Recovering from Sexual Abuse, Addictions and Compulsive Behaviors: "Numb" Survivors »

Explore the connection between sexual victimization, addiction, and compulsive behaviors!

This book demonstrates clearly what lengths survivors of sexual abuse will go to in attempting to avoid dealing with the pain resulting from their sexual abuse. Anyone who has been sexually abused is likely to have one of the addictions or compulsive behaviors described herein. The information in Recovering from Sexual Abuse, Addictions, and Compulsive Behaviors regarding codependency is especially useful to survivors of sexual abuse who now find themselves in abusive relationships.

Survivors of abuse who have gone without treatment sometimes become either sexual perpetrators or sexual addicts and may experience many different types of psychological dysfunction. Recovering from Sexual Abuse, Addictions, and Compulsive Behaviors examines issues that survivors often have regarding:

• trust and friendship
• sexuality and sexual addiction
• marriage and family
• religious addiction as opposed to spirituality
• alcohol and substance abuse
• workaholism
• weight issues and eating disorders
• violence as the result of shame, fear, and depression caused by abuse

Recovering from Sexual Abuse, Addictions, and Compulsive Behaviors is more than a litany of the problems that survivors face. This valuable work will show you:

• HOW the survivor came to employ addictive or compulsive behaviors
• WHY the survivor continues to employ these self-abusive behaviors despite the pain caused by the addiction
• WHAT the survivor needs to do to aid recovery
• WHERE the survivor can turn to obtain the help that is needed to recover from addictive or compulsive behaviors

With its complete bibliography and up-to-date information on sexual abuse, addictions, and compulsive behaviors, Recovering from Sexual Abuse, Addictions, and Compulsive Behaviors will show you the full course of sexual abuse and its aftermath, bringing you from the beginnings of sexual abuse through the steps that lead to addiction and compulsion, and ultimately, recovery.

Booknews

Clinical social worker Knauer discusses the addictive or compulsive behaviors exhibited by many survivors of sexual abuse. She argues that the behaviors are an understandable defensive mechanism for coping with the emotional pain of abuse. She discusses violence, drugs and alcohol, body image disorders, codependency, sexual addiction, religious addiction, and addiction switching; and she discusses ways to face the emotional issues after ending addictive behavior, including a recovery model based on the Twelve Step Program of Alcoholics Anonymous. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

	Foreword
	Preface
	Acknowledgments
	Introduction	1
Pt. I	The Development of Addictive and Compulsive Behaviors
Ch. 1	The Need for Anesthesia	7
Ch. 2	The Nature of Addiction, Compulsion, and the Trance State: An Addict's Limited Range of Dysfunctional Choices	11
Ch. 3	Family-of-Origin Issues: How the Stage Is Set for Addictions and Compulsions	53
Ch. 4	Feeling "Less Than"	73
Ch. 5	Life Through Gray-Colored Lenses	89
Ch. 6	Fear As a Catalyst for Addictive Behaviors	103
Ch. 7	Violence As an Outgrowth of Shame, Fear, and Depression	119
Ch. 8	Drugs and Alcohol As Anesthesia	151
Ch. 9	Weight Issues, Eating Disorders, and Disturbed Body Image As Anesthesia	187
Ch. 10	Codependency As an Addiction	201
Ch. 11	Sexual Addiction and Sexual Codependency	233
Ch. 12	Religious Addiction versus Spirituality	255
Ch. 13	Assorted Addictions and Compulsions Commonly Seen in Survivors	263
Ch. 14	Switching Addictions	277
Pt. II	The Recovery Process
Ch. 15	Establishing Healthy Boundaries	285
Ch. 16	Addictions As a Spiritual Issue	295
Ch. 17	Using the Twelve Steps for Healing from Sexual Abuse, Addictions, and Compulsive Behaviors	301
App	Letters from the Survivors' Groups	341
	Support Groups and Resources	345
	Bibliography	347
	Index	355