Loving Someone Who Has Sexual Trauma
A Compassionate Guide to Supporting Your Partner and Improving Your Relationship
Megan Lara Negendank’s essential self-help guide teaches helpful skills for supporting a partner who has experienced sexual trauma.
Explaining the nature and impact of sexual trauma on survivors and those close to them, the book delves into how relationships can help to create a sense of safety, trust, and connection, with partners contributing to healing and supporting survivors during the process. It discusses useful communication concepts and expounds on how to build secure sexual intimacy. Common triggers experienced by survivors are explained alongside tips for managing such responses and reconnecting after such episodes.
The book also includes various examples of couples who’ve navigated the effects of sexual trauma on their relationship. There are survivors of childhood sexual abuse and those who endured sexual harassment and assault in the workplace. Partners are seen doing what the book recommends––offering validation and practicing empathy when communicating, establishing sexual boundaries, and even taking pauses during arguments. These methods for supporting partners, coping with trauma triggers, and building sexual emotional and sexual intimacy are covered in approachable terms, making them accessible to anyone.
This is encouraging work. It assures its audience that the challenges they are facing are common and they are not alone in dealing with issues relating to intimacy, communication, and managing trauma triggers. It imparts a sense of hope that it is possible to nurture safety and security in a relationship while healing from the impact of sexual trauma.
Loving Someone Who Has Sexual Trauma is a pragmatic, empathetic relationship guide with tools for building a safe, healthy relationship with a sexual violence survivor.
Reviewed by
Edith Wairimu
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
