Women Who Love Too Much

"At 61yrs old, with two failed marriages and umpteen other "relationships" with men who were unavailable for many different reasons, I have finally realised what has been going on - I have just been recreating the non relationship with my father who abandoned us when I was 2yrs old, leaving me with a mother who suffered severe depression throughout my childhood, before killing herself when I was nineteen. This book just helped me so much, not just with my "relationship addiction" but with many other aspects of my "addictive personality". It was a book that you read once and then want to go back and start from the beginning again! Downsides are the title (how "American" and corny - I'm embarrassed for anyone to see it), and the fact that, in common with all US self-help books, the author assumes that the reader has ready access to a personal therapist and/or an appropriate 12 steps programme, which many of us in the UK haven't. Finally (though I can hardly blame her for this!), she does warn that this is no easy fix, and could take years, so I think my chances of being in a healthy and fulfilling relationship this side of the grave are small - having said that, maybe that's better than going through all that pain yet again? At least this time I'll be putting my effort, energy and love into healing myself.
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~ Written on 2008-06-18

"The book was heart-warming and moving, probably because I could see many paralells to my own life in the cases described even though some women in the cases seem to have gone through extremely bad things. The book was a valuable help in discovering the depth of my own soul. Thought provoking - eye opening!"
~ Written on 2007-05-15

"Have several of you relationships broken down even though you were committed to them? Then you just have to read this book. I found it extremely eye-opening. It showed me very clearly the pattern of mistakes I have made in my relationships. You should also read it if you feel your partner takes you for granted or if they have a problem with drugs or alcohol. In fact, I think quite possibly women everywhere could learn something from this book."
~ Written on 2006-08-14

"Though the majority of the cases focus on people from extremely dysfunctional families all of us can 'get' something from these examples. The severity is touched upon to more clarify than to exclude the various forms of dysfunction. Dealing with sensitive issues as women's view of themselves benefits from the sledgehammer approach as on the whole women tend to downplay whatever they're going through.

It is scary to realise the extent to which children are 'made' to suffer by adults who just don't either know any better or who are too scarred themselves to realise how they are hurting their offspring. And there are of course those parents who willingly abuse.

I think it's very healthy to have a look at your own life through the tales described and see what might apply to you in degrees of severity.

This book is an eye-opener."
~ Written on 2006-06-27

"If you have lurched from one disaterous relationship to the next, try to control or fix everyone elses lives and think that there is something missing from your life and that you are not the same as other women then you are probably the adult child of an alcoholic (ACOA). This book was my road to Damascus, I saw the light as it where! It made me realise that these bad relationships are not my fault, my childhood has defined the way I act. This book it a must read and has given me the hunger to find out as much as I can about myself and ACOA. You will not be disappointed, this book has changed my life."
~ Written on 2006-04-14