Table Of ContentPreface Acknowledgements Introduction Emotional Neglect Questionnaire Part I: Running on Empty Chapter 1: Why Wasn't the Tank Filled? The Ordinary Healthy Parent in Action Chapter 2: Twelve Ways to End Up Empty Type 1: The Narcissistic Parent Type 2: The Authoritarian Parent Type 3: The Permissive Parent Type 4: The Bereaved Parent: Divorced or Widowed Type 5: The Addicted Parent Type 6: The Depressed Parent Type 7: The Workaholic Parent Type 8: The Parent with a Special Needs Family Member Type 9: The Achievement/Perfection Focused Parent Type 10:The Sociopathic Parent Type 11:Child as Parent Type 12:The Well-Meaning-but-Neglected-Themselves Parent Part II: Out of Fuel Chapter 3: The Neglected Child, All Grown Up 1. Feelings of Emptiness 2. Counter-Dependence 3. Unrealistic Self-Appraisal 4. No Compassion for Self, Plenty for Others 5. Guilt and Shame: What is Wrong With Me? 6. Self-Directed Anger, Self-Blame 7. The Fatal Flaw (If People Really Know Me They Won't Like Me) 8. Difficulty Nurturing Self and Others 9. Poor Self-Discipline 10. Alexithymia Chapter 4: Cognitive Secrets: The Special Problem of Suicidal Feelings Part III: Filling the Tank Chapter 5: How Change Happens Factors That Get in the Way of Successful Change Chapter 6: Why Feelings Matter and What to Do with Them 1. Understanding the Purpose and Value of Your Emotions 2. Identifying and Naming Your Feelings 3. Learning to Self-Monitor Your Feelings 4. Accepting and Trusting Your Own Feelings 5. Learning to Express Your Feelings Effectively 6. Recognizing, Understanding and Valuing Emotions in Relationships Chapter 7: Self-Care Self-Care Part 1. Learning to Nurture Yourself Self-Care Part 2. Improving Self-Discipline Self-Care Part 3. Self-Soothing Self-Care Part 4. Having Compassion for Yourself Chapter 8: Ending the Cycle: Giving Your Child What You Never Got 1. Your Parental Guilt 2. The Changes You Have Made So Far 3. Identify Your Own Specific Parenting Challenges Chapter 9: For the Therapist Research Identification of Emotional Neglect Treatment Summary for the Therapist Conclusion Resources for Recovery References
SynopsisRunning on Empty is the first self-help book about Emotional Neglect: an invisible force from your childhood which you can't see, but may be affecting you profoundly to this day. It is about what didn't happen in your childhood, what wasn't said, and what cannot be remembered. Do you sometimes feel as if you're just going through the motions in life? Are you good at looking and acting as if you're fine, but secretly feel lonely and disconnected? Perhaps you have a fine life and are good at your work, but somehow it's just not enough to make you happy. If so, you are not alone. The world is full of people who have an innate sense that something is wrong with them. Who feel they live on the outside looking in, but have no explanation for their feeling and no way to put it into words. Who blame themselves for not being happier. If you are one of these people, you may fear that you are not connected enough to your spouse, or that you don't feel pleasure or love as profoundly as others do. Perhaps when you do experience strong emotions, you have difficulty understanding or tolerating them. You may drink too much, or eat too much, or risk too much, in an attempt to feel something good. In over twenty years of practicing psychology, many people have arrived in Jonice Webb's office, driven by the threat of divorce or the onset of depression, or by loneliness, and said, ""Something is missing in me."" Running on Empty will give you clear strategies for how to heal, and offers a special chapter for mental health professionals. In the world of human suffering, this book is an Emotional Smart Bomb meant to eradicate the effects of an invisible enemy., A large segment of the population struggles with feelings of being detached from themselves and their loved ones. They feel flawed, and blame themselves. Running on Empty will help them realize that they're suffering not because of something that happened to them in childhood, but because of something that didn't happen. It's the white space in their family picture, the background rather than the foreground. This will be the first self-help book to bring this invisible force to light, educate people about it, and teach them how to overcome it., This informative guide helps you identify and heal from childhood emotional neglect so you can be more connected and emotionally present in your life. Do you sometimes feel like you're just going through the motions in life? Do you often act like you're fine when you secretly feel lonely and disconnected? Perhaps you have a good life and yet somehow it's not enough to make you happy. Or perhaps you drink too much, eat too much, or risk too much in an attempt to feel something good. If so, you are not alone-and you may be suffering from emotional neglect. A practicing psychologist for more than twenty years, Jonice Webb has successfully treated numerous patients who come to her believing that something is missing inside them. While many self-help books deal with what happened to you as a child, in Running on Empty , Webb addresses the things that may not have happened for you. What goes unsaid-or what cannot be remembered-can have profound consequences that may be affecting you to this day. Running on Empty will help you understand your experiences and give you clear strategies for healing. It also includes a special chapter for mental health professionals., This informative guide helps you identify and heal from childhood emotional neglect so you can be more connected and emotionally present in your life. Do you sometimes feel like you're just going through the motions in life? Do you often act like you're fine when you secretly feel lonely and disconnected? Perhaps you have a good life and yet somehow it's not enough to make you happy. Or perhaps you drink too much, eat too much, or risk too much in an attempt to feel something good. If so, you are not alone--and you may be suffering from emotional neglect. A practicing psychologist for more than twenty years, Jonice Webb has successfully treated numerous patients who come to her believing that something is missing inside them. While many self-help books deal with what happened to you as a child, in Running on Empty, Webb addresses the things that may not have happened for you. What goes unsaid--or what cannot be remembered--can have profound consequences that may be affecting you to this day. Running on Empty will help you understand your experiences and give you clear strategies for healing. It also includes a special chapter for mental health professionals.