Resources
This page offers resource information for survivors of rape or sexual abuse, their partners and supporters.
- Books. For details of specialist books and information for people who are overcoming childhood sexual abuse or sexual violence, please click here
DABS ONLINE BOOKSTORE
DABS is a specialist book and information service for people who are overcoming childhood abuse, sexual abuse, or domestic violence, and for those who live or work with survivors. Both DABS Bookstore's core titles, and other recommended books for survivors are listed below.
- Please click here for book titles that are recommended for adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse.
- Please click here for book titles that are recommended for survivors of rape.
- If you are supporting an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse, please click here for resource information.
For a more comprehensive list of appropriate reading materials, please refer to the DABS online bookstore at www.dabsbooks.co.uk
If you are an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse, you may find the following books useful to read. Please refer to the DABS website for a more comprehensive listing.
Breaking Free : Help for Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse
by Carolyn Ainscough & Kay Toon £14.99
2nd Edition. Full of information about child sexual abuse and its consequences, plus practical suggestions for overcoming the effects of abuse. "...written to share what we have learnt, to reach out to all people who have been sexually abused as children and to help them take their first steps in breaking free from the past."
"Breaking Free" was originally written for women, but "this second edition now includes the experiences and writings of male survivors, puts more emphasis on women abusers and describes the meaning and application of the term 'false memory syndrome'." Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
The Right to Innocence : Healing the Trauma of Childhood Sexual Abuse
by Beverly Engel
£ 5.20
A 7-step program for recovery, for men and women, with exercises and visualisations: Facing the Truth; Releasing Your Anger; Confronting Those Responsible with Facts & Feelings; Resolving Your relationships; Rediscovering Yourself; Learning Self-Care; Forgiving Yourself. You don't have to remain a victim. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Beginning to Heal : A First Book for Men and Women Who Were Sexually Abused As Children
by Ellen Bass & Laura Davis
£ 7.99
New revised edition of an excellent little book, now written for men as well as women. "The most important thing for you to know is that it is possible to heal from child abuse. If you are willing to work hard and find good support, you can not only heal but thrive." Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Victims No Longer : A Guide for Men Recovering from Sexual Child Abuse
by Mike Lew
£ 13.99
"The first time an incest survivor hears someone else say, 'that happened to me, too'....his life changes. Listening to someone else tell of experiences and feelings that mirror his own contradicts a lifetime of being certain that no-one will ever be able to understand." A comprehensive handbook for recovery. Recommended. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
The Survivor's Guide to Recovery from Rape or Sexual Abuse
by Robert Kelly & Fay Maxted
£ 15.99
"...a first step for anyone who wants to look at the impact sexual abuse has had in their lives... We are interested in how you can find ways to cope... on a day-to-day basis. Even more than that, for you to find a way to move through coping to living an inspired life." Full of exercises, self-nurturing tips and friendly illustrations. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Out of the Shadows : Help for Men Who Have Been Sexually Assaulted
by Sarah Stott
£ 12.95
"Written to provide factual information about male children and adults who have been subjected to sexual assault. It aims to help these male survivors understand how sexual assault may have affected them and offers practical suggestions about how to deal with those effects." Includes some helpful survivors' stories. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Hurting and Healing : How to Overcome the Trauma of Sexual Abuse and Rape
by Gloria Wade
£ 6.99
"The more we understand the nature and effects of our trauma, the less overwhelming it becomes. So within these pages you will find an explanation of rape and child sexual abuse to offer a path from understanding to healing, from being buffeted by your emotions to living the life you choose." (£1.00 OFF RRP!) Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Picking Up The Pieces - A survival guide for all victims of childhood sexual abuse
Written by Graham Wilmer and fellow survivors
£10.00
'Picking up the pieces' answers all those difficult questions - like how to tell someone that you have been sexually abused; who to tell; what will happen next;where to get help and what type of help is available. It includes first hand information on how sexual abuse affects children and their development, and unique insights into the mental health problems that often occur later in life, resulting from abuse. Please click on the book cover to order through the Lantern Project.
Destiny Unknown
Derek Linster's book, Destiny Unknown contains 208 pages and some great photos, and has been requested by readers of Hannah's Shame, Derek's first publication.
The book has received some amazing reviews and is yet again being published personally by the author.
Destiny Unknown is available for purchase at Waterstones, W.H.Smith, Amazon, Hunts bookshop (Rugby) priced at £9.99p.
If you would like more information, Derek's website is www.derekleinster.com
Because You're a Woman
by Jacki Rodikis
An autobiography of a professional woman approaching sixty, reflecting on her life in the light of the traumatic and relentless sexual and emotional abuse she experienced during her childhood, at the hands of her father.
'Because You're A Woman' deals with the effects of the abuse on her relationships with the men in her life, her personality and family relationships. The dramatic impact of the birth of her daughter was the catalyst that threw her headlong into an extensive experience of different therapies and healing paths as well as the trauma of divorce and emotional breakdown. How she finally broke free from the burden of guilt and develops into the confident women she has now become completes the story of this lifelong journey.
Through a combination of engaging prose and compelling, graphic poetry, this book illuminates, with tears and laughter, the trials she endures throughout her battle with the long-term effects of the abuse and the strengths that take her to ultimate triumph. Please click on the book image to order Because You're a Woman.
The following books are recommended reading for survivors of rape:
Recovering From Rape
by Linda Ledray
£10.99
Each chapter begins with a section for the rape survivor, providing information and support, and showing that other people have felt the same way and successfully resolved their feelings. This is followed by a section for significant others, to help them understand and resolve their own feelings, and best help their partner. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
The Rape Recovery Handbook : Step-by-Step Help for Survivors of Sexual Assault
by Aphrodite Matsakis
£13.99
"The more you know about sexual assault the better you will understand what happened to you and be able to put it into perspective... The first and most important step in recovery is to restore your faith in yourself... It will be a struggle, but it is possible to succeed." Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
The Survivor's Guide to Recovery from Rape or Sexual Abuse
by Robert Kelly & Fay Maxted
£15.99
"...a first step for anyone who wants to look at the impact sexual abuse has had in their lives... We are interested in how you can find ways to cope... on a day-to-day basis. Even more than that, for you to find a way to move through coping to living an inspired life." Full of exercises, self-nurturing tips and friendly illustrations. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
The following titles are recommended for partners and supporters of adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse:
Allies in Healing : When the Person You Love Was Sexually Abused As A Child
by Laura Davis
£ 11.99
"Survivors frequently have difficulties with trust, commitment, sex and intimacy, and these problems have a direct impact on you and your relationship. This book.... will encourage you to take care of yourself, teach you to look to your own needs, and show you how to support the survivor in your life without selling yourself short." Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Family Fallout : A Handbook for Families of Adult Sexual Abuse Survivors
by Dorothy Beaulieu Landry
£ 8.99
"If this book has been handed to you by someone close to you, please read it through, consider it carefully, and be gentle both with yourself and with the one who is trying to tell you his or her story." Includes chapters and sections to help parents, grandparents, siblings, uncles and aunts, and teenage children face what has come to light about their family. Also includes advice for talking to younger children, and for partners and spouses. A small, unique book - highly recommended. Please click on the book cover to order through DABS Bookstore.
Books for Practitioners
The following titles may be of use to practising counsellors and psychotherapists.
Psychoanalytic Psychotherapies in the Treatment and Care of Individuals Who Have Experienced Sexual Abuse, Violence and Neglect in Childhood: Victims of Violence and Abuse Prevention Program Guideline
Edited by Daniel McQueen, Roger Kennedy, Valerie Sinason and Fay Maxted
A coherent and readable narrative review of the current state of knowledge of the effects and role of psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the treatment of children and adults who have experienced childhood abuse and neglect. This book is intended for practitioners of psychiatric, psychological, and psychoanalytic therapies and providers of mental health services to children and adults. It should inform Primary Care Trusts, Children's Services commissioners, and health service providers about theoretical approaches and therapeutic practice involved in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. It includes a review of the evidence for psychoanalytic psychotherapy, and the place of psychoanalytic assessment and psychotherapy in a stepped care psychological therapy service. Please click on the book cover to order through Karnac Books.
Intellectual Disability, Trauma and Psychotherapy
Edited by Tamsin Cottis
People with intellectual disabilities have emotional and mental health needs just like anyone else. Until recently however there has been little research of effective psychological treatment or direct, accessible psychotherapy provision for this client group.
Intellectual Disability, Trauma and Psychotherapy focuses on the delivery of psychotherapy services for those with intellectual disabilities. Leading professionals in this specialist field are brought together to describe the history, theory and practice of their work in twelve focused chapters that draw on the work of psychotherapists including Bion, Winnicott, Sinason and Alvarez. To order the book please email admin@respond.org.uk or call Respond on 020 7874 5481
Please click here to view the DABS website
Other Resources
TAG: Trauma and Abuse Group 'Interact' journal
tag is a group studying and supporting work concerning trauma, abuse and dissociation, with particular interests in sexual, ritual and extreme abuse, attachment theory and Dissociative Identity Disorder.
tag is a registered charity with membership open to anyone interested or concerned in this field, including counsellors, therapists, psychiatrists, mental health teams, GP's, survivors, partners and allies of survivors, pastoral workers and clergy.
Its journal interact covers a wide range of issues and is relevant to anyone in this field, whether working or living with issues of dissociation and trauma.
The Spring 2010 edition of interact is now available for sale to members and non-members at the cost of £3.50 inc P&P. Articles include:
- "Infanticidal Attachment: Symbolic and Concrete" by Adah Sachs
- "Attachment, Trauma and New Tights: Life with DID" by Melanie Goodwin
- "Some Memories of Mummy: Reflections on Attachment, Abuse, Dissociation" by Carolyn Spring
- "The Road Less Travelled: How to Support Your DID Partner (Part I)" by Rob
- "Reflections on an Ongoing Therapeutic ‘Relationship'" by Carol B
- "What I Have Learned Through Working with DID" by Pauline Andrew
- "The Creative Art of Therapy" by Marie Calvert
- Survivor Poetry
For details of membership,which includes two copies per year of interact as well as a new bi-monthly e-newsletter, please visit www.tag-uk.net.
To purchase interact, please complete an order form or email editor@tag-uk.net.
TAG - Charity Registration Number 1108733
New publication: Violence Against Women in South Asian Communities Issues for Policy and Practice
Edited by Ravi K Thiara and Aisha K Gill
Foreword by Professor Liz Kelly CBE
October 2009 256pp ISBN: 9781843106708 pb £25.00
‘This book is powerful, challenging and inspirational, and is an important contribution to debates on the complex intersections between ethnicity, gender and inequality, as well as on human rights and violence against women. Thiara and Gill and the contributors to this text skillfully unpick the flawed thinking and policy initiatives directed at gender-based violence over the past 30 years and especially in the post 9/11 period community cohesion and anti-terrorism initiatives.' - Dr Lorraine Radford, Head of Research, NSPCC
An order form for this publication can be found by clicking here.
tag (Trauma and Abuse Group) is a group studying and supporting work concerning trauma, abuse and dissociation, with particular interests in sexual, ritual and extreme abuse, attachment theory and Dissociative Identity Disorder.
tag is a registered charity with membership open to anyone interested or
concerned in this field, including counsellors, therapists, psychiatrists, mental
health teams, GP's, survivors, partners and allies of survivors, pastoral workers
and clergy.
Its journal interact covers a wide range of issues and is relevant to anyone in this
field, whether working or living with issues of dissociation and trauma.
The autumn 2009 edition of interact is now available for sale to members and
non-members at the cost of £3.50 inc P&P.
Articles include:
- "Self-Harm and Suicidality" by Janina Fisher
- "For Better, For Worse: Life as the Partner of a Dissociative Survivor" by Rob,
- with Carolyn Spring
- "Different, Normal, Surviving, Outraged" (a DID survivor's perspective) by
- Carolyn Spring
- "It's Not Me, It's You: Sexual Abuse and the
- Legacy of False Responsibility" by Rebecca
- Mitchell
- "Supervision of Work with Trauma and
- Dissociation: An Attachment-Based
- Perspective" by Sue Richardson
- Conference Reports, Diary Events and more.
For details of membership,which includes a new bi-monthly newsletter as well as two copies per year of interact, please visit www.tag-uk.net.
To order interact, please complete the order form or email newslettereditor@taguk.net
SOCIAL NETWORKING:
 Join The Survivors Trust facebook group here. Everybody is welcome to join our group, although to create a safer environment, admin approval is required.
The Survivors Trust supports Friends of Jersey Care Leavers. You too can become a friend by joining their facebook group here
The Jersey Care Leavers Association is an organisation for all Care Leavers, whatever their experience in the Care System in Jersey or any other country. Please join their facebook group here
RoSA (Rape or Sexual Abuse Support Project) offers counselling and support to male and female survivors of rape or sexual abuse. The project regularly organises some innovative fundraising events such as parachuting out of planes! Support RoSA by becoming a facebook friend here
Coventry Rape and Seuxal Assault Centre (CRASAC) work with women, men, girls and boys who have experienced sexual violence and abuse. Support CRASAC by becoming a facebook friend here
Respond provides a range of services to both adults and children with learning disabilities who are victims of sexual abuse and other trauma. Their services extend to support and training for families, carers and professionals. Support Respond by becoming a facebook friend here
first step is a registered charity that provides a range of free, independent and highly confidential support services to adult male survivors of sexual abuse at some point in their lives. Support first step by requesing to join their facebook group here
 Click here to view The Survivors Trust myspace page and add us as your friend!
STAY SAFE!
The Survivors Trust recognises that social networking sites are becoming increasingly popular as online communication tools. Sites such as facebook enable people to post information about themselves and communicate with others around the world using forums, interest groups, blogs, chat rooms, email, and instant messaging. While you can meet like minded people through social networking sites, you may also be exposed to those who have bad intentions, such as hackers, identity thieves, con artists, and predators. Always protect yourself by taking some precautions.
* Guard your financial and other sensitive information. Never disclose your address, phone number, date of birth, bank account or credit card numbers, or any other personal information.
* Do not disclose anything about yourself, your friends, or family members that you wouldn't want to be made public. Please remember that once information appears on a website, it can never be completely erased. Even if it's modified or deleted, older versions may exist on others' computers. Some social networking sites (facebook included) allow users to restrict access to certain people - for your own safety, please adjust the privacy settings on your account.
For further online safety advice aimed specifically at children and young people, please go to the Thinkuknow website at www.thinkuknow.co.uk
FILMS PRODUCED BY OUR MEMBER AGENCIES
The video below was produced using figures from a number of reliable sources, images and real peoples' words. From my own personal observations I have seen audiences literally glaze over when presented with statistics alone, so the facts do not seem to impact on them. Seeing images of people however, connected with images, connects the audience directly with survivors. Survivors themselves often feel isolated with their particular issues around sexual abuse and rape. This video highlights some of the many issues and situations connected with all kinds of sexual abuse and the impact not only on the survivors, but on society as a whole. Pauline Carruthers, HOPE
NAPAC is the National Association for People Abused in Childhood. NAPAC is a registered charity, based in the UK, providing support and information for people abused in childhood. Please click here for further information about NAPAC, or view their short film below:
Please view the powerpoint film below for details of the Survivors Trust and our member agencies as at September 2008:
OTHER SPECIALIST AGENCIES
Samaritans provides confidential non-judgemental emotional support, 24 hours a day for people who are experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those which could lead to suicide.
Whatever you're going through, whether it's big or small, don't bottle it up. We are here for you if you're worried about something, feel upset or confused, or just want to talk to someone.
Website: www.samaritans.org
National Helpline Number: 08457 90 90 90
Here you'll find info on a whole range of issues. Sometimes you can sort out a problem on your own. But if you have a worry you can't cope with, don't bottle it up. It can really help if you talk to someone in your family, a carer, one of your friends or maybe a teacher. And you can call ChildLine on 0800 1111 at any time.
Website: www.childline.org.uk
National Helpline Number: 0800 1111
- The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is part of UK police and is dedicated to protecting children from sexual abuse wherever they may be. That means building intelligence around the risks, tracking and bringing offenders to account either directly or with local and international forces and working with children and parents to deliver our unique ThinkuKnow educational programme. Our approach is truly holistic, our style is totally inclusive and our appeal is to everyone out there to work with us in making every child matter, everywhere..
CEOP Website: www.ceop.gov.uk
ThinkuKnow Website: www.thinkuknow.co.uk
Rape Crisis (England and Wales) provides co-ordination for the national network of Rape Crisis Centres across England and Wales. Rape Crisis Centres provide a range of specialist services for women and girls that have been raped or experienced another form of sexual violence - whether as adults or as children.
Rape Crisis Centres are not just for women in 'crisis', many women contact us years, or even decades, after they have been raped or sexually abused. The women who work and volunteer in Rape Crisis Centres will not judge you or your actions. We believe rape is never a woman's fault. We know it is difficult to make the first step, but please try and make contact with your nearest Rape Crisis Centre for support.
Rape Crisis England and Wales Website: www.rapecrisis.org.uk
Rape Crisis Scotland Website: www.rapecrisisscotland.org.uk
Rape Crisis Network Northern Ireland Website: www.rcni.ie
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