Toxic Parents

"I ordered this book when i reached breaking point. Unlike other self-help books it wasn't too Americanized and gave plenty of examples of men and women who couldn't cope due to family disputes and manipulation.
This book gave me the courage to face up to my difficult mother and deal with other painful memories. I also saw a therapist so the two things meant i could move on and start living MY life. Hurrah. A great book."
~ Written on 2008-06-17

"The book gives detail explanation on family dynamic and how certain parental behavior influence children. Also gives clear instruction what to do when one see her/his parents in one of the descriptions. It helped me to understand my behavior, my parents behavior and the behavior of my sibling.
I followed the directions how to overcome certain problems and it worked. I resolved some problems withing myself and I was lucky enough to reach new phase in the relationship with my mother but I was not so successful with my father.
I would recommend this book because it is helpful and liberating. "
~ Written on 2007-11-07

"i wasn't overly-mad about this book. the style was rather cold, and it had a slightly D.I.Y. book flavour. Although it talked about such passionate, emotional matters - it had often a rather dead way of speaking (some American therapy books suffer from this for some reason) and it was a bit simplistic. there were a couple of interesting points that i had not considered, but the rest of it i had learnt elsewhere in a more emotionally satisfying way, in particular, Alice Miller "The Drama of the Gifted Child"."
~ Written on 2006-09-26

"This book is just incredible. For the first time I felt valued and acknowledged. I have read this book twice now and the impact was greater the second time because I finally got really honest about things that had happened. What is great is the hope it offers, the continual reminder that you can unmesh yourself from the hurt of your childhood and your parents and claim a life of your own. Susan Forward uses real life examples to back up her professional advice. Some of the things you are led to think of are painful but it is very accessible and you are taken on your journey step by step. Be brave and rediscover the the real you. I thoroughly recommend it. This is not just another self-help book.."
~ Written on 2006-05-21

"This is just a superb book, which is separated in to two parts. Every chapter is brilliantly written, dealing with a range of issues (physical, emotional and sexual abuse) and the wealth of emotions - and questions - that accompany them. The second part of the book is about reclaiming your life; the chapter on 'forgiveness' is one not to be missed. Susan Forward asks why SHOULD someone forgive parents that have abused, who fail to acknowledge that abuse and even continue to abuse; she argues that self-healing starts by working through the feelings of anger and grief and placing the responsibility for those feelings at the Toxic Parents' door. She also tackles the subject of confronting Toxic Parents, how to do this and what to expect as an outcome. As well as a book for those who feel they have Toxic Parents, this book is ideal for someone thinking about a career in Counselling/Psychotherapy - in this book, Susan Forward outlines scenarios where abuse has been prevalent, giving an idea of the thought processes clients may have."
~ Written on 2004-08-26