The Courage to Heal - Third Edition - Revised and Expanded : A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse

Rating:
Summary: Survior actually Surviving!
Review: I have recently started seeing a therapist and coming to terms with the abuse my step-father had inflicted on me for 2 years. My therapist recommended this book, and what a god-send. I never thought I would be able to confront him or talk about this with anyone but my therapist. The day I got the book, I sat down and read the ENTIRE thing. What a change it made in me. I recommend this book to anyone who is a survivor, but coupled with therapy. There is alot of information for one person to try and digest and understand. A must have for survivors!

Rating:
Summary: Cautious recommendation
Review: This book is a valuable tool for survivors of sexual abuse; however, I would like to caution readers. Reading this book can be a very painful, traumatic experience. I recommend reading it with the support of a survivor support group or therapist. This book is not for everyone, so consult fellow survivors or your therapist first. However, it is still an important book because it is one of the few written solely for women survivors of sexual abuse.

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Summary: The Best Guide To Healing Written
Review: Wow! I read this book for the first time years ago and have read it many times since. I stayed up all night and read the whole thing. It was the first time I felt I wasn't crazy and all the horrible shame, disgust, and anger made sense. The authors have provided a great service to those healing from child sexual abuse. Be prepared to cry and do a lot of healing when you read this book. This is one to buy not check-out of the library. And after you are done, have your support system read it. I dedicate this review to all my anonymous brothers and sisters in healing---Don't live in shame!

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Summary: A Gift To Those in Healing
Review: Over and over again, I recommend this book for women who are seeking insight and support in their healing process from the horrors of child sexual abuse. I have found this book to be a gift to the spirit and mind. I continue to applaud the generoisty of Ellen Bass and Laura Davis in creating this book and years of dedication to enhancing the lives of women. My wish for everywoman who reads this book, is that you recognize and honor your own individual Courage to Heal and that you have patience and tenderness towards yourself throughout this journey.

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Summary: Focuses too much on "getting revenge"
Review: At first when I bought this book, I was very happy, but when I read I few chapters I was stunned. It was refreshing in some areas of the book, because I finally realized that what I was experiencing was normal. Considering the abuse I had to endure as a teen. Although, I thought too much time was wasted on "getting revenge" with the abuser. The authors seem to have much hate for men. Yes my father betrayed me, but I don't think that punishing him,is going to create a healthy life for me. Isn't getting revenge a form of acting out? Feeling anger towards him is still allowing him to effect my life. I need to find a way to have love for myself and others who care about me. The book was okay.

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Summary: There's no scientific documentation.
Review: Some have suggested that the statement in "The Courage to Heal"(1998): "If you think you were sexually abused, then you probably were" has resulted readers becoming convinced that they actually were sexually abused as children. However, to date, no researcher has ever designed a study which assigned this book as reading material to subjects whom the researchers were absolutely certain had never been sexually abused to determine if this phrase might falsely convince them that they, had indeed, been sexually abused. I don't know about other readers, but after I began to recall, I was too darn embarrassed to actually purchase a copy of this book. I didn't want anyone, even a check-out person at a bookstore, to "know" this about me! Fortunately, in 1990, a caring friend provided me with a copy and, fortunately, I found the courage to read it. In 1994, just after winning a repressed memory case against my parents, I sat next to CTH author Ellen Bass at a dinner in Chicago. I, wanting to be professional, asked her about how book sales were going--given the False Memory Syndrome Foundation spokespersons' diatriabes against her and Laura Davis' book. What I didn't tell her is what a profound impact TCH had upon my life. So I'm hoping that Bass and Davis occasionally check in here to see just how their book has positively impacted so many lives!

Rating:
Summary: A fabulous contribution to those once so seriously injured
Review: This book is a must for any woman or man survivor(as is The Courage to Heal Woorkbook) by Laura Davis. Far removed from the crisis filled, melodramatic image the false memory syndrome foundation often creates, this book details the simple things, the truly ordindary, the empathetic and the reflective. Piognantly dipicts individuals as they struggle to understand why someone they loved would hurt them so badly.

Rating:
Summary: A Lifeline
Review: This is the most helpful book that I have ever read. It answers the most basic questions first: Was I abused? What does abuse mean? Then it delves into deeper issues such as the family, sex, relationships, and confrontation. Bass and Davis write in the most kind, tactful way imaginable. Never did the book feel like psychobabble or pop advice. This book is the lone light in the wilderness for all of us who feel alone and ashamed. This book helps the reader realize that child sexual abuse is NOT the child's fault and that adequate help is out there. Finally, this book shows that there is indeed hope for not only surviving, but LIVING. It's been the lifeline to me for a great part of this healing process.

Rating:
Summary: Thanks to all survivors in the book and Laura and Ellen.
Review: This book shows to me, how very important it is to know experiences of other people, to feel that I am not alone on the road of healing. Once you start to walk on this road, you know there is no way back. A warm and beautiful support in learning to love and trust myself and people.

Rating:
Summary: This book is a keeper
Review: My psychologist introduced me to this book almost six years ago, and I still have it by my nightstand. I do agree that one needs to use this book in conjunction with seeking professional help for the message is very powerful. It's a great book to help in the healing process no matter how far along someone has come. I don't agree with every single thing within the book (which is why I didn't give it five stars), but the overall spirit of the book is great.