FORBIDDEN
MEMORIES
A story of survival and the resilience of one human spirit
unable to be broken.
Victimized and tortured by the very hands of her caregivers,
Sandy spiraled down a twisted path filled with drug and alcohol addictions,
anorexia, bulimia, and other self-destructive behaviors. She used these
as defense mechanisms to escape the harsh realities of her life. Her behavior
landed her in a number of drug treatment centers and mental health facilities,
which only examined the surface of her existence and never got to the
root of her problems. This revolving door of disappointment and destruction
left her with very few options. Obsessed with suicide, death grew more
and more attractive by the day. After numerous suicide attempts; the final
being the ingestion of 180 muscle relaxants, it seemed as though this
last attempt would be the one that would end everything. However, five
days later, Sandy awoke from a coma with yet another decision to make:
Was she going to fight to live or just give up and die?
Convinced that she wouldn’t survive another suicide
attempt, she spent the next three and a half years with a therapist embarking
upon the beginning of her journey towards healing. This painful quest
for healing and resolution gave birth to a tremendous story that must
be told! As a result, Sandra spent five years writing, Forbidden Memories:
A Journey of Healing, a chilling account of her torturous childhood,
how she let it nearly destroy her as an adult. Most importantly it is
the story of her recovery. She has outlined the insights she gained along
the way that became her steppingstones to freedom and happiness. Now she
shares her story with the hope other survivors of childhood abuse will
not have to suffer in silence for as long as she did. Ultimately, finding
the power in her choices, Sandy exposes the secrets that are intended
to break not only the silence but also the cycle of abuse; to reveal the
true strength of a spirit unwilling to be broken!
Despite the overwhelming number of obstacles placed in Sandy’s
path, she still managed to achieve many victories along the way. She graduated
from Armstrong State College in 1988 with a Bachelor’s Degree in
Psychology and from the University of Georgia in 1992 with a Masters of
Education in Rehabilitation Counseling. She became a Certified Vocational
Evaluator (CVE) in 1992; a Certified Case Manager (CCM) in 1993; and a
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in 1999. In addition to her mainstream
post-secondary education, Sandy obtained an Associate’s Degree in
Biblical Studies from the Mustard Seed Bible Institute in 1996.
Sandy is currently a practicing Licensed Professional Counselor
with two private practices in Georgia. She is fulfilling her dedication
to survivors of childhood abuse by guiding them through the recovery process,
utilizing the techniques outlined in her book, Forbidden Memories:
A Journey of Healing.
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WINNER
2006 Georgia Author of the Year Award |
BREAKING
THE CYCLE
A step-by-step guide to healing from childhood abuse, neglect
and trauma.
Sandy is an abuse survivor who suffered emotional, physical
and sexual abuse as well as neglect at the hands of her parents, step-father,
neighbors, teachers, etc. As a teen-ager and then as an adult, she attempted
to cope with the abuse through an array of self-destructive behaviors,
such as alcohol, drugs, anorexia, bulimia and frequent suicide attempts.
As a result of her last suicide attempt at the age off 32 she came to
believe that she either had to figure out how to deal with the things
that happened to her as a child or die. Thus, she ventured down a road
of recovery, hoping to find a way to release her pain. She tried traditional
psychotherapy first. She delved into the way she thought about her self
and the world around her, but only found temporary relief. She realized
this type of therapy didn't address the emotional pain she was carrying
around inside of her. In order to stay alive, Sandy spent the next several
years trying to find the answers to overcoming her emotional pain. She
pursued her own journey into the depths of her heart and into the world
of her inner child. Even though her recovery was difficult and took many
years to accomplish, Sandy overcame her childhood and the demons that
had held her hostage for many years. It was during her recovery process
that she wrote her first book entitled, Forbidden Memories: A Journey
of Healing. She wrote this book to help break the silence of childhood
abuse and to encourage other abuse survivors to tell their own stories.
During Sandy's personal journey of healing, she discovered
a method of recovery that leads to healing and the resolution of one's
emotional pain. She found a way to combine traditional cognitive therapy
with a set of techniques that address the abuse itself on an emotional
level. She calls this new form of therapy Cognitive Emotional Restructuring
Therapy (CERT). CERT helps abuse survivors change the messages they give
themselves and then shows them how to face the abuse. She takes them back
to the abuse itself and to who they were as children when the abuse, neglect
and trauma was happening. She teaches them how to embrace their inner
children, emotionally restructure what happened to them and to forgive
themselves and their perpetrators. She teaches them how to speak their
truth, resolve the abuse on an emotional level, and to give their inner
children the love and support they lacked growing up. She completes the
circle by reintegrating the cognitive tools so abuse survivors can help
their inner children grow up emotionally.
Sandy's counseling paradigm has proven successful with helping
abuse survivors overcome their childhood abuse, neglect and trauma and
to learn how to love themselves so they can lead productive lives. After
many years of implementing these concepts in her counseling practices,
Sandy now offers her knowledge and experience to abuse survivors in her
new book called, Breaking The Cycle: A Step By Step Guide To Healing
From Childhood Abuse, Neglect and Trauma.
Sandy's book provides step by step instructions on how to
cognitively and emotionally recover from childhood abuse, neglect and
trauma. It also includes exercises and a CD to help facilitate the healing
process.
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