Do you feel fiercely loyal toward your partner although your partner has put you through unspeakable acts of cruelty and betrayal? Has your partner lied so much that sometimes you aren't sure you know what's real or who your partner really is? Have you tried to break off the relationship yet feel powerless to stop your partner from walking in and out of your life? Do you alternate between believing that your partner is the love of your life and questioning your sanity or even feeling your life may be in danger? Using the stories of survivors and social psychological research on compliance, cognitive dissonance, and thought control, Why Can't I Just Leave? explains how relationships with pathological partners can create impossible dilemmas that trap you in a distorted dream-state and hijack your thoughts and emotions. Learn what those who are conscience-impaired don't want you to know and find out how to wake up and walk out of your partner's invisible prison forever.

There are many books that promise to help you fix a bad relationship. This groundbreaking bestseller is the first one to help you choose whether you should even try—or if you need to go. Psychotherapist Mira Kirshenbaum draws on years of research and her work with real-life couples to help you make the right decision. She shows you how to diagnose your unique situation with self-analysis and questions like these, which get to the very heart of your problems: • What sins are forgivable and which ones are unpardonable? • Is your partner questioning your opinions to the point where you doubt yourself? • What is your sex life really like, and how important is it? • Is there real love left between you, and how does it stack up against all that you find unlovable? Mira Kirshenbaum provides expert guidelines that are the key to making all your choices, concrete steps that you can implement right now, and the ultimate way to determine your personal bottom line—what you need to be happy. This remarkably insightful and probing guide offers advice that lets you see the truth about your relationship—and with wisdom and compassion, it helps you act with the confidence of knowing that whether you decide to go or stay, you are doing the very best thing.

This honest and open autobiography is the true story of a young woman trapped in a relationship that was violent and abusive. Coercive control drove her to the depths of despair. Stacey Jameson had a lack of self-esteem derived from her early child hood. Growing up and dealing with her parent's divorce, she felt nothing more than an inconvenience to her depressive mother. With severe feelings of inadequacy, she was desperate to be loved and feel that she belonged. When she was a teenager, she met a boy Leon, and fell in love. She had never felt so happy. They both had one common denominator they were both bought up in volatile homes, this was the foundation for a turbulent and destructive relationship. Stacey was welcomed with open arms into the wings of Leon's twisted family, naive and impressionable she finally felt secure and loved. Stacey's childhood had made her timid and compliant. Leon's childhood had made him controlling and narcissistic. Gradually Stacey found herself in an unhappy relationship where her partner thrived on being abusive, yet she still loved him. She was coercively controlled into doing things that just were not part of her character. She was so manipulated she believed she did not deserve any better. So often people look on with judgement at others who are in an abusive relationship, and say "Why don't they just leave?." Stacey's story describes her journey as to why it's just not so simple to do that. Stacey's story is one of millions of stories, of people who find themselves caught up in a destructive relationship that they just cannot find a way out of.

Why would a woman stay in an abusive relationship? Doesnt she have any self-respect? Any intelligence? Does she like being mistreated? How can she protect her children? If its so bad, why doesnt she just leave? Why Doesnt She Just Leave? is the actual journal of an abused woman, a woman probably very much like someone you know. Through the authors vivid descriptions, you will feel as if you are sharing her thoughts, emotions, and experiences, and you will come to understand why abused women might stay and how they can, as the author did, finally triumph over abuse.

This honest and open autobiography is the true story of a young woman trapped in a relationship that was violent and abusive. Coercive control drove her to the depths of despair. Stacey Jameson had a lack of self-esteem derived from her early childhood. Growing up and dealing with her parents’ divorce, she felt she was nothing more than an inconvenience to her depressive mother. With severe feelings of inadequacy, she was desperate to be loved and feel that she belonged. When she was a teenager, she met Leon and fell in love. She had never been so happy. They had one common denominator; they were both brought up in volatile homes. This was the foundation for a turbulent and destructive relationship. Stacey was welcomed with open arms into the bosom of Leon’s dysfunctional family; naive and impressionable, she finally felt secure and loved. Stacey’s childhood had made her timid and compliant. Leon’s childhood had made him controlling and narcissistic. Gradually Stacey found herself in an unhappy relationship where her partner thrived on being abusive, yet she still loved him. Coercively controlled into doing things that were not part of her character, she was so manipulated, she believed she did not deserve any better. So often people look on with judgement at others who are in an abusive relationship and say, “Why don’t they just leave?”. Stacey’s story, just one of millions, describes her journey and why it’s not so simple to "Just leave" for people who find themselves caught up in a destructive relationship that they cannot escape from. 2nd Edition

As seen on The TODAY Show! “A godsend to anyone searching for, but struggling to find, true love in their lives.” —Kristin Neff, PhD, author of Self-Compassion "Empowering and compassionate, and its lessons are universal." —Publishers Weekly Real love starts with you. In order to attract a life partner and build a healthy intimate relationship, you must first become a good partner to yourself. This book offers twenty invaluable lessons that will help you explore and commit to your own emotional and psychological well-being so you can be ready, resilient, and confident in love. Many of us enter into romantic relationships full of expectation and hope, only to be sorely disappointed by the realization that the partner we’ve selected is a flawed human being with their own neuroses, history, and desires. Most relationships end because one or both people haven’t done the internal work necessary to develop self-awareness and take responsibility for their own experiences. We’ve all heard “You can’t love anyone unless you love yourself,” but amid life’s distractions and the myth of perfect, romantic love, how exactly do you do that? In Loving Bravely, psychologist, professor and relationship expert Alexandra H. Solomon introduces the idea of relational self-awareness, encouraging you to explore your personal history to gain an understanding of your own relational patterns, as well as your strengths and weaknesses in relationships. By doing so, you’ll learn what relationships actually require, beyond the fairytale notions of romance. And by maintaining a steady but gentle focus on yourself, you’ll build the best possible foundation for making a loving connection. By understanding your past relationship experiences, cultivating a strong sense of self-awareness, and determining what it is you really want in a romantic partner—you’ll be ready to find the healthy, lasting love your heart desires.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship” (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century. NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. Look for Hanya Yanagihara’s latest bestselling novel, To Paradise.