BECOMING YOUR OWN PARENT: The Solution for Adult Children of Alcoholic and Other Dysfunctional Families

by Dennis Wholey ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 14, 1988

Here, Wholey, former PBS host of Late Night America, author of The Courage to Change, brings us into a self-help group called Adult Children of Alcoholics and introduces us to his 14 fellow group members who, along with Wholey, tell us their stories. Half of the group members were reared in alcoholic families; an equal number are recovering alcoholics; others come from families in which compulsive gambling, drug addiction, or workaholism robbed them of normal, secure, spontaneous childhoods. They are, says Wholey, ""adult children"" who have succeeded in the world but who underneath are ""emotional orphans,"" locked into childhood strategies and attitudes. As children they learned to be self-sufficient, manipulative, and never to trust or get close to anyone. All have engaged in addictive behavior, which they are now controlling; all have suffered from low self-esteem, depression, and frustration. They are also all working hard to get in touch with the ""perfect child"" they once were and to become a ""loving parent"" to that child. As they relate their stories, various experts pop up and explain what the group is telling us. The entire program seems to boil down to self-psychoanalysis, ego-reinforcement, and group cheerleading. It's tantalizingly amorphous--perhaps because the ""Adult Children's Movement"" is just getting underway.

Pub Date: Sept. 14, 1988

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1988

Categories: NONFICTION