Repair Your Life: A Program for Recovery from Incest & Childhood Sexual Abuse

An American Authors Association review: As we all know, many adults who were sexually abused as children, never received any help or therapy for this abuse. The result, as pointed out in this book, often results in picking an abusive mate and the cycle continues. As Ms. McKinnon did so well in her book, Repair for Kids: A Children's Program for Recovery from Incest and Childhood Sexual Abuse, she points out what it takes to recognize and recover from the damage done to a person as a child. Though certainly more detailed than the children's books, the steps are similar though developed further for the use of adults. The author reveals her own experiences to let the reader know that she truly understands what they are going through and that also knows the best way to overcome what the childhood abuse has done to her. Highly recommended! - Reviewed by American Authors Association member, Marilyn Meredith, a.k.a. F. M. Meredith, author of Kindred Spirits and No Sanctuary

I am a mental health therapist in private practice. I just read REPAIR Your Life. This is a MUST read and a MUST do for those who have suffered the pain of a childhood sexual trauma. Marjorie McKinnon uses simple language with practical advise and clear steps on how to recover and heal. Don't waste time.....Run to a bookstore and set yourself free.

Reviewed by Kam Aures for RebeccasReads "REPAIR Your Life: A Program for Recovery from Incest & Childhood Sexual Abuse" by Marjorie McKinnon is an easy-to-follow guide to enable those abused to head down the path to recovery. She states "the purpose of this program is to send you into the world with useful tools for recovery. You will not read this book and get healed immediately. It contains exercises as well as thought-provoking questions that will plant seeds. These seeds will turn into blossoms, giving you direction and guidance in a world that at times will seem dark." (p.27) McKinnon, however, is not a therapist, and unlike some of the professionals in the field, she had been abused and has had a successful recovery. What better person to learn from than one who has been through the same situations and has gone through the journey of recovery with positive results? McKinnon begins the book by chronicling her own personal experiences with incest and the recovery process. She presents her story as "a classic example" and mainly focuses on the resulting ramifications of being abused. For her, the abuse led her to enter abusive relationships, wreaked emotional havoc on her life, and caused her to have a poor self-image, among other things. Her own recovery was approximately a five-year process, and from her experiences she developed the REPAIR program based on the steps and techniques that worked best for her. REPAIR consists of six different stages: Recognize, Enter, Process, Awareness, Insight, and Rhythm. McKinnon devotes a chapter to each stage in an attempt to successfully guide the reader through the transformation process. The information in the book is presented in a direct manner, which is very easy to comprehend. The writing does not consist of a lot of technical terms that are hard for the average person to understand. The book is written by a regular person, and intended for an average, regular person to read. This is one thing that makes McKinnon's book stand apart other books addressing this same topic. "REPAIR Your Life: A Program for Recovery from Incest & Childhood Sexual Abuse" is a book that would be beneficial to anyone who has suffered from sexual abuse, anyone who knows someone who has been abused, and those individuals who deal with victims on a regular basis.

I found this book to very helpful in my recovery. Would recommend this to all.

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (4/08) "Repair Your Life" offers victims of incest and childhood sexual abuse the tools to help them overcome the shame and trauma that they encountered as children. It teaches you how to become the person that you were meant to be. So many survivors of abuse get trapped in non-ending cycles of being in unhealthy relationships, having addictions and making poor choices. Often the children of these survivors become victims. Ms. McKinnon has developed a six-stage program called REPAIR. It stands for: Recognition, Entry, Process, Awareness, Insight, Rhythm, and Post-Recovery. She dedicates a chapter to each stage and offers some writing exercises to go along with them. By going through this process you will be able to transform yourself from a victim into a survivor. She teaches you to be aware of how the abuse is affecting you as an adult. She tells her own personal story. I felt very grateful that she shared so much of herself because no one reading this book will be able to tell her, "But you don't understand." She clearly does and by overcoming her abuse, she sets an example to the rest of the world. Incest and childhood sexual abuse survivors can be whole, healthy and happy. "Repair Your Life" has a holistic approach to recovery. Going beyond the six stages for recovery, Ms. McKinnon also discusses how to be healthy and whole -- things that victims are not taught. This includes learning how to set boundaries, and take care of your health. She reminds us that we are special and that we need to honor our bodies with healthy care. The whole book really impressed me; however, there were two things that really had a personal effect on me. The first thing was her discussion of shame. Incest survivors tend to get trapped in feelings of guilt and shame. She makes it clear that the abuse was not their fault and that the blame should be placed where it belongs which is on the abuser's shoulders, even if they were victims themselves. It is amazing how much damage carrying around a lifetime of shame can do to someone's soul. The other thing that stood out to me was that she said that predators look for obedient children. So many people that I know that have been abused have had other predators seek them out. This makes the victim feel like they are marked with something that tells the world that they deserved to be molested. I have heard this expressed many times. When Ms. McKinnon mentions that predators look for obedient children, it answered that question for me. They look for children that look like they will do what they are told. That makes much sense, and it lets the survivor know that they didn't have something "written on their back" identifying them as deserving to be abused. "Repair Your Life" is a must read for all survivors of sexual abuse. It should also be read by friends and family members close to the survivor. Counselors will also greatly benefit from the book. "Re