If there was one single piece of writing that inspired me to start this blog, it was Daniel Mackler’s essay “Family: The Prototypical Cult”.

His website contains many other insightful essays on parenting, psychology, self-therapy and relationships. I highly recommend his book Breaking From Your Parents.

Here are a few other relevant books that I recommend:

The Drama of the Gifted Child – Alice Miller’s great contribution to, and critique of, the world of psychotherapy. At less than 150 pages it’s a brief yet powerful overview of what children go through when their parents are emotionally stunted and disturbed.

Please note: her son Martin Miller has published The True “Drama of the Gifted Child”, a biography of both his mother and himself in which he reveals how Alice Miller attempted to keep her childhood history secret and how she abused him.

Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving – A more practical guide to the early stages of gaining insight into and healing from childhood abuse and neglect. Certainly not just for people who have been diagnosed.

Ishmael – What exactly is civilization? What is the story its members are enacting, and what stories have been killed by it and largely forgotten over the past 10,000 years? Although Daniel Quinn doesn’t do much exploring of the deeper psychological roots of civilization in Ishmael, the historical and cultural pieces he puts together are very illuminating. If you’re impatient, or if you just want a detailed table of contents for the ideas in this book, Wikiquote has an excellent selection of the main points.