Since the 1980sthere has been a growth of interest in the area of trauma within the disciplines of psychology and psychiatry. This professional interest both reflects and contributes to a wider cultural concern with trauma. The syndrome of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) lies at the heart of the contemporary discourse on trauma. This text argues that there are serious problems inherent in current conceptualizations of how people react to trauma and consequently in many of the therapeutic responses that have developed. This text offers a critique of the concept of PTSD and questions the assumptions which underpin the "trauma industry" that has emerged around it. Drawing on anthropology, philosophy and the clinical experience of others, the author of this text presents a different understanding of the relationships between trauma, meaning and culture. Post traumatic anxiety is presented as a problem with strong social and cultural dimensions and not simply an issue of individual psychopathology. Thus the reader is equipped with a new framework for helping traumatized individuals and communities. This conceptualization of post traumatic sequel aims to challenge therapists, aid and development workers and theoretical workers in psychology and psychiatry. The text argues against the medicalization of distress and for the strengthening of communities and seeks to connect disputes about the framing of trauma with a wider debate about the social control of technology expertise. This work may also be of interest to philosophers and others wishing to understand the relevance of philosophical analysis to medicine and psychology.