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Title details for Scared Selfless by Michelle Stevens, PhD - Available

Scared Selfless

My Journey from Abuse and Madness to Surviving and Thriving

by Michelle Stevens, PhD
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“A riveting memoir that takes readers on a roller coaster ride from the depths of hell to triumphant success.”—Dave Pelzer, author of A Child Called “It”
Michelle Stevens has a photo of the exact moment her childhood was stolen from her: She’s only eight years old, posing for her mother’s boyfriend, Gary Lundquist—an elementary school teacher, neighborhood stalwart, and brutal pedophile. Later that night, Gary locks Michelle in a cage, tortures her repeatedly, and uses her to quench his voracious and deviant sexual whims. Little does she know that this will become her new reality for the next six years.
Michelle can also pinpoint the moment she reconstituted the splintered pieces of her life: She’s in cap and gown, receiving her PhD in psychology—and the university’s award for best dissertation.
The distance between these two points is the improbable journey from torture, loss, and mental illness to healing, recovery, and triumph that is Michelle’s powerful memoir, Scared Selfless.
Michelle suffered from post‐traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression, and made multiple suicide attempts. She also developed multiple personalities. There was “Chelsey,” the rebellious teenager; “Viscous,” a tween with homicidal rage; and “Sarah,” a sweet little girl who brought her teddy bear on a first date.
In this harrowing tale, Michelle, who was inspired to help others heal by becoming a psychotherapist, sheds light on the all-too-real threat of child sexual abuse, its subsequent psychological effects, and the best methods for victims to overcome their ordeals and, ultimately, thrive. Scared Selfless is both an examination of the extraordinary feats of the mind that are possible in the face of horrific trauma as well as Michelle’s courageous testament to their power.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    March 21, 2017

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780698185562
      • File size: 767 KB

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9780698185562
      • File size: 767 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Kirkus

      February 1, 2017
      A psychologist recounts the sexual abuse/enslavement she suffered as a child and how she overcame its horrific effects on her life as a teenager and an adult.Stevens was 8 years old when Gary Lundquist came into her life. A primary schoolteacher and toystore owner, his apparent interest was in the author's impoverished, poorly educated mother. But shortly after the pair began dating, Lundquist declared his intention to develop a "special relationship" with Stevens and took the child home with her mother's consent. There, he began to "train" her as a sex slave whom he also prostituted to other equally sadistic pedophiles. The abuse, which Stevens could not articulate to her mother, continued for six years. Forced into silence about her double life, the author developed physical symptoms, including paralyzing headaches, dizziness, and nosebleeds, and she tried to commit suicide. At this time, she developed dissociative identity disorder, and two of her multiple personalities--"Mooch," who was outgoing and fearless, and "Michelle," who was shy and quiet--began to form. But it was not until the end of college that Stevens experienced her first "body hijacking" by one of her personalities. Unable to remember what happened during these "hijackings" or the traumas she had suffered as a child sex slave, she searched desperately for answers while continuing to suffer bouts of debilitating, often suicidal depression. In the end, it was the empathetic, nonjudgmental kindness of a dedicated therapist--who later became Stevens' professional role model--that saved her life and gave her the courage to begin the journey toward psychological health. Courageous and insightful, Stevens' book is not only important for the light it sheds on some of the effects of extreme sexual abuse. It also provides hope to survivors that living "a successful and satisfying life" is absolutely possible. A raw and powerful account from a survivor of unspeakable abuse.

      COPYRIGHT(2017) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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