Recovery from Abusive Groups (Paperback)

~ (Author), Wendy Wolfberg (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Recovery from Abusive Groups was written by former cult member Wendy Ford (now Wolfberg) with a preface by social workers Bill and Lorna Goldberg, pioneers in helping ex-cultists. Recovery From Abusive Groups provides practical advice for former cult members and their families and focuses specifically on what ex-members can do to negotiate their way through the challenging post cult recovery process. Utilizing study questions, exercises, worksheets, and an abundance of common sense, Ms. Ford provides concrete suggestions on such issues as:

Building a recovery plan Financial and work issues Reconnecting Making new friends Dating "Floating" Coping with depression What families can do Stress & career planning

From the Inside Flap

``Wendy Ford has written an honest, revealing, highly comprehensive and practical guide for former cultists and their families. Through this sensible, instructive book, a wider circle of people will now have the opportunity to benefit from her wise and practical step-by-step approach. This book is the first of its kind, and it will be difficult to surpass." -Lorna Goldberg, MSW, ACSW and William Goldberg, MSW, ACSW

``This book is of, by and for the recovering ex-cultist, a must-read for those who counsel ex-cultists, and a revealing and invaluable resource for those who love and live with the ex-cultist." - former 16 year member of a Boston-based cult

``This book is chock-full of practical advice. I highly recommend it to everyone who has had a cult mind control expereience and to anyone who wishes to be very supportive of the entire healing process." -Steve Hassan, M.Ed., ex-cultist, and author of Combatting Cult Mind Control

``Ms. Ford has taken the trauma and despair of exiting from a destructive cult and offered gentleness and encouragement in a way only someone who's been there can. This guide through the difficulty of recovery can provide basic steps for someone going through that process alone, or facilitate and enhance someone's work in counseling or rehabilitation. Ms. Ford provides direction at a time when the smallest of decisions is impossible and yet fiercely defended as one's own. I highly recommend this handbook as a tool for those recovering from an experience of mind control." -Nancy Miquelon, MSW, ex-cultist, and National Director of FOCUS, an ex-cultist support network

``An extremely helpful book for those individuals trying to cope with, understand, and recover from a cultic experience." -Carol Giambalvo, ex-cultist, former National Director of FOCUS, and author of Exit Counseling: A Family Intervention

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 106 pages
• Publisher: Amer Family Foundation; Revised edition (May 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0931337046
• ISBN-13: 978-0931337048
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,835,236 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Guess zero stars is not an option, February 18, 2001

By	Sarah Peller (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

I found this book a complete disappointment. Not only due to the poor literary skills, but for the lack of content. It's clear that the first review made here on this dated book felt the same. The author obviously felt it necessary to defend her sad effort by writing numerous reviews on the book all on Valentine's day 2001. Clearly the result of her loneliness and lack of love since the book has been out since May of 1993, and she mysteriously gets all these great reviews in one day shortly after the bad review... which is ironic since it was the only review ever posted here.

I see the only "abuse" here is trying to get people to believe this is worth buying with false promotion. My copy was returned, therefore, I "recovered" my money.

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A big abuse of paper maybe, February 7, 2001

By A Customer

Basically it's the result of someone so lost in their life that they needed a new form of attention. Why I bought this is beyond me. I was doing research on cult experiences and the only thing I got out of this is that the writer seems like a permanent little girl. It's like Harry Potter meets Helen Keller. Save your money!

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Life After Brainwashing 101, February 14, 2001

By	Karl Kahler (Los Gatos, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This book is an excellent guide to recovery from cult life from one who's been there. It's amazing how much ground there is to cover on this subject, and the author covers it well. If you've been in an abusive group (or want to help someone who has), this is an instructive and enlightening guide to getting over it and moving on.