Scan barcode
stardustpetal's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
niksniks's review
5.0
“Not all people we meet deserve to be in our inner circles. Survivors have worked way too hard to develop clean living to then allow unhealthy people to remain in close proximity. Those two worlds do not go together. An individual doesn’t even have to be “toxic” to be undeserving of a place in your life. Access to you is a gift. The ability to call you, text you, e-mail you, see you, come to your home, and basically share space in your life is earned, not easily given. At least it should be. It is yours to parcel out as you choose.”
chrissymcpugsby's review
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.75
For anyone who has been the victim of (or is the survivor of, the term the author prefers) psychological abuse, emotional abuse, coercive control, financial abuse, etc. THIS BOOK IS A MUST READ. It helps to reinforce the unfortunate facts that the experience was not your fault, was not love, and does not deserve another second of your time or energy.
For all those who need a little pep talk to stay strong and move on.... this book is well worth the read.
For all those who need a little pep talk to stay strong and move on.... this book is well worth the read.
persistent_reader's review
5.0
A must read for survivors and a must read if you want a better understanding of the damage of psychological abuse. But more than the harm, Thomas walks the reader through practical stages of recovery with patience and compassion. One thing that immediately got my attention was the author's decision to use fictional scenarios and NOT use the stories of real survivors out of respect for them and their pain. I listened to the audio, so I am looking forward to a print copy to underline.
sheiksleopardthong's review
4.0
Good Laymans Guide
This book was very well put together and informative. Though not all of my experiences were accurately described (my abuser had a different comorbidity of personality disorders) the techniques for recovery are very useful. However I was also a little disappointed in how general the terms and info was. Though that does make it more accessible, I have a psychology degree and am used to more technical works, personally.
This book was very well put together and informative. Though not all of my experiences were accurately described (my abuser had a different comorbidity of personality disorders) the techniques for recovery are very useful. However I was also a little disappointed in how general the terms and info was. Though that does make it more accessible, I have a psychology degree and am used to more technical works, personally.
jaimeleigh318's review
Healing from Hidden Abuse was filled with Aha moments for me as someone who watched a loved one experience this. Shannon compassionately and clearly identifies characteristics of abusers and how to not only leave an abusive relationship, but to recover and heal from it as well. Shannon's prose makes you feel as if you are a friend sitting beside you reminding you that you are not at fault and you can recover from this abuse.
This is a must read for counsellors and therapists as well as anyone in or recovering from an abusive relationship.
I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a must read for counsellors and therapists as well as anyone in or recovering from an abusive relationship.
I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
charlotekerstenauthor's review
There are some extremely broad and ubsubstantiated claims about personality disorders in this book. I fundamentally disagree that every abuser has a personality disorder and I think there isn't sufficient research to say that personality disorders are caused by environmental influences alone, ignoring genetic and other biological contributions.
There is one bizarre section that I had to re-read several times, where she states that sociopaths, psychopaths and narcissists are people who experienced insecure attachments in childhood and decided to respond to that by becoming controlling, ruthless and selfish. It's one thing to say that some people choose to be bad people- sure, I can roll with that- but it's another thing entirely to state that a clinical personality disorder is essentially just boiled down to someone's decision to be a bad person.
The rest of the book that's actually focused on recovery from abuse is helpful and interesting but I just can't get past how much bad psychology there was in the first section.
There is one bizarre section that I had to re-read several times, where she states that sociopaths, psychopaths and narcissists are people who experienced insecure attachments in childhood and decided to respond to that by becoming controlling, ruthless and selfish. It's one thing to say that some people choose to be bad people- sure, I can roll with that- but it's another thing entirely to state that a clinical personality disorder is essentially just boiled down to someone's decision to be a bad person.
The rest of the book that's actually focused on recovery from abuse is helpful and interesting but I just can't get past how much bad psychology there was in the first section.