Everyone involved in rendering support for victims of violent crime and accidents as well as in trauma prevention must be given a voice. Psychotherapists, doctors, lawyers, priests as well as police, the fire brigade, emergency rescue services, insurance companies, victim support organisations, hospitals, social security services, the media and, not least, through their evocative testimony, the victims themselves.
"The traumatic event cannot be erased from a person's biography. We can let it destroy us, or we can choose to live with it, to be shaken up by it, perhaps, but not crushed. The living conditions in which victim of trauma find themselves once the traumatic event is over are what makes the difference."
(Jan Philipp Reemtsma in the foreword)
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