mirandaleighhhh's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

5.0

Super engaging audio experience! (makes sense given Stephanie Foo's background) I laughed and cried and had goosebumps at different moments. It's a perfect mix of her life experience and useful, hopeful information for the reader. She included real clips from her sessions with her therapist, and I agree that having access to recorded sessions, either your own or someone else with similar struggles, could be life-changing-ly useful. I would recommend this to anyone struggling with their trauma responses, whether or not they have CPTSD, as long as they are in a place where they can handle potentially triggering content. In the end, I was filled with an endearing sense of hope and love. 

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acg509553's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0


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layley's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0


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kenrya's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.25


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courtney_scott1025's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Wow. Never have I felt so seen and connected to someone's journey. I was diagnosed with CPTSD due to neglect/emotional abuse by my mother. Stephanie's life is much more traumatic than I will ever know, but it was so powerful. I couldn't stop listening. Her resilience, her story, her words were just so inspiring. If you think you have CPTSD, pick up this book. You will not regret it.  

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jshapiro12's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0


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madisongturner's review against another edition

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3.75

I think this is a great alternative to some popular books on how PTSD can affect our bodies. It feels incredibly personal, but I'm thankful for the author letting us into their life through such an intimate retelling. I related to a lot as someone with chronic illness and trauma, but specifically this really helped me understand those I love who have C-PTSD. 

Definitely make sure you read content warnings before reading! While I know this is realistic because it is a retelling of the author's experiences, it can be a bit shocking to listen-especially if you resonate with some of the experiences. 

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gabhopesreads's review against another edition

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5.0

This is the best memoir I've ever read. It's so well-written, phenomenal on audio and one of my favorites this year so far. I loved the narration, plus the included audios of her therapy sessions. I loved how she went into details about history, hers and forgotten history, erased history. I loved how it felt like I was put under a microscope and dissected, but in actuality she was explaining her C-PTSD. At the end, the message of hope mirrored my own that I was lucky enough to find years ago. I wish I'd read this sooner, when I'd been drowning in my diagnosis. But the thing with C-PTSD is it's always there, so this will be helpful to read at any point in my life. 

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melodyseestrees's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.25


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provo's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Luckily, Stephanie Foo did not just write a memoir - as a journalist, she researches very well and takes the reader on a journey from her childhood to the first real results of her recovery. 
By doing so, she doesn’t try to paint a picture of a miracle healing, but shows, how hard it is to find individual solutions in a dysfunctional medical system where not enough professionals are familiar with this young diagnosis. She elaborates how racism and sexism play a part in c-ptsd and does not shy away from talking about genetics and intergenerational trauma.

At some points in the early chapters the abuse is written quite graphic, so be aware of that, otherwise I’d say it is the perfect book for someone recently diagnosed with c-ptsd or people who are close to someone with this diagnosis. It also has a lot of quotes for follow-up-literature.


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