Before It's Too Late: Helping Women in Controlling or Abusive Relationships (Paperback)

~ Robert Ackerman (Author) "Cathy was raised in an abusive family..." (more)
Key Phrases: nonalcoholic family members, many abused women, reactive phase (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This book offers straightforward answers to the most frequently asked questions about women in controlling or abusive relationships. Robert Ackerman and Susan Pickering reveal the warning signs of controlling relationships and how women get caught in them; the most common reasons for staying in a controlling relationship and how women can protect themselves; how women can leave when they still love their partners or believe they're needed; where safe places for women are and how to get help; how the children are affected and what help is available to them and how alcohol and drug abuse affect controlling behavior and abuse.

Also included are self-assessment tests--such as how to determine if you are in a controlling relationship--to help women identify not only high-risk men, but also some of their own high-risk behaviors. This book is the first to handle head-on the role of alcohol and other controlled substances--whether used by the abuser or the victim--in a controlling or abusive relationship. The appendix is an excellent resource for women who need help, giving addresses and phone numbers of supportive organizations in every state. More importantly, this book shows that women still have time to get the help they deserve-before it's too late.

About the Author

Robert J. Ackerman, Ph.D., is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Mid-Atlantic Addiction Training Institute at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He is a co-founder of the National Association for Children of Alcoholics, author of ten books and numerous research articles. He is a national lecturer, has appeared on shows such as The Today Show, Oprah, CNN Headline news and his research as been featured in Newsweek. He and his wife, Kimberly, have three children and live in Indiana, Pennsylvania.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 175 pages
• Publisher: HCI; 1 edition (July 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558743456
• ISBN-13: 978-1558743458
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #738,793 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't believe everything you read., February 10, 2002

By A Customer

I wonder if the previous reviewer even read the book. Her assertion that an emotionally abusive husband "can change" would seem to suggest that she has not. This is from p.45 of this book:

"Abused women often cling to the notion that he'll change. After an episode, they talk. He says he's sorry and she's sure he'll change because he sees how hurt she is. Then there is another episode and more false hopes, until after a while there are no apologies, just silence. Still, she keeps hoping he'll change... It would be so much easier if only he'd stop his abuse and she wouldn't have to make all the changes. It doesn't work that way."

I read this book because a close friend of mine is in an emotionally abusive relationship and I am having a hell of a time trying to understand why she won't leave. Well, she's told me a dozen times: she thinks that he will change, and she's gonna help him do it.

I'm not holding my breath.