Healing The Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families [Paperback]

Charles L. Whitfield M.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1987

Have you ever heard of your inner child? Well, this is the classic book that started it all.

In 1987, Charlie Whitfield's breakthrough concept of the child within—that part of us which is truly alive, energetic, creative and fulfilled—launched the inner child movement. Healing the Child Within describes how the inner child is lost to trauma and loss, and how by recovering it, we can heal the fear, confusion and unhappiness of adult life.

Eighteen years and more than a million copies sold later, Healing the Child Within is a perennial selling classic in the field of psychology. And it is even more timely today than it was in 1987. Recent brain research, particularly on the effects of trauma on the brain of developing children, has supported Whitfield's intuitive understanding as a psychiatrist.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Cardwell C. Nuckols, Ph.D., is an expert on brain development and recovery who has been described as "one of the most influential clinical trainers in America." His many publications include the national best-seller, Cocaine: Dependency to Recovery. His recent DVD, "The Science Based Treatment of Addictive Disorders," provides a scientific basis for many of the ideas first addressed in Healing the Child Within.

Charles L. Whitfield, M.D., is a physician, psychotherapist, and internationally recognized expert on mental illness, behavioral problems, and recovery. He has been on the faculty of the Rutgers University Summer Institute of Alcohol and Drug Studies from 1978 to 2003, and in private practice of medicine and psychotherapy since 1976. He has been voted by his peers as one of the Best Doctors in America every year since 1994. He lives in Atlanta, GA.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1
Discovering Our Child Within

The concept of the Child Within has been a part of our world culture for at least two thousand years. Carl Jung called it the 'Divine Child' and Emmet Fox called it the 'Wonder Child.' Psychotherapists Alice Miller and Donald Winnicott refer to it as the 'true self.' Many in the field of alcoholism and other chemical dependence call it the 'inner child.'

The Child Within refers to that part of each of us which is ultimately alive, energetic, creative and fulfilled; it is our Real Self—who we truly are.
With our parents' unknowing help and society's assistance, most of us deny our Inner Child. When this Child Within is not nurtured or allowed freedom of expression, a false or co-dependent self emerges. We begin to live our lives from a victim stance, and experience difficulties in resolving emotional traumas. The gradual accumulation of unfinished mental and emotional business can lead to chronic anxiety, fear, confusion, emptiness and unhappiness.

Denial of the Child Within and the subsequent emergence of a false self or negative ego are particularly common among children and adults who grew up in troubled families, such as those where chronic physical or mental illness, rigidity, coldness or lack of nurturing were common.

Yet, there is a way out. There is a way to discover and to heal our Child Within and to break free of the bondage and suffering from relying on our false self. That is what this book is about.

©2008. All rights reserved. Reprinted from Healing the Child Within by Charles L. Whitfield. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the written permission of the publisher. Publisher: Health Communications, Inc., 3201 SW 15th Street , Deerfield Beach , FL 33442.

Product Details

• Paperback: 151 pages
• Publisher: Health Communications, Inc. (April 1, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0932194400
• ISBN-13: 978-0932194404
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (51 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,491 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Self-Help > Inner Child
  • #3 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Recovery > Adult Children of Alcoholics
  • #15 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Mental Health > Codependency

More About the Author

Charles L. Whitfield, M.D., is a physician, psychotherapist, and internationally recognized expert on mental illness, behavioral problems, and recovery. He has been on the faculty of the Rutgers University Summer Institute of Alcohol and Drug Studies since 1978, and in private practice of medicine and psychotherapy since 1976. He has been voted by his peers as one of the Best Doctors in America every year since 1994. He lives in Atlanta, GA, and is in private practice with his wife, author and therapist, Barbara Harris Whitfield.

For the most up-to-date information about Dr. Whitfield and his work, please visit:
Barbara-Whitfield.Blogspot.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

211 of 213 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Turning Point in My Life, March 10, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing The Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families (Paperback)

After a tumultuous adolescence and early adulthood I found myself in therapy. My therapist recommended that I attend a self-help group for adult children of dysfunctional families. The therapist also suggested that I read "Healing the Child Within". I didn't think I needed any self help group -at least not badly enough to go through the trouble of actually finding such a group in my area. After being in therapy for one year I read "Healing the Child Within".

I was not physically or sexually abused as a child. What I did not understand was how pervasive and harmful the emotional NEGLECT was and how it still affected me as an adult. What I learned from this book was how much I had been deprived of as a child. How feelings of fear and anxiety as an adult could be the result of childhood experience. After reading this book I was left with a very strong desire to attend a self help group. I attended my first ACoA group in October 1988 and my life has gotten better in ways I cannot put into words. This book for me was not the answer but a trigger to seek further help. But if I had not had this trigger I would not be where I am today. In the context of a trigger, I can honestly say that this book changed my life in a very profound way.

182 of 188 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MUST READ for spiritually abused adult children!!!, June 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing The Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families (Paperback)

Most books on disfunctional families assume alcoholism and/or drug abuse. There isn't much literature that addresses the problem of family disfunction recognising that symptoms/causes can manifest in other ways.

The parental conditions he lists that tend to stifle the child within are: chemical dependence; co-dependence; chronic mental illness or disabling physical illness; extreme rigidity, punitiveness, judgementalness, non-loving, perfectionism, or inadequacy; child abuse--physical, sexual, mental-emotional and/or spiritual; denial of feelings of reality.

Spiritually abused adult children, even if no physical abuse ever occurred in conjunction, tend to have experienced co-dependence (boundaries are crossed and roles are mixed up in unhealthy ways), rigidity, judgementalness, perfectionism, and denial of feelings of reality, in addition to the description he gives for mental/emotional/spiritual abuse.

He develops heirarchical list of 20 human needs, drawing from Maslov, Miller, Weil, and Glasser, and develops the concept that in order for a human being to be whole and healthy and ready to follow a truly spiritual path, these needs must first be met, in order of most basic to highest potential. Most basic, of course, survival and safety; highest potential is unconditional love (including connection with a Higher Power.)

He explains the cycle of shame and low self esteem, and maps how healthy boundaries are crossed by all in a shame based family.

He describes the role of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and it's treatment.

He then describes the steps of healing; no step can be skipped in order to reach true "Genesis (Spirituality)":

Begin to deal with core issues, identify and re-experience our feelings, go through the process of grieving, integrating, and finally, spirituality.

If you have experienced spiritual abuse in your life (as a child or adult), or aren't sure whether you have, but relate to these issues, then this book is a MUST READ!!!!

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opening Book, May 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing The Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families (Paperback)

Prior to reading this book, I didn't consider that I was an abused child. Dr. Whitfield explores all forms of abuse with the reader. I considered my family Dysfunctional, but not to the extent of abuse. I now realize that emotional abuse is as real as physical abuse and can deal with it and get on with a more emotionally healthy life. Dr. Whitfield does a marvelous job assisting the reader in discovering their pain and themselves. Thank you Dr. Whitfield, I can now stop making excuses for my parents, deal with my pain, forgive my parents, heal, and discover my child within.