Quotes by Renee Fredrickson, Repressed Memories: A Journey to Recovery from Sexual Abuse

“Some of your childhood traumas may be remembered with incredible clarity, while others are so frightening or incomprehensible that your conscious mind buries the memory in your unconscious.”

“Sexual abuse is also a secret crime, one that usually has no witness. Shame and secrecy keep a child from talking to siblings about the abuse, even if all the children in a family are being sexuall...”

“Everything you need to heal is inside yourself. You only need support and encouragement to listen to yourselfto your thoughts, feelings, imagery, and inner spiritual urgings. A book, like a therapi...”

“The unconscious mind always operates in the present tense, and when a memory is buried in the unconscious, the unconscious preserves it as an ongoing act of abuse in the present of the unconscious ...”

“Dissociation gets you through a brutal experience, letting your basic survival skills operate unimpededYour ability to survive is enhanced as the ability to feel is diminishedAll feeling are blocke...”

“In general, the more dysfunctional the family the more inappropriate their response to disclosure. Never expect a sane response from an insane system.”

“Dissociation, a form of hypnotic trance, helps children survive the abuseThe abuse takes on a dream-like, surreal quality and deadened feelings and altered perceptions add to the strangeness. The w...”

“Youre too sensitive victims of sexual abuse are told over and over by those whose reality depends on being insensitive. Most adults who have been in the victim role cringe when anyone tells them th...”

“Memory repression thrives in shame, secrecy, and shock. The shame and degradation experienced during sexual assault is profound, especially for children who have no concept of what is happening to ...”

“Sometimes buried memories of abuse emerge spontaneously. A triggering event or catalyst starts the memories flowing. The survivor then experiences the memories as a barrage of images about the abus...”

“What most people call spontaneous recall usually involves memories that have been denied, not repressed. The survivor has always been aware that the sexual abuse happened, but he or she has studiou...”

“You may experience waves of disbelief after each memory you retrieve. Whether as a phase or waves, the disbelief is usually accompanied by massive self-hate and guilt. How can I even think such a t...”

“Dissociation, a form of hypnotic trance, helps children survive the abuse…The abuse takes on a dream-like, surreal quality and deadened feelings and altered perceptions add to the strangeness. The ...”

“You’re too sensitive’ victims of sexual abuse are told over and over by those whose reality depends on being insensitive. Most adults who have been in the victim role cringe when anyone tells them ...”