Memory and Abuse

I just finished reading Memory and Abuse: Remembering and Healing the Effects of Trauma by Charles Whitefield, M. D. (1995). I read the book after an amazing conversation with a pastor's wife. I have known this wonderful lady for a long time, but never had a serious conversation with her. Even though her husband and I have been good friends, she always seemed a little distant. She finally told me her story. Her father had sexually abused her when she was young. She never told anyone, not even her husband. She felt too defiled and shamed. She was afraid of men. She did not have anything to say in group conversations. She felt if people really new what she was like they would not want anything to do with her. Then after many painful years of shameful silence, she told her husband what had happened. Eventually she confronted her father, and that was the final step for her to freedom. She is a different person today. She no longer lives in fear or shame. Because she tells her story openly she is helping other victims of abuse get free and find healing.