I've a lot of experience in both methods: external and self.
At the time of consciousness of the onset of something profoundly disturbing going on--having begun to have flashbacks of childhood sexual abuse in my early 20's that drove me mad for a while--there was not much experienced help for me. It was the late 60's/early 70's. No internet. Few library books.
Found a specialist who was a Cognitive Behavioralist. Netted the methodology with which to approach what was to be a ten-year committed swimming through a great deal of muck and beauty.
Am now moved to another dive down into "it" after a decade or so of pursuing a career in which I'm rated well.
At one point I hired a publicist to stand in for shrink. Money well spent.
Also worked with three world-class sadists who were able to unravel the complicated pleasure/pain thing I was unwittingly given as a result of the physics and geography of the rape.
I have a lot to say on the subject of getting somewhere out of a dark hole of evil.
In fact, as part of my self-therapy I wrote and after a decade-long work-related hiatus continue to write "The World's Longest Open Love Letter" a multi-media work in poetry, dance, film, musical. It's Big. Google it. Wrote it for ten years too.
Enough info for my first post here.
But all that shit made me the rather extraordinary chick you see before you, saying, "Hello."
Have only just begun to read here, but am an avid listener and now as contributor, a voice with a need to be heard since IME, healing requires witness (mercenary friend in therapist or publicist even).
