Sometimes, I think my story makes me sound like a perpetual victim or some whacked-out girl with a bunch of childhood trauma that she doesn’t want to get over. But before I started telling my story, my image was totally different.
There was no trace of this non-confrontational people pleasing firstborn daughter, too afraid of being abandoned and terrified to feel the secret pain she carried. My colleagues and schoolmates saw me as a confident, put-together woman who went after what she wanted and who could accomplish anything. I was a successful Human Resource Manager, moving quickly up the corporate ladder. I had many friends; people liked being with me, even those that secretly hated me. That is who the world saw. And they were right: I was and still am that woman. But I had also been wounded as a young girl and the coping mechanism that once helped me survive, became fatal flaws in my character. I just wasn't aware of that part of me.
If we are lucky enough to wake up to the immense power we have to create our lives, we have a responsibility to share our stories and insights with others. Otherwise, the true power of our realizations is lost. Sharing our good and bad moments allows us to see ourselves in the words of others, gain witnesses to our personal journey, and broaden the possibilities that lie before us. Through sharing, I have provided the emotional inspiration that others can use to eliminate the “shoulds,” the “musts,” and the “cannots” that bar their way to creating the kinds of lives and relationships they truly desire. I, too, relied on the wisdom and support of many women, some of them total strangers, to progress through my own journey. By watching others and listening, I learned that to fully and wholeheartedly love appreciate my life. This realization was a major source of inspiration in my decision to share my knowledge and experiences with other women through my writing, content and guided journals.
Since you are reading this, I imagine you, like me, have become more self-aware and want to make some changes to your life. If you are not entirely sure how to go about it, I am here to help. For me, this character development has become my passion for different reasons. I am interested not only in helping firstborn daughters begin their healing and self-discovery journey, but in gently guiding them to overcome the legacy of trauma they were born into and creating a life well lived.
In today's post, I will help you by sharing 20 books that I know will greatly impact your wellness journey. I found comfort and beautiful words of wisdom in the following books, and poems that I discovered along my path. You may find them helpful too, while uncovering new perspective and a deeper understanding on your healing and self-discovery journey.
All the books are available for free on this website.
I enjoyed reading them and I think you will too.
Breaking Down the Wall of Silence: The Liberating Experience of Facing Painful Truth by Alice Miller
The Drama of the Gifted Child: The Search for the True Self by Alice Miller
The Truth Will Set You Free: Overcoming Emotional Blindness and Finding Your True Adult Self by Alice Miller
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson
13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do: Take Back Your Power, Embrace Change, Face Your Fears, and Train Your Brain for Happiness and Success by Amy Morin
101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think by Brianna Wiest
The Body Keeps the Score Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel Van Der KolK M.D
The princess saves herself in this one (Women Are Some Kind of Magic) by Amanda Lovelace
Running on Empty: Overcome Your Childhood Emotional Neglect by Jonice Webb
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving: A Guide and Map for Recovering from Childhood Trauma by Pete Walker
Will I Ever Be Good Enough?: Healing the Daughters of Narcissistic Mothers by Dr. Karyl McBride Ph.D
Poisonous Parenting: Toxic Relationships Between Parents and Their Adult Children (Routledge Series on Family Therapy and Counseling) by Shea M. Dunham
The Journey from Abandonment to Healing: Turn the End of a Relationship into the Beginning of a New Life by Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
Childhood Disrupted: How Your Biography Becomes Your Biology, and How You Can Heal by Donna Jackson Nakazawa
Children of the Self-Absorbed: A Grown-Up's Guide to Getting Over Narcissistic Parents by Nina W. Brown
Healing from Depression: 12 Weeks to a Better Mood by Douglas Bloch MA
Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors: Overcoming Internal Self-Alienation by Janina Fisher
Approval Junkie: Adventures in Caring Too Much by Faith Salie
Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Henry Cloud
Becoming the Narcissist’s Nightmare: How to Devalue and Discard the Narcissist While Supplying Yourself by Shahida Arabi
Happy reading!
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