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Healing Beyond Trauma's Shadow

Transforming Pain Into Power Through Practical

Healing Books That Foster God's Path Healing

Start Reading

Healing Beyond Trauma's Shadow

Transforming Pain Into Power Through Practical

Healing Books That Foster God's Path Healing

Start Reading

Beyond the Scar: Healing the Wounds of Trauma

There is hope in realizing you can heal.

Will I ever be the same again?

It's a question countless people ask in the wake of trauma. The grief, anger, anxiety, shame, or numbness can feel overwhelming. Our identity fractures. Relationships change. Faith can feel distant. We look at ourselves and wonder, Who have I become?

Beyond the Scar: Healing the Wounds of Trauma is a powerful invitation to healing-written by Dr. Steve West, a former military chaplain, EMT, police officer, and trauma survivor. Drawing from decades of frontline ministry and his own personal journey, Steve offers honest insight, biblical truth, and practical tools for those navigating life after trauma.

This book is for anyone who feels like their pain has isolated them from others-or even from God. Whether the trauma comes from abuse, violence, grief, betrayal, combat, moral injury, or life-shattering loss, Beyond the Scar helps readers understand what trauma does to the mind, body, and soul-and how healing is possible through grace, support, and spiritual renewal.

Steve doesn't offer platitudes. He writes with raw honesty, vulnerable storytelling, and hard-won wisdom. Readers will see themselves in these pages-and begin to find words for what they feel. They'll also find hope that they're not beyond repair. Healing doesn't mean going back to the way things were. It means becoming whole again, even if life will never be the same.

Beyond the Scar also speaks to those who walk with trauma survivors-family members, pastors, chaplains, counselors, and friends-equipping them to respond with compassion, presence, and understanding.

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Books for Emotional Resilience

The Bronze Scar

There is comfort in realizing you are not alone.

Am I crazy?

People with post-traumatic disorders often ask themselves this question. The inability to control actions, memories, anxiety, and other aspects of PTSD can make the one who suffers feel like they are crazy, but the answer is no. All of these things are normal PTSD responses. It isn’t easy to reconcile “who I am now” with “what I’ve become” compared to “who I was” and “how I acted” before all of this.

The Bronze Scar will help those with PTSD know they are not alone. Steve West pulls no punches. He never hides his faults while being completely transparent and speaking from his heart. The book is a powerful account of what goes through his head and how he feels at any given moment. Those with PTSD will easily recognize these thoughts and feelings in themselves. Gaining insight can make it easier to explain to others.

The book will also help families, friends, and colleagues who deal with the imbalances daily by detailing Steve’s experiences. If people can better understand what really happens when someone with PTSD finds their anxiety on the rise, it will help them respond in helpful, non-judgmental ways.

One of the great disadvantages of living with a person with PTSD is not having a point of reference. Being unable to relate to a loved one with PTSD causes frustration. The one with PTSD often lashes out and hurts those who invest in them the most.

This book helps explain how PTSD feels, then those who suffer, and their families can, hopefully, understand each other a little better. It leads to the point where we can talk intelligently about this experience, and that is a sufficiently positive starting point.

Perhaps you are unsure if you have PTSD and have therefore not sought help. If you identify with what Steve shares, perhaps it will lead you to seek help. You can’t do it alone. It takes a group of people who are committed to supporting you. Not everyone can be cured, but everyone can find a certain level of healing. This healing stems from an understanding of the inner turbulence and the external manifestations of PTSD. There is comfort in realizing you are not alone.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Praise For Beyond the Scar

"Beyond the Scar is a courageous and deeply personal offering from a veteran, chaplain, and faithful follower of Christ. With pastoral tenderness and lived vulnerability, Steve shares his journey through PTSD not as a story of easy resolution, but as a testament to God’s patient, redemptive work. He invites us to name our wounds and to pursue healing without shame. Through powerful storytelling and spiritual insight, he reminds us that we are not alone. In a world full of darkness, Steve’s book is a sacred companion for the road toward the Light."

— Rev. Dr. Nicole Massie Martin, Author of Nailing It: Why successful leadership demands suffering and surrender.

"Beyond the Scar is a powerful, grace-filled journey into the heart of trauma and the hope of healing. With unflinching honesty and sacred compassion, this book names the wounds we carry, the questions we fear, and the God who meets us there. Every chapter is a lifeline for the hurting—and a gentle guide for those walking beside them. West threads the needle by tackling a subject we too often ignore."

— Philip E. Dearborn, Ed.D., President, Association of Biblical Higher Education

“Beyond the Scar echoes the inspiring words of an athletics coach that dominate my thoughts every time I lace up my running shoes: ‘You haven’t come this far to only get this far.’ In trauma, as in athletics, you decide if the agonizing pain you experience along the way is an excuse to quit or a catalyst to keep going. Whether the scar is on your body or on your soul, you can move past the events that caused your pain to a victory you could never have imagined. Having gone beyond his own scars while still acknowledging their lingering presence, Steve West in these pages shows you how to do the same.”

— Dondi E. Costin, PhD, President, Liberty University, Major General, U.S. Air Force (Retired)

“In this compassionate and deeply redemptive book, Chaplain Steve West holds out the hope of healing to those who suffer trauma’s many harms. Written by a man who has experienced the healing of his own hurts, Beyond the Scar will help both survivors and their caregivers understand the pains of trauma more comprehensively and receive the loving mercy of Jesus.”

— Dr. Philip Graham Ryken, President, Wheaton College

"Beyond the Scar is a powerful reminder that God can bring purpose from our pain. Dr. Steve West shares his journey through trauma with honesty and hope, showing how our scars can become tools to help others heal. This book is an encouragement to anyone facing hardship, offering faith, strength, and a renewed sense of direction."

— Valerie Dowling, Director, Women’s Democracy Network, International Republican Institute

"In our fast-paced, quick-fix, 'pull yourself up by your bootstraps' culture, Beyond the Scar offers a much-needed invitation to slow down and truly heal. As a therapist who specializes in trauma for both civilian and responder communities — and as someone who has personally experienced its impact — I can say without hesitation that this book is a must-read. Dr. Steve West gives trauma a voice and offers a clear, compassionate path forward. His honest reflections, combined with an accessible explanation of how trauma affects the brain and body, create space for readers to feel, process, and ultimately heal. Through God, supportive relationships, and personal surrender, healing becomes not only possible, but within reach."

— Kelli Mosley, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist

-Whether you are in the middle of your own healing journey or supporting someone through theirs, this book is a trustworthy guide. It reminds us that trauma may change our story, but it does not get to write the final chapter. There is hope after heartbreak. There is purpose after pain. And by God's grace, there is beauty beyond the scar.

— Brandon Doss, M.Div, Lead Team Pastor, Cultivate Church

“Steve West pulls back the curtain on the sometimes emotionally crippling effect of unresolved trauma returning under the surface for believers who are often conditioned to think it should be suppressed. As Steve reveals, there are different levels of mental/emotional trauma, but thank goodness he lays out the scripturally-based blueprint to help us navigate it for our growth.”

— Mike Dubberly Co-anchor of Good Day Alabama on WBRC TV 6 News

Praise For the Bronze Scar

Walk into the head of PTSD. See the thoughts. Feel the emotions. Experience the reality. Steve West opens the hidden hallways for all to explore. This book gives a rare journey into the secrets of how yesterday’s traumas shape all of today’s life into tomorrow. The Bronze Scar answers questions we didn’t know how to ask. Candid. Raw. Compassionate. These pages are for the circles of PTSD from personal to family, friends, and professionals.

— Leith Anderson, President Emeritus, National Association of Evangelicals, Washington, DC

“I have no doubt that PTSD is one of the reasons we aren’t making more headway in the war against homelessness. Unless we all become fully cognizant of this condition and know how to recognize it in those around us, the anxiety, anger, and shame that Steve West describes will continue to drive far too many of our friends onto the streets and into addictions that will only make things worse. I’m strongly recommending that The Bronze Scar be on the required reading list for all of the leaders of North America’s rescue missions and kindred ministries.”

— John Ashmen, President, Citygate Network (formerly the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions)

My Dad lived with PTSD for 60 years before finally acknowledging the trauma he endured from the Korean War. Steve lays bare for all to see, the realities of what our brave service members, including my Dad, endure during wartime. It takes a lot of courage to admit the negative psychological impacts of war, especially for a chaplain whose very mission is to help others. Bronze Scar is a book about courage, discovery, family, and faith. It is a vivid depiction of what thousands of war survivors deal with every day. A must-read for those in and out of the military.

— General (Ret) Larry O. Spencer, 37th Vice Chief of the Air Force, author of Dark Horse, General Larry O. Spencer and His Journey from the Horseshoe to the Pentagon.

“I got to know Steve and Cherri when he was in the depth of his PTSD struggle. I personally saw the grip it had on his life and the impact on his job and his family. This book is a testimony of God's grace and strength in his life and his wife's determination to hold true to her wedding vow to "love and cherish...in sickness and health." Their story will be a beacon of hope to many.”

—Jim Browning, Director of the Marsh Center for Chaplain Studies; Ch, Col (Ret) USAF

“The Bronze Scar is an extraordinary testimonial of courage and selfless disclosure, shining a light on a very dark and personal struggle impacting today's warriors and so many more in our society. Readers who are suffering with PTSD will see themselves in Steve's experience and through their newfound awareness, finally have a road map to address the pain underlying their behavior before it destroys their family, their career and ultimately their life.”

— Bonnie Carroll, President & Founder, Tragedy Assistance Program For Survivors (TAPS)

In our family there were the knowing looks, holding your breath, avoiding certain topics of conversation, and the desire to help complicated by the fear of what your concerns might provoke. Our Marine arrived home from Afghanistan with 2 Purple Hearts and a deep soul wound. He grimaced with physical pain but the torment of the PTSD was equally as bad. I had no idea what he was feeling. There is so much in this book I wish I had known a decade ago. I would have been better able to understand what my Marine was feeling. If you have longed for someone to open a window into the complex world of feelings associated with PTSD, The Bronze Star is for you.

— Carmen LaBerge, radio host for Faith Radio, author

About Dr. Steven West

Dr. Steve West is the author of two influential works on trauma recovery: The Bronze Scar: Understanding How PTSD Feels and his newest release, Beyond the Scar: Healing the Wounds of Trauma. His writing combines decades of professional caregiving with personal experience, offering hope, clarity, and practical tools for those navigating trauma and for those who support them.

Living With PTSD

Steve has lived with a PTSD diagnosis for over a decade. His entire career has been dedicated to serving others through roles as an emergency medical technician, police officer, military chaplain, pastor, and hospital chaplain. He currently serves as the Director of Chaplaincy for the National Association of Evangelicals, where he equips and supports chaplains across the country.

A Distinguished 40-Year Military Career

A retired United States Air Force chaplain, Steve completed a distinguished 40-year career in 2015. During his military service, he was honored to serve as chaplain to two Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired as the final Air Force member on active duty who began service during the Vietnam era in 1974. Steve holds a Master of Divinity in psychology and counseling from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and a Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he was sent by the Air Force as a subject-matter expert in the field. He later served as the marriage and family therapy consultant for the entire Air Force Chaplain Corps.

In Beyond the Scar, Steve expands his trauma work to explore not only PTSD, but a wide range of emotional, spiritual, and relational wounds. Drawing from Scripture, theology, neuroscience, and real-life stories, the book offers a Christ-centered path toward hope and healing.

Steve is married to Cherri West. They have two children, Adam and Jennifer, a daughter-in-law, Emily, and two grandchildren, Addison and Greysie.

Meet the Author

Healing Beyond Trauma's Shadow

Healing Beyond Trauma's Shadow

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Beyond the Scar: Healing the Wounds of Trauma