Full Description
If you grew up with an emotionally absent mother—a mother who was cold, dismissive of your needs, unwilling or unable to give you the nurturing you needed—the wounds can last a lifetime. You may find yourself wondering, Why is it so hard to attend to my own needs? Why do I have so much trouble trusting people to be there for me? Do I need to hide parts of myself to be lovable?
But you're not alone, and healing is possible. This workbook, from an expert in childhood emotional neglect, will guide you through the process of emerging from the pain and reclaiming the self you hid or changed for Mother's sake. Inside you'll find tools and more than seventy exercises, including personal inventories, journaling prompts, and small-group discussion questions, to help you work through the lingering effects of your neglect and be a better mother to yourself.
This compassionate workbook will help you:
Recognize your emotional neglect and abuse
Identify its ongoing impacts
Work through your deeper emotions
Heal attachment wounds
Parent your wounded parts
Take in love and support
You'll replace limiting self-images, defensive habits, and deep grief with self-assurance, openness, and hope—and ultimately, be equipped to embrace a more nourished and fulfilled life.
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: The Healing Journey
Chapter 2: Tools for Doing the Work
Chapter 3: Our Need for Mothering
Chapter 4: The Mother of Your Childhood
Chapter 5: Emotional Absence or Abuse: Which Was It?
Chapter 6: The Scars Left by Your Early Experiences
Chapter 7: Reclaiming Yourself
Chapter 8: Traversing Your Triggers and Deeper Emotions
Chapter 9: Exploring Your Current Relationship with Mother
Chapter 10: Parenting Your Young Parts
Chapter 11: Self-Care as Mothering
Chapter 12: Taking in Nourishment
Chapter 13: Bringing the Healing Forward
