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    • #101848
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      I always see such great books that people have in their posts so I thought maybe we could put them all here so is a quick reference for women. I’ll start by adding some of mine and those I’ve seen here. Hard to find them all though, tons of posts to go through for that. It could be a nice little library for us!

      Breaking the Cycle of Abuse – Beverly Engel
      Trauma Bonding – J.B. Snow
      Why Does He Do That? – Lundy Bancroft
      Living with the Dominator – Pat Craven
      Perceptions and Projections – The Needless Drama: How to Finally Live Drama and Blame Free – Julie Upton
      Healing From Hidden Abuse – Shannon Thomas
      The Gaslighting Recovery Workbook – Amy Marlow-MaCoy
      Emotional Vampires – Alan Bernstein
      The No Contact Rule – Natalie Lue
      How to Say No, The Scripts – Natalie Lue
      When Dad Hurts Mom: Helping Your Children Heal The Wounds of Witnessing Abuse – Lundy Bancroft
      Healing the Trauma of Domestic Violence: A Workbook for Women – Mari McCaig & Dr. Edward S. Kubany
      Dark Souls: Healing and Recovering From Toxic Relationships – Sara Strudwick
      People of the Lie – Dr. Scott Peck
      Codependent No More – Melody Beattie
      Boundaries – Dr. Henry Cloud & Dr. John Townsend
      When Things Fall Apart: Advice For Difficult Times – Pema Chodron
      The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are – Brene Brown
      Men Who Hate Women & The Women Who Love Them – Dr. Susan Forward
      Healing Your Aloneness: Finding Love and Wholeness Through Your Inner Child – Margaret Paul & Erika J. Chopich
      The Battered Woman Syndrome – Lenore E.A. Walker
      Controlling People: How to Recognize, Understand, and Deal With People Who Try to Control You – Patricia Evans
      Breaking Toxic Soul Ties: Healing from Unhealthy and Controlling Relationships – Tom Brown
      Guide on How to Leave Your Abusive Spouse Quickly and Safely Even If You Have No Money – Norva Semoy Abiona

    • #101850
      Eggshells
      Participant

      This is fantastic. Thank you so much for putting this together for us. xx

      • #132891
        Shocknawe
        Participant

        This is great. Thank you.
        The one that helped me see the light was a book by Jane Monckton-Smith- In Control: Dangerous Relationships and How They End in Murder
        She is a criminologist and describes the pattern that abusers follow. Very insightful.

    • #101851
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      You are sooo welcome my Sweet!! And please add something or keep pushing it up to the top so people can see it, okay?

    • #101925
      Theydeservethebest
      Participant

      Sadly nothing to add but I’ve just read Living With the Dominator and was looking for other titles I’d seen mentioned on other posts. This is great thank you for posting x

    • #101929
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      You’re welcome my little sweetheart! You………..deserve the Best and never forget that! We just need to keep bumping this one up so it remains front and center, even if you have nothing to add. Also, there is a site called “Lonerwolf” that is wonderful. Two young people who are like amazing creatures here on our planet. Shocked by how young they are and yet with such deep wisdom. They share straight from the hip which I personally love. Much of their stuff is for free which is wonderful. Anyways, we are here to hold you up, we really are. The more educated and healed you become, the more that little fire in you grows into a roaring one! I always tell people soooooo………what happens when you bring a little candle into a dark room? The candle penetrates the darkness and lights the room up. What happens when you bring a bit of darkness into a lit room and expose it to the light? It is destroyed by the light. Remember that one. Truth is Light. Knowledge is Light. One of the biggest reasons people use fear on us is because they don’t want us to get in touch with the real Power we have at our disposal. They keep us hobbled so we don’t know. But once you “know” you can’t unknow. It’s like giving me a magic sword and I use it and then go OMG! It’s powerful and then say………oh nooo, you can’t know that now! Can’t use it. Forget That one!!! Too bad, soo sad but Now I know and now I see the power I really do have!!! I’ll be using it thank you very much!

    • #102025
      Eggshells
      Participant

      Wondering if KIP has any to add?

    • #102085
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      “In Sheep’s Clothing” by Dr. George Simon. Good youtube is – Understanding & Dealing with Manipulative People | Dr. George Simon Interview

      “See What you Made Me Do” by Jess Hill

    • #102086
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Another great youtube, a must see! Q&A: Brain damage after abuse | Learning to self-trust again | Narcs & their kids & more

      Lover her, very easy to listen to, she explains so much…by Inner Integration.

      “The Gift of Fear” by Gavin De Becker

      “The Human Magnet Syndrome: Why We Love People Who Hurt Us” by Ross Rosenberg

    • #102089
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      One more youtube from Inner Integration (Great Site btw) Hoovering | When the n********t comes back

      Hoovering is when your abuser is trying to get you back…..the tactics they employ, etc.

    • #102251
      Sungirl
      Participant

      Has anyone read ‘start Here-a crash course in understanding, navigating and healing from n**********c abuse’ by Dana Morningstar? Looks good but also another one by her called ‘out of the fog’ that someone on here recommended. Just wondering which one to get, or maybe I’ll get them both!

    • #102266
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Get both!!!!

    • #103011
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Bumping this up to the top here. We have alot of new people posting so want to have tons of reading options for them! Here’s some I found in past posts by people…

      No More Misbehaviour – Michele Borba; this book is very practical and down to earth for a huge range of behaviour problems.an excellent choice for mothers who have been abused and are struggling with the ways in which their children are acting out.

      Nanny 911 youtubes are still great for parenting. Love these ladies!

      Reviving Ophelia – Saving the Selves of Adult Girls – Mary Pipher

      How to Mother a Successful Daughter – Nicky Marone

      The Explosive Child – Ross Greene

      How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk – Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish

      The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma – Bessel van der Kolk

      My Mother/My Self: The Daughter’s Search for Identity – Nancy Friday

    • #103013
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      This is good and needed wisdom!

      Better By Mistake: The Unexpected Benefits of Being Wrong – Alina Tugend

    • #103017
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Another excellent one for those also dealing with child abuse and/or sexual abuse is – It Wasn’t Your Fault: Freeing Yourself of the Shame of Childhood Abuse with the Power of Self-Compassion – Beverly Engel L.M.F.T.

      She wrote an article about it on Psychology Today called – Healing the Shame of Childhood Abuse Through Self-Compassion.

    • #103040
      Escapee
      Participant

      Youtube: tea and consent (metropolitan police)

      (I posted about another YouTube video…..I’ll have a look to see if I can find it)

      • #103043
        Escapee
        Participant

        Sorry….it’s lost in the multitude of posts.

    • #103227
      starqueen
      Participant

      Toxic Parents by Susan Forward. Also on a more general note for those who have experienced childhood abuse/trauma I can recommend Reinventing Your Life by Jeffrey Young and Janet Klosko. It’s all about how early maladaptive schemas (which they call Lifetraps) can influence what we do and how we feel. A Lifetrap is a way of thinking and behaving that we might have had to adopt to deal with trauma but which is unhelpful and holds us back.

      Also a bit off the wall but I really enjoyed Take Back Your Life by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias. It’s about how to recover from having been in a cult, but I think there are a lot of similarities between cults and abusive relationships. I think also when mental health issues have intersected with abuse this kind of book can be really helpful. A lot of the paranoid kind of us and them thinking and unusual beliefs that some cult groups can have are similar I think to some of the beliefs of abusers who also have mental health issues.

    • #103256
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Excellent!! Thank you Starqueen! Regarding cult behavior and programming/mind control – they are absolutely synonymous to what goes on in abuse. Thus the reason why it’s so hard for people when they get out because of they literally have to deprogram their mind and most often they do need help with that. Afterall, their everything has been geared to the wants/desires/needs of another or maybe more than one other. Speaking of which when it is a family unit or group of anything that’s doing the abusing then it is much like a cult group who all admonish, abuse, punish in order to keep their target in line. I find this alot in churches sadly enough. Lots of bullying used on me because I always asked too many questions, was the rebel, held to my own thoughts. Overall, I didn’t come to heel well enough. LOL! Still don’t. I always figured if God gave me a brain then he expected me to use it, eh?

    • #103292
      Japan
      Participant

      The human magnet syndrome – the codependent n**********c trap – Ross Rosenberg
      I hope this helps 💕

    • #103375
      Lottieblue
      Participant

      Partly to bump the booklist, but partly also to ask whether anyone can particularly recommend any which deal particularly with gradual erosion of self esteem And gaslighting? I’ve read Living with the Dominator and Why does he do that?
      X

    • #103437
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Hi there Lottieblue – Here’s a good one for you! Gaslighting: Recognize Manipulative and Emotionally Abusive People–and Break Free – Stephanie Sarkis 🙂

    • #103484
      Lottieblue
      Participant

      Do you know all these books? Have you read them all?!
      Thanks for the tip, will order now.

    • #105073
      HopeLifeJoy
      Participant

      Book list’s here Iliketea 📚😘

    • #105079
      iliketea
      Participant

      Thank you, no idea why my search didn’t work. Adding a couple I’ve just read, possibly a repeat.
      “When Dad Hurts Mom: Helping Your Children Heal the Wounds of Witnessing Abuse”… a lot about emotional/psychological abuse. The Trauma Recovery Centre also has good resource suggestions for children, there’s a very good shorter one “The Simple Guide to Child Trauma: What It Is and How to Help” (Simple Guides) by Betsy de Thierry, the woman who set up TRC if the Lundy book is too big (it is quite thick but readable). Both on Amazon.

    • #105098

      Power – Shahida Arabi has been an amazing one. Loving this list. Thank you so much!!

    • #105464
      Soulsearcher18
      Participant

      POWER: Surviving and Thriving after N**********c Abuse – Shahida Arabi

      The Simple Guide to Attachment Difficulties in Children, What they Are and How to Help – Betsy De Thierry

      The Simple Guide to Child Trauma, What it is and How to Help – Betsy de Thierry

      I have read the Pat Craven Living with the Dominator book too.

      I found all of these books really easy to read and understand and they have helped me to process some of my experiences and how to move forward.

    • #105485
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Awesome guys!! Thanks so much for the additions to our little library!

    • #105775
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Bumping this up!

    • #105824
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping 💐

    • #105863
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Really good website and this one article in particular – Thepullofgrace.com Article – Why I Stayed?

    • #105889
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      One thing that is very important to study and know is a thing or two about con artists in general. One very good one to read up on is – cold reading. This site is excellent regarding that…

      (detail removed by moderator) – look up cold reading techniques. Predators do cold reading and it’s quite natural to them.

    • #106064
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Getting Free: You Can End Abuse and Take Back Your Life (New Leaf) – Ginny NiCarthy

      When Love Goes Wrong: What to Do When You Can’t Do Anything Right – Ann Jones and Susan Schechter

      It’s My Life Now: Starting Over After an Abusive Relationship or Domestic Violence, 2nd Edition 2nd Edition
      – Meg Kennedy Dugan, Roger R. Hock

      The Verbally Abusive Relationship – Patricia Evans

      Into the Light: A Guide for Battered Women – Leslie A. Cantrell

      Life Reinvented: A Guide to Healing From Sexual Trauma For Survivors and Loved Ones
      – Erin Carpenter.

      International Directory of Domestic Violence Agencies – hotpeachpages.net/
      Abuse information in over 110 languages; and
      Information on abuse help agencies for every country in the world.

    • #106204
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping

    • #106239
      Hazydayz
      Participant

      Bumping up⬆️

    • #106444
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      The Body Keeps Score – Bessel A. van der Kolk, M.D.

    • #106471
      Meadowside
      Participant

      Any suggestions as to which book to start with, I’ve only just joined and would like to read more about emotional abuse

    • #106473
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Hi Meadowside…..look at these….

      The Emotionally Abusive Relationship: How to Stop Being Abused and How to Stop Abusing – Beverly Engel

      Emotional Abuse: Break Free – Emotional Self Help, Emotional Healing, and Emotional Health (verbal abuse,emotional pain,emotional control,emotional recovery,emotional … relationships,emotional help) – Angel Greene……Read this book for FREE on Kindle Unlimited

      The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How to Recognize It and How to Respond – Patricia Evans

      The Gaslight Effect: How to Spot and Survive the Hidden Manipulation Others Use to Control Your Life – Dr. Robin Stern

      In Sheep’s Clothing: Understanding and Dealing with Manipulative People – Dr. George K. Simon Ph.D.

    • #106494
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Out of the Fog – Dana Morningstar (she has great youtubes about domestic violence help, too) Find her at her site thriveafterabuse.

    • #106816
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      In the Dream House: A Memoir – Carmen Maria Machado

    • #106905
      Wiseafter
      Participant

      Hi, I thought In Sheep’s Clothing was very informative. I recently read ‘Healing from Hidden Abuse’ by Shannon Thomas which I found enormously helpful. It has a workbook section so you can write things down and really look at what is going on objectively. I found this invaluable.
      Also, being able to work on your own responses and communication/emotional reaction is important. ‘Master your Emotions’ by Thibaut Meurisse, is such a good guide for how to start to take control over your own emotions to enable the emotional distancing you need when you are breaking free and starting to see abuse for what it really is.
      How to Break Free of the Drama Triangle and Victim Consciousness which helped me also get some perspective and distance from my abuser and deal with him in a calm and controlled way.

      Word of caution: If you read on a device such as Kindle, make sure it is not synched with any other device that he can access.

      Hope these help someone else to move on too. x*x And remember, read for pleasure and joy too. Nurture your mind through these hard times and give it some beauty and fantasy to escape to as well! xx

    • #107081
      iliketea
      Participant

      Sunday bump

    • #107160
      Hazydayz
      Participant

      Another bump to help 💞

    • #107666
      iliketea
      Participant

      A Friday night Bump.x

    • #107667
      dustypink
      Participant

      Lovesick: The Marilyn Syndrome
      Great book with lots of practical advice how to quit, meditation techniques etc. Sorry if already on the list.

    • #107747
      Lucky13
      Participant

      (link removed by Moderator)

      This is a helpful read I thought.

      Hope I’m allowed to copy and paste as this is first time posting.

      Thanks

    • #107962
      Beautifulday
      Participant

      I read Trauma Bonding by Lauren Kosliwski and highly recommend it for those who are attached to their abusers , she went through it herself and its highly informative

    • #107965
      Eggshells
      Participant

      Did someone say that “Healing from hidden abuse” was free somewhere?

      • #107970
        iliketea
        Participant

        If you have audible you can get it with 1 credit, or I think sign up you get a free credit download it then cancel membership, no fee.

    • #108115
      Lucky13
      Participant

      My Healing Journey from Being an Emotional Abuser

      Please click on link for a good read from an abuser.

    • #108245
      littledove
      Participant

      ‘Becoming the N********t’s Nightmare: How to Devalue and Discard the N********t While Supplying Yourself” by Shahida Arabi

    • #108575
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Bumping up for newbies.

    • #108643
      Diverdi
      Participant

      The Mind of the Intimate Male Abuser: How He Gets into Her Head by Don Hennessey

      I found this really interesting, He describes it as a process of being groomed, and how we are being targeted and manipulated right from the start.

    • #108673
      iliketea
      Participant

      Covert Passive-Aggressive N********* by Debbie Mirz – especially Chapter 11 on S*x (we’re not allowed to use the n word on the forum as it is gives a label to them which could mean its a pathology and so not in control of their actions – but they are very much are in control which is why you are the only one who experiences his behaviour – you are not crazy!).

      I promise this chapter will explain to you how you feel how you do about sleeping with him, and why he treats you in the way he does in the bedroom. It is amazing and eye opening and I urge you to listen/read it asap!

    • #110000
      Eggshells
      Participant

      Games People Play: The Psychology of Human Relationships – Eric Berne

    • #110029
      RedGiraffe
      Participant

      Has anyone read ‘How to help children through divorce the sandcastle way?’, if so was it helpful?

    • #110192
      Eggshells
      Participant

      Bumping

    • #110203
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Codependant no more – Melanie Beattie xx

    • #110219
      Wiseafter
      Participant

      For those new to the site or just out and seeking practical guidance, Elizabeth Shaw’s Overcoming N**********c Abuse channel on You Tube and her own website is very informative. She provides free coaching tools you can sign up for, and advice on how to cope with minimal contact, parenting and preparing for court too. She is matter of fact and has direct experience that she shares. I also found Psychopaths and Love, Adele Birch so good because she lists lots of practical resources with links too.

    • #110830
      Eggshells
      Participant

      Bump

    • #111888
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping @Buddy

    • #111914
      Watersprite
      Participant

      So many amazing suggestions already – thank you. Don’t know if these have been mentioned

      Brene brown Book daring greatly and TED talks – living an authentic life

      Carolyn Spring – good for dissociation childhood trauma shame

      Out of the Fog and Why does he do that helped me

    • #111917
      PurpleCloud
      Participant

      Thank you so much for this. It was only today I was thinking “I NEED to read some more books around this, I just have too” and I didn’t know where to start. Thank you so so much.

    • #114732
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping the book list

    • #114813
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bump

    • #132669
      iliketea
      Participant

      @nbumblebee
      THIS is the one I was looking for, loads of good recommendations. xx

      • #132687
        nbumblebee
        Participant

        Oh wow how fab are you thank you so very much x

    • #132670
      iliketea
      Participant

      Adding – “What Happened to You?” by Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey, was recommended to me by a PTDS therapist whilst I was on the wait list. Really good explanation of trauma and effects.

    • #132881
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping for you @Brunette3
      xx

    • #132885
      LookToTheLight
      Participant

      Have you heard of Dr Hess Taylor & Victim Focus? She has wrote books on these subjects & fights to help make our voices heard. She uses social media platforms & also has a team who work to help people like you & me xx

    • #132886
      LookToTheLight
      Participant

      Sorry Dr Jess Taylor 🤷

    • #134446
      Medusa
      Participant

      Hi
      I just want to recommend a podcast: Love and Abuse by Paul Colaianni. So many episodes just fit so well for me.
      X

    • #134449
      Eyesopening
      Participant

      Two great books, I really recommend:

      You can heal your life by Louise Hay
      &
      Boundaries after a pathological relationship by Adelyn Birch

    • #143237
      iliketea
      Participant

      Bumping for @ariel

    • #143282
      Hereforhelp
      Participant

      Saturday afternoon bump…. I hope all you lovely ladies are safe this weekend.
      ❤❤

    • #143310
      ddia
      Participant

      How to leave your psychopath, by Maddy Anholt.

      It came out earlier this year and it changed my life. When Maddy describes some of the abusive incidents she had been through, I already knew what happened next before I read it, and that’s when it truly sunk in that I was being abused. I left my relationship shortly after.

      Maddys also been on some great podcasts and is a Womens Aid ambassador.

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