Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse [Paperback]

Bonnie J. Collins (Author), Kathryn Marsh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

In this manual, you will find a complete 12-session program for treating clients whose problems stem from the sexual abuse they experienced as children. The step-by-step program was developed and thoroughly tested by experienced therapists who have treated this population for many years. It contains sessions on breaking the secret of abuse, understanding and releasing the shame, getting to know the child within, expressing repressed feelings, confronting the abuser, grieving for a lost childhood, and more. The 12-session program is adaptable to better serve your client's individualized needs. The sessions are all self-contained. You may choose one, several, or all of the sessions depending on your situation.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bonnie Collins, EdM, CSW-R, is a marriage and family counselor in practice in Hamburg, New York. She provides family systems therapy to individuals, couples, and families, specializing in short-term groups therapy for adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. In addition to her 25 years of experience as a therapist, she is also a consultant to scores of private and corporate clients.

Kathryn Marsh, CSW-R, is a clinical supervisor with Catholic Charities in Buffalo, New York. She supervises the work of therapists who provide services to children and parents with a history of abuse and neglect. Since 1989, she has cofacilitated 12-week therapy groups for adult survivors of incest.

Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Whole Person Associates, Inc. (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570251657
• ISBN-13: 978-1570251658
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #788,911 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A senistive guide that focuses on safety and healing., November 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

Bonnie Collins and Kathryn Marsh's book Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse: A 12-Session Group Treatment Program, published by Whole Person Associates out of Duluth, Minnesota is a wonderful model for professionals who choose to facilitate groups for survivors of incest. Although the book is written for adult survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse, I feel it can be adapted to adolescent survivors as well. The user friendly style in which the guide is written allows for easy adaptation. The authors have thought of everything from the comfort of chairs chosen to experiential exercises to develop safety. They truly attempted to put themselves in the shoes (chairs) of the survivors they serve! Collins and Marsh start with the item survivors need most - SAFETY - an item that is taken for granted by many non-survivors! Choices are given at every turn - something that survivors may also see as very foreign. The survivor is in control of whether they contribute or not. Survivors need to hear that they have permission, even if it seems redundant. Ms. Collins and Ms. Marsh recognize their very important role of re-parenting and providing for a corrective emotional experience. Inner Child Work and the use of song/lyrics entitled How Could Anyone exemplify this process clearly. The anger releasing idea of throwing ice cubes into a bathtub sounds like it could be a winner in terms of getting the different senses involved with this process. It's also an affordable way to "rid the rage." The use of meditation and relaxation done in a structured, predictable way allows for the subtle implementation of spirituality and understanding that can offer healing on a different level to those who partake. The "earthquake" guided imagery exercise helps significant others of survivors. This visualization exercise may allow the respective parties to better understand what a survivor goes through, how a flashback may be elicited, or what it might look like. After reading this book, I have decided to use this model as a guide for the teenage survivors I work with. Don't miss out on the well developed insight and knowledge that Bonnie Collins and Kathryn Marsh put together to use in this sensitive, delicate and rewarding process. Such practical tools of this nature may take years for a therapist to collect. Here it is , all in one single book!

Andrea M. Binner, M.S. Ed., C.S.W. Supervisor of the P.A.C.T. Program Hamburg, New York

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very well done and immediately useable for all clinicians, March 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

As a group therapist who has faciliated time limited groups for over 12 years, I highly recommend and support the work of Bonnie Collins as outlined in this important book. Her program utilizes a structured 12 session group model that addresses all aspects of the group participants. Mind, body and spirit. Compassion, skill, tremendous sensitivity are woven into this treatment model. For example, Bonnie is aware of the normal anxiety of these women discussing such issues in public and in a group setting, that she has written material available for the group members upon walking into the first group session, as a way to bind some intial expected anxiety. The approach is not solely a cognitive one--the excercises outlines and suggested are often times experiential in nature. Well thought out and easilly read. I especially liked the handouts, assessment tools, and suggested letters offered at the end of the book. A must read for anyone working with this difficult issue in a group setting.

5.0 out of 5 stars Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse, August 27, 2007

By 

Linda J. Mccullough (Alta Loma,CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Healing for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

I use this book for my survivors group and the group members love it. The best part is how the book promotes bonding among the group members. I have had nothing but good reports about this book from my clients. This book can also be used for other traumatic events in people's lives other than childhood sexual abuse. Thank you...