Facing Codependence: What It Is, Where It Comes from, How It Sabotages Our Lives

By: Pia Mellody, Andrea Wells Miller, J. Keith Miller

Narrated by: Nathan McMillan

Revised and updated with over 600,000 copies sold.

Pia Mellody creates a framework for identifying codependent thinking, emotions and behaviour and provides an effective approach to recovery. Mellody sets forth five primary adult symptoms of this crippling condition, then traces their origin to emotional, spiritual, intellectual, physical and sexual abuses that occur in childhood. Central to Mellody's approach is the concept that the codependent adult's injured inner child needs healing. Recovery from codependence, therefore, involves clearing up the toxic emotions left over from these painful childhood experiences.

©2003 Pia Mellody (P)2019 Pia Mellody

Heartbreaking yet healing

It is the slap on the face that perhaps you need. However, I (and my therapist) would not recomend this book if you are just waking up to toxicity in your relationships. Wait like 3 years in therapy to start this, otherwise I bet you’ll become defensive about your behavior or your abusers’ behaviors.
And in another note, maybe it’s my spiritual trauma talking, but I dislike how pushy she is with “the higher power” very christian of her... and I don’t trust christians in any spiritual related stuff, because of this tendency to push down peoples throat their ideology.

Good book; just a little bit too detailed.

The book covers every scenario possible which I found overwhelming. I struggle with the wood codependency as to the context of the material in it.
That said, it does open your eyes to how some of the simplest things we do as parents can effect us later in life.

Wonderful Explanation

This book explained codependence very well and made me better understand parts of myself that made me feel crazy. This book will be a part of my life forever.

Helpful and Interesting

The content of this book was well laid out, cohesive, and very helpful. I would recommend this to anyone wanting to learn more about codependence, thinks they could be codependent, or know someone who is codependent.

Great insight

Read this if you are a man who grew up with a narcissistic mother or a woman who grew up with a narcissistic father. It helps you to not project your opposite gender parent issue onto an entire gender as an adult.