This book synthesizes research, psychology, neuroscience, attachment theory,
somatic studies, trauma work, and influential thinkers across multiple fields.
Below is a curated list of the works, ideas, and creators that informed,
inspired, and resonated with the core themes of this book.

Dr. Elaine Aron — Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) Theory
Research on sensory-processing sensitivity, mirror neuron activation, emotional
reactivity, and the DOES framework (Depth, Overstimulation, Empathy, Sensitivity).

Stephen Porges — Polyvagal Theory
Understanding the nervous system's regulation, safety cues, freeze states, and
shutdown patterns.

Peter Levine — Somatic Experiencing
Trauma stored in the body, dissociation, and nervous-system healing.

Bessel van der Kolk — The Body Keeps the Score
Somatic trauma responses, dissociation, and emotional memory.

Gabor Maté — Trauma, Compassion, Addiction, Sensitivity
Insights into emotional overwhelm, childhood patterns, and nervous system
adaptations.

Carl Jung
Shadow work, archetypes, silence as a container, and the inner architecture of
the psyche.

James Hollis
Meaning-making, childhood adaptations, and psychological individuation.

Nick Tooley
Themes around sublimity, inner power, emotional depth, and the phenomenology of
experience (popularized in conversations on Theo Von's & DOAC podcasts).

Mary Ainsworth & John Bowlby — Attachment Theory
Anxious, avoidant, disorganized patterns and childhood imprinting.

Stan Tatkin — Wired for Love
Regulation, co-regulation, secure functioning relationships.

Amir Levine & Rachel Heller — Attached
Understanding attachment needs and triggers in relationships.

These sources contribute to the empirical grounding of the book.

Theo Von & DOAC (podcasts)
Conversations that explore trauma, humor as coping, the surreal nature of
feeling deeply, and the modern language of being human.

Writers of emotional realism and introspective narrative
Influence the tone of personal anecdote blended with clinical clarity.

While this book stands on the shoulders of these giants,
its synthesis—the merging of scientific precision with lived depth—is uniquely
its own.

The goal was not to replicate their voices,
but to translate their insights into a language Deep Feelers can finally
recognize themselves in.