THE 10 ELEMENTS OF TRANSFORMATIONAL HEALING

In this personal growth guide, the author shares his own trauma-filled journey and outlines the system that he created to bolster self-understanding and navigation through life.

In the first half of this book, Pizzolato details his own life story, specifically his identification of “My Source Fracture Experience” and “The Meaning I Gave That Experience” regarding key incidents. His trauma was rooted in childhood. According to the author, his father was a violent alcoholic and his mother was a paranoid schizophrenic who attempted suicide several times. Pizzolato recalls that one of his most disturbing experiences was when his mother did not support him when his father attempted to murder him. The author proceeded to have a challenging adulthood, which included two failed marriages, several suicide attempts, shaky relationships with his many children, and a tumultuous career. After diligent study, particularly via attending many workshops, Pizzolato “rebuilt the missing development I’d never received as a child, especially in regard to healthy boundaries and communication skills.” The second half of the volume outlines the “Human Experience Compass” schematic that he forged to help others in this process. The system includes a focus on “Above the Line Behaviours” and “Esteem Building Codes” that “support you in finding a sense of belonging, acceptance, worth, clarity, confidence, courage, inner peace and self-respect” and incorporates a series of worksheets. The autobiographical elements of this work are, at times, rather harrowing, as when the author describes how, at age 5, he was “forced to eat my friend” the pet lamb that had briefly been a positive companion in a clearly miserable childhood. Children of alcoholics and/or mentally ill parents will particularly connect to the painful behavior described here. Still, Pizzolato’s first-person recounting is a bit overwhelming. Readers will wish for more perspectives on certain events. Yet this personal lens is ultimately appropriate; the author came to realize that he was “co-creating all my situations” and that the task to transform his life fell on him. The tool kit that he has fashioned may help others on this path.

This combination of intense autobiographical details and useful advice should aid readers in self-improvement.