“Whole Again” by Jackson Mackenzie ( TarcherPerigee 2019) discusses the healing process from emotional abuse, back to a healthy state of being.

He makes it very clear that in order to heal, you need to first know how you ended up in an abusive relationship in the first place. This is where he dives deep into the difference between those with personality disorders and those with Cluster-B personalities. He illustrates exactly how and why they are attracted to each other.

Interestingly, both types of personalities grew up in some sort of dysfunction, yet their coping mechanisms for dealing with it were completely different.

Additionally, Mackenzie has illustrations in the book to show this idea of the sense of self.

Often, our authentic sense of self is protected by a barrier that was created around us when we were children who had to deal with trauma or other situations in which there was no control.

Learning about the protective sense of self will give the reader a lot of insight into their own behaviors and personality.

It even goes as far as helping you understand why you seek out the type of people that you do.

In part two, Mackenzie writes, “when our true selves are rejected, betrayed, or abused by a trusted loved one and we don’t yet have the emotional tools to heal, it’s common for a protective self to form.”

As the book progresses, it continues to give examples of both personality types, and real-life scenarios about just how damaging these relationships can be on one’s emotional health.

However, the entire purpose of the book is to bring understanding to survivors and to find the pathway to healing from this form of abuse.

Mackenzie suffered through emotional abuse himself, and he explains exactly how he recovered.

Personally, I found the book very useful. It was easy to read, and it kept me turning the pages over and over again.

However, there are some concepts that are hard to understand because we have never been conscious of them, so there are times I had to re-read certain pages to understand the reality of what Mackenzie was trying to get across.

A lot of other readers really felt like this book was necessary to read in their healing process. One Amazon review says, “Stumbled upon this book. Once I started reading, I had a hard time finding stopping points. Each section seemed to speak to my broken self, my broken heart. Anxious to find the point where the heart becomes whole again, I read the entire book in three days.”

“Whole Again” has been a game changer in the way some have viewed their recovery journey, and brought more self-awareness. The book ranges $12 – $18, depending where you purchase it. It is available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Target and on Audible.