Restoring Sexual Identity: Hope for Women Who Struggle With Same-Sex Attraction

Rating:
Summary: Woman to Woman Attraction: A Family Affair?
Review: I was impressed with the fact that this author, Anne Paulk herself a former lesbian, had expertly conducted her research into how many women find their way in and out of this lifestyle during the course of their lifetimes and why?Anne is an educated woman and could have been content w/ just helping to co-write her first book with her husband, John Paulk, about their experiences in the homosexual lifestyle and the factors that led each of them, respectively out of it, in a book entitled, "Love Won Out." But, no, proving herself to be an excellent scholar she furthered her research findings in this well-written piece exploring the reasons that leads many women into the gay lifestyle for a short period of time or indefinitely. In addition, in the year, 2000, she conducted a professionally extensive survey with 265 women coming out of homosexuality which provided some particular insights that her readership would want to know and consider. One fact that improved my understanding was to learn that sexual partner choices among women is much more fluid throughout their lifetime than it is for men. For example, her survey results found that "three out of five of the surveyed women had sexual relations with a man after having already felt sexually attracted to another female; and three out of ten unmarried women had been sexually involved with a man, even at the point of considering themselves to be lesbians already; this behavior would be unheard of in the gay male community." In addition, the author's research touched on the fact that married women also experimented with the gay lifestyle at a surprisingly higher rate than might be suspected.Although the author developed this text from a Christian-healing perspective, she delved into reasons for same-sex attraction, classic development of the lesbian lifestyle versus healthy female gender development, as well as the important part parents could play in that healthful development. She quotes experts on both sides of the issues, heterosexual and homosexual professionals alike.I particularly profited from learning that many potential lesbians at an early age viewed their mothers in an abusive male-dominated relationship; and they very quickly decided, early-on, that their mothers must have been weak people to allow the abuse in the first place; from that tragic childhood experience, they gathered their wits about them and decided that this would not be profiled in their own futures. Whether you are searching for answers about your own gender-orientation, whether you are a Christian or non-Christian, a parent, educator, counselor, pastor, friend, relative, or co-worker of a gay woman, you like me will benefit greatly by continuing to educate yourself concerning issues that affect all of our lives in some capacity, today.

Rating:
Summary: Dangerous misinformation
Review: If you are looking for a resource based on current psychological research on homosexuality, you should be aware that this book is totally incompatible with responsible science. It is the work of an affiliate of a far-right evangelical Christian group, Exodus International, whose orientation is theological rather than scientific (they hold that homosexuality is a 'disease' and can be 'cured' through Christianity - a view rejected by, among others, the American Psychological Association). If that's what you're looking for then you should enjoy and appreciate this book; however, I for one find it really offensive when people like this author try to hide a religious agenda behind pseudoscience.