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    Divorcing a Parent

    Do you come away from contact with your parents with unbearable feelings of rage, low self-esteem, and depression?

    Are your parents hypercritical, manipulative, and/or controlling?

    No matter how much you do for your parent, is it never enough?

    No one should have to endure an abusive, unhealthy relationship that threatens his or her well-being — even if that relationship is with a parent. A family and child counselor with fifteen years experience, Beverly Engel divorced her own mother three years ago — not because of past abuse, but because of the continual abuse she received as an adult. Engel realized that divorcing her mother was vital to her own physical and emotional health.

    In this ground-breaking book, Engel draws on her own personal experience, as well as the stories and letters of other adult children, to offer a complete guide to why, when, and how to divorce a parent, including how to divorce a parent after his or her death and what to do if you change your mind.

     

    The Cleveland Plain Dealer
    Revolutionary.

    Los Angeles Times
    Beverly Engel’s premise–that some parents, like some spouses, are basically incorrigible–is a relief….This book is a primer, a place from which to begin to build a healthier life.

    Harold H. Bloomfield, M.D. author of Making Peace with Your Parents

    A unique, empathetic guide for those extreme circumstances where making peace with a parent is not possible and divorce is the only healthy choice.

    Book History

    Hardcover – Lowell House, Los Angeles,1990
    Paperback – Fawcett, New York, 1991

    • Los Angeles Times Book Review
    • Psychology Today Book Club