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| Diary of a Teenager in Love with a Teacher |
Hard to believe, but as I write this blog post, my diary "LIKE IT'S 1999: Diary of a Teenager in Love with a Teacher" is ranked #2 in Kindle > Recovery > Adult Children of Alcoholics at Amazon.
Never thought I'd see the day one of my books became a self-help bestseller. I kinda feel like Brian in that episode of Family Guy--you know the one--where he writes some bullshit piece of crap and then has to shovel his own hype.
I won't be hype-y about LIKE IT'S 1999. Primarily because it's not a self-help book.
OR IS IT?
If you want a textbook Adult Child of an Alcoholic, you're lookin' at me. In that sense, my diary can easily be read as a case study. Me at 18, in love with a 50-year old man. Me at 18, in love with a MARRIED 50-year-old man. Who happens to be my teacher. Let's ask the professionals to weigh in on my life...
If you're an adult child of an alcoholic and you see my book on that bestsellers list and ask, "Hmm... should I buy that?" my answer is yes. Yes, you should. When I was a younger person, particularly when I was a child and teen, I would have given anything to know that there was someone out there who shared similar experiences. I was a walking, talking ball of shame. For so much of my childhood, I knew I had a secret, but I had no idea other people had that secret, too.
That's why I think you should buy my diary--to share my experience. Or to analyze and judge me. The choice is yours.
But if you're buying my book because you're an adult child of an alcoholic and you need help, I would advise you to also select at least one of the other books in that category--like, an ACTUAL self-help book--and buy it as well. Pick one that appeals to you in tone and in scope. I truly hope you'll find peace with some of the same issues I know all too well.
I've selected a few books from Amazon's Adult Children of Alcoholics category to showcase here. I haven't read any of them, so I can't tell you which are useful for whom (although I hope they're all helpful for everyone!):
After the Tears: Helping Adult Children of Alcoholics Heal Their Childhood Trauma
Jane Middelton-Moz (Author), Lorie Dwinell (Author)
The trauma and grief of growing up in an alcoholic or addicted family create a lifetime of baggage. If you grew up in an addicted family, the dysfunction that permeated every aspect of your childhood may have seemed 'normal,' and you may not even realize the level of affect alcohol still has on your adult life—whether or not you drink.
If you are one of the millions of Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOAs), the cost of your childhood pain can be unbearable. You may have learned how to 'survive,' but are you 'living' your life? Do you fear normal conflict? Do you blame yourself when something goes wrong—even when it isn't your fault? Are you a chaos junkie? Or do you just fear relationships because they are too difficult or too painful?
Having devoted much of their careers to working with ACOAs, therapists Jane Middelton-Moz and Lorie Dwinell now take a deeper look into the origin and cost of childhood pain, as well as the grief resolution process that is integral to recovery. This revised and expanded edition of their groundbreaking 1986 hit After the Tears discusses the latest research and offers insights on living a good life despite a dysfunctional childhood by tackling issues such as intimacy, sibling relationships, codependency, breaking the alcoholic pattern, building a relationship with the inner child, forgiveness, and opening a window to spirituality.
http://www.amazon.com/After-Tears-Children-Alcoholics-Childhood-ebook/dp/B004GUSDQS/ref=zg_bs_156549011_12
The Complete ACOA Sourcebook: Adult Children of Alcoholics at Home, at Work and in Love
Janet Woititz (Author), Robert Ackerman (Foreword)
When they were first released in the 1980s, Janet Woititz's groundbreaking works, Adult Children of Alcoholics, Struggle for Intimacy and The Self-Sabotage Syndrome, provided a new message of hope to adult children who had grown up in the shadow of alcoholic parents. Their message today is as profound and timeless as it was two decades ago.
Now, in this complete collection, readers will learn again the insight and healing power of Janet Wotitiz's words. The Complete ACoA Sourcebook is a compilation of three of Dr. Woititz's classic books, addressing head-on the symptoms of The Adult Children of Alcoholics syndrome and providing strategies for living a normal life as an adult. Readers will find help for themselves: at home, in intimate relationships and on the job. They will discover the reasons for the way they think, believe and feel about themselves; ACoAs often feel isolated, have difficulty in relationships, in the workplace and in feeling good about themselves.
Readers who are familiar with Woititz's work will find wisdom once again in this classic collection. Those new to ACoA will gain fresh insight into their behavior patterns and find an avenue for self-love and healing. Noted ACoA expert Dr. Robert Ackerman, author of the best-selling Perfect Daughters and Silent Sons, provides a foreword and explains why Janet Woititz's message will continue to help millions of readers for generations to come.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Complete-ACOA-Sourcebook-Alcoholics-ebook/dp/B004FN1RLY/ref=zg_bs_156549011_10
The ACOA Trauma Syndrome
Tian Dayton (author)
Growing up in a home where there is addiction or relationship trauma puts a child at great risk for long-term, post-traumatic stress effects that adversely compromise adult relationships. Bestselling author, psychologist, and psychodramatist Tian Dayton examines this trauma through an exploration of the way the brain and body process frightening or painful emotions and experiences in childhood, and she shows how these traumas can become catalysts for unhealthy, self-medicating behaviors including drug and alcohol abuse, food issues, and sex, gambling, and shopping addictions.
Through Dr. Dayton's insightful analysis and thoughtful examination, Adult Children of Alcoholics will learn how and why the pain they experienced in childhood plays out in their adult partnering and parenting, and they will learn how to restore health and happiness through their resilience.
http://www.amazon.com/ACOA-Trauma-Syndrome-Tian-Ph-D-ebook/dp/B008TPUJSG/ref=zg_bs_156549011_20
And, of course, buy my book too!
It's on sale right now, but a price this low can't last.
Get your copy today:
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