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Helpful Books About SA & SI

Suggested Reading

Understanding SA & SI

Waking Up, Alive: Life Lessons from Survivors of Suicide Attempts
by Richard A. Heckler Publisher: Sounds True; (March 1, 1996)
Sometimes I feel like crying, but the tears just don't come...."
"I had no idea there was a state of mind like this. Everything turned black...."
"It was a zombie place where I just couldn't be a part of anything...."
These are the words of survivors who have lived through one of the most insidious conditions of our time: the desire to die. Five million Americans have attempted suicide. Every seventeen minutes, one of them succeeds. And the numbers continue to grow.
Through fifty startling interviews with suicide survivors of all ages and backgrounds, psychologist Richard A. Heckler takes us into the very heart of despair, documenting the varied paths that lead to that crucial place where one's world seems to stretch, tear, and then break apart. In these intimate accounts we begin to understand the determination and clarity of that fatal choice. But after the failed attempt, healing is possible. For the first time, with great care and penetrating insight, Heckler traces the heroic patterns of recovery. By offering clear, profound portraits of hope, this extraordinary and unprecedented book attests to the resilience of the human spirit, by bearing witness to those who stood at death's door, and found the courage to live.
"It's hard to imagine a hopeful or inspiring book on suicide until you begin reading the astonishing Waking Up, Alive."
--San Francisco Chronicle

Children of Jonah: Personal Stories by Survivors of Suicide Attempts by James T. Clemons, Judy Collins Publisher: Capital Books (VA); (November 1, 2001)
The inner world of survivors of suicide attempts can be known only to those individuals who have experienced it themselves. Family and friends, regardless of how close, and even therapists, can catch only glimpses of the intense pain, self-doubt, ethical probing, and theological questioning attempters undergo. Children of Jonah offers insight into this frightening inner world and a more wholesome understanding for all who have, or have not, witnessed it from within. These inspiring stories convey suicide survivors' indomitable strength in spite of overwhelming depression, loss of self-image and the will to live. Contributors include an African American, multi-attempter, poet, and recent college graduate, now a Ph.D. student in psychology at UCLA; a now middle-aged author, son of missionaries; a psychiatrist and survivor of seven attempts; a German woman who first survived the American bombing of her home and the death of her husband, attempted suicide and lost a leg, and now wins awards for her professional work and her community service.

A New Lease on Life: Facing the World After a Suicide Attempt
by John A., Phd Chabot Publisher: Natl Book Network; (January 1, 1997)
Eight suicide survivors relate their personal stories of what led them to consider taking their own lives, what brought them back from the depths of despair, and how their lives have changed since their attempted suicides. IP.

Evaluating and Treating Adolescent Suicide Attempters: From Research to Practice (Practical Resources for the Mental Health Professional)
Publisher: Academic Press; (December 2002)
This book provides a comprehensive overview of the emotional, behavioral and cognitive characteristics of adolescents who have attempted suicide. Each chapter opens with a case study vignette from the author's extensive clinical files followed by a summary of the empirical literature. Assessment and treatment practices close each chapter. While suicide is the third largest killer of adolescents, most suicide attempts do not result in death. Therefore the treatment of the suicide attempter following the attempt becomes a significant part of the clinician's work with these adolescents. Moreover, the precursors and behavioral markers for a suicide attempt become important signals for the school counselor, youth worker, or therapist. This book also include assessment measures to use when evaluating an adolescent who has attempted suicide.
KEY FEATURES * Includes an outline form of an assessment battery for adolescents who have attempted suicide * Analyzes and discusses treatment and case studies * Presents detailed descriptions of specific therapy techniques useful with adolescents who attempt suicide * Includes succinct reviews of the literature, ways to measure relevant factors related to suicidal behavior, tips for clinicians, and reviews of pertinent assessment measures.

Secret Scars: Uncovering and Understanding the Addiction of Self-Injury
by V. J. Turner Publisher: Hazelden Publishing & Educational Services; (September 16, 2002)
What is self-injury? Why would people deliberately hurt themselves? Why can't they stop? What can I do to help? These question are asked and answered in SECRET SCARS, a revealing look at the addiction of self-injury. Self-injury is one of the fastest growing health problems among teenage girls today. Despite its prevalence, however, self-injury remains a behavior shrouded in mystery and misconceptions. SECRET SCARS is a grounbreaking book that demystifies self-injury by explaining it as an addiction.
The author takes both an engaging and scholarly approach to help the reader understand the dynamics involved in self-injury. Not only does Turner share case histories and her personal struggle as a former self-injurer, she backs it up by citing studies, research findings, and clinical outcomes.

The Scarred Soul: Understanding & Ending Self-Inflicted Violence
by Tracy Alderman Publisher: New Harbinger Publications; (September 1, 1997)
Written for the victims of this addiction--and for mental health professionals--The Scarred Soul explores the reasons behind this behavior and shows how to overcome the psychological traps that lead to self-destructive acts. Illustrations and charts.

Self Injury: Psychotherapy With People Who Engage in Self-Inflicted Violence
by Robin Connors Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; (November 1, 2000)
Offers guidelines for working with people who directly injure their bodies. Explains the function of self-inflicted violence and its relationship to unresolved traumas and losses, and focuses on the role of trauma in disrupting the formation of the self-boundary. Identifies therapeutic tasks, gives examples of interventions, and offers concrete recommendations for interaction with patients about self- injury. Explores countertransference responses, and addresses adjunct therapies. Connors is a clinician and consultant in private practice.Book News, Inc.�, Portland, OR

Sleeveless
by Joi Brozek Publisher: Phony Lid Pubns; (July 2002)
Sleeveless is the darkly humorous and provocative story of Lisha, a sardonic and very twisted teenager living on Long Island in the late 80s, dealing with the accidental death of her younger sister after a botched DIY abortion. Alienated from her peers and a fanatically religious mother, Lisha begins exploring the creative potential of self-abuse, through what she refers to as skin design.
When her razor art becomes the latest trend at school, it�s all she can do to maintain the purity of her original vision and protect the memory of her sister. Employing a variety of styles and shifting tempos to describe Lisha�s descent into an inner-world of visceral creativity, Sleeveless is an intensely psychological novel, a stunning debut by this gifted writer.

Self-Injurious Behaviors: Assessment and Treatment
by Daphne Simeon, Eric Hollander Publisher: American Psychiatric Association; 1st edition (March 15, 2001)
Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY. Practical guide for clinicians, containing clinical material and therapeutic interventions for the treatment of complex and disturbing self-injurious behaviors. Discusses the different categories of self-injury, from major, as in psychosis, and stereotypic, as seen in the disabled.

Women Living With Self-Injury
by Jane Wegscheider Hyman Publisher: Temple University Press; (December 1, 1999)
They cut their arms and legs with knives and razors; scratch at their skin; burn, bruise, or stick themselves with cigarettes, hammers, pins, and other objects; bang their heads and limbs; and break their own bones. Although women who live with self-injury have recently gained recognition in the media, they have, as a result, become even more stigmatized. In this book, author Jane Wegscheider Hyman sheds light on this misunderstood condition. Fifteen women talk about their battle with self-injury and explain how and why they repeatedly and deliberately injure themselves. Most admit they do it because it makes them feel high or safe. They also describe living with ceaseless shame, secrecy, and fear of discovery which could make them unemployable and ostracized. Candidly discussing their attempted and successful recoveries, they reveal the impact living with self-injury has on their day-to-day lives--where they are competent workers, partners, friends, and mothers.
Hear the voices of these women as they speak to a public that generally sees self-injury as frightening, senseless, and repulsive. Concealing scars or other signs of injury is crucial for them and partly dictates their daily routines, choice of clothes, and the lies they tell to excuse any traces of injury. For these productive women who work outside of the home and often raise children, hiding self-injury is of paramount importance during their workdays and in their relationships with partners, families, and friends.
Hyman's approach is unique in that she not only talked to these women but also really listened to their stories--something rare in the misunderstood realm of self-injury. Professionals, perplexed by self-injury, have not always tolerated its complexity. As a result those who injure themselves have remained shrouded in secrecy, isolation, and shame--until now.
This book offers compassion as well as encouragement for recovery by making available the emotional experiences of sufferers in their own words. It is an important book for those who self-injure, their loved ones, anyone who knows of or suspects self-injury in a friend, and mental care professionals.

CAPT�V
by S. Marie Publisher: The Express Press; 1st edition (January 1, 2000)
A collection of poems woven together to tell the story of a journey from child abuse and self-injury towards healing. Published for abuse survivors, those who self-injure, healing professionals, and anyone interested in understanding, preventing and healing the various forms of child abuse and self-injury.

Living on the Razor's Edge: Solution-Oriented Brief Family Therapy with Self-Harming Adolescents
by Matthew D. Selekman Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company; (January 2002)
A practice-oriented guidebook for working with self-harming adolescents. Matthew Selekman breaks new ground by providing therapists with an innovative and flexible client-informed model for working with self-harming adolescents. This model integrates the best elements of Solution-Focused, Narrative, Postmodern, Strategic, Cognitive, and Expressive Therapy with Native American healing methods and rituals. The book is packed with case examples and interview transcripts of culturally diverse clients.
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