Showing titles in Dysfunctional Families

Difficult brings to life the conflicts that arise for mothers who are confronted with the unexpected and burdensome dependencies of their adult children associated with mental illness, substance use, or chronic unemployment. Through real stories of mothers and their challenging adult children, this book offers accessible, provocative, and, at times, shocking illustrations of the excruciating maternal dilemma: Which takes precedence—the needs of the mother or of the distressed adult child? Difficult addresses a family situation which too many keep secret.

Being gaslit can make you question your core beliefs and completely lose self-confidence, motives, judgments, or memories. That confusion is what causes you to be led astray as you look to others for help. If you are interested in this book, you likely know someone whom you fear is being gaslit, or maybe even you yourself are fearing you are being gaslit. In this book, we will look at exactly what is meant by the term gaslighting, and different strategies and coping mechanisms for when this is actually happening to you or a loved one.

Charlene Downes was 14 years old when she went missing in the seedy underbelly of Blackpool. Once a happy-go-lucky schoolgirl, she had turned into a truant. Though Charlene was hanging out with a new crowd by takeaway shops and the pier, her mum, Karen, always knew her typical teenage daughter would come home. But one day she didn't.

Sally grew up in a dilapidated house by the sea where men were forbidden, her childhood world filled with mystery and intrigue. Hippies trailed through the kitchen looking for God - their leader was Aunt Di, who ruled the house with charismatic force. When Sally’s baby brother vanished from his pram, she became suspicious of the activities going on around her. What happened to Baby David and the woman called Poor Sue? And where did all the people singing and wailing prayers in the front room suddenly go?

In her memoir, Monica, 54, tells the story of her childhood, when her mother, Betty Mount, forced her head under running bathroom taps and tried to strangle her. She had previously tried to kill Monica as a baby. Monica was taken into foster care, where her new parents ran a brutal regime. To the outside world, the family was devoutly religious and respectable, but behind closed doors, Monica was physically and sexually abused.

We’ve all been around those people who can leave us feeling drained after an encounter with them. Some people can leave us feeling agitated or annoyed or even just feeling really bad about ourselves. The most important thing you need to understand when dealing with someone like this is that their behavior toward you has nothing to do with you, and more often reflects their inner mental and emotional state. Identifying their harmful behavior is the first step to minimizing their impact. You might not be able to change what they do, but you can change what you do with it.

The modern family is one of the most complicated systems we navigate as children and parents. In Home is Where the Start Is, Richard Hogan teaches you how to free yourself from negative experiences you have had in the past, to find true happiness and meaning in the future. Packed with fascinating case studies from Richard's clinical practice, he offers innovative, proactive and practical strategies for dealing with a wide range of issues. This book will give you the tools to recognise negative patterns from childhood, and avoid them when it comes to making your own family.

Once upon a time, Martians and Venusians functioned in separate worlds. But in today's hectic and career-oriented environment, relationships have become a lot more complicated, and men and women are experiencing unprecedented levels of stress. To add to the increasing tension, most men and women are also completely unaware that they are actually hardwired to react differently to the stress.

Using this workbook, you'll learn practical skills grounded in proven-effective dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) to help you heal and move forward after narcissistic abuse. You'll find targeted exercises for specific trauma symptoms to help you rebuild your shattered self-esteem and confidence, learn how to trust again, and make certain you can recognize red flags in the future. You'll also discover essential and easy-to-apply mindfulness skills for developing self-compassion, setting healthy boundaries, and managing negative thoughts.

Are you are feeling an overwhelming fear of what “life after” your own abusive relationship might hold for you? I get it. I know where you are, too. Trapped. Lost. Alone. Brain-sick. Body-sick. I was there. And I also can tell you this: There is a way out. A journey back to self-love and self-worth. A journey back to a mind-blowing, energetic, exceedingly powerful version of you. Short-track back to your power!

Are you sick and tired of not being able to feel like you are good enough? Have you tried to please someone endlessly but at the end of the day you always seem to be at fault? Do you finally want to say goodbye to being emotionally or mentally drained, and discover something which works for you? If so, then you’ve come to the right place, as it’s time to take a step back and evaluate whether the person in your life is a narcissist.

One in six women is the victim of sexual assault. Using her own hard-won wisdom, author Jen Cross shows how to heal through journaling and personal writing. Writing Ourselves Whole is a collection of essays and creative writing encouragements for sexual trauma survivors who want to risk writing a different story. Each short chapter offers encouragement, experience, and exercises.

Within this book, you will discover hope in regaining control of your emotions so that memories only serve as reflections of the past and no longer cause you pain. Discover how to ease yourself out of depression and release anxieties by rewiring your high-alert trauma brain. Brain chemistry changes from high cortisol levels, and science shows are directly connected to symptoms.

Are you a victim of this type of abuse? Have you lost self-esteem and confidence after an emotional or psychological trauma? Then keep reading...One of the most difficult things for someone to do in his/her lifetime is leaving with a psychopath, someone with a borderline personality disorder, or a pathological narcissist. Even if you think you cannot get out of these situations, the techniques you will learn in this audiobook will guide you step-by+step to heal and improve your emotional and psychological condition.

I suffered at the hands of a malignant narcissist for seven years. I was emotionally tortured by his nasty, venomous words, his hateful behavior towards me and his sadistic enjoyment of anything that upset me. For years I was under his control, beaten down to the point where I had no perception of reality. I was a shell of a human. I wrote this book for anyone else who is suffering at the hands of a malignant narcissist. I want to offer not only healing words but also guide you through understanding the disorder in order to better help you deal with it.

Adult children whose parents are invalidating, critical, demanding, or hateful require skills to advocate for their own needs. In this much-needed guide, listeners will learn how to employ unique assertiveness strategies based on the characteristics of their own family dynamics; uncover the hidden motives behind their parents’ behavior; put a stop to repetitive, hurtful interactions without cutting off their problem parents; and foster healthier relationships.

During the pandemic, trapped at home with young children and struggling to find creative space to write, journalist Begoña Gómez Urzaiz became fixated on artistic women who were able to overcome both society’s judgement and their own maternal instincts in order to leave their children. More than anything, she was fascinated by her own prejudice towards these women, so clearly tied up in a much wider cultural bias.

You can do anything and be anyone you want to be. Make sure your life is built on the right foundation. The problem is that when toxicity enters your life, you may fall deeper and deeper into the darkness without even realizing it.

Charlotte Thomason endured unspeakable sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at the hands of her parents and other family members throughout her childhood. What Kind of Love is this? Finding God in the Darkness follows Charlotte as she guides her granddaughter, Angel, through her chaotic life. As the story unfolds, Charlotte is mired in doubt that anyone could love her, let alone God, and her life is torn apart by sexual addiction and mental illness. She realizes her life depends on remembering, accepting God's love, and learning to cope with her forgotten childhood trauma.

Bipolar is a term that is often referenced colloquially to describe someone with mood swings in any given setting, but the clinical reality of this disorder is something quite different altogether. While it has become commonplace to use terms describing mental illness in a way that only aims to align them with one notable trait, the diagnoses themselves are often expansive in a way that is not always easy for a person who has not experienced them to understand.