A scientific analysis of violent attachment disorder broken down by case study, behavior and conclusion. Includes some interesting case studies, but much of the book is written in a dense language intended for a specific audience: “The Harris and Lingoes subscales of Scale 4(Pd) suggested that most of the loading was attributable to Sara’s perceptions of family conflict and discord (Pdl=T69) and profound alienation from herself (Pd4B=T74).” CF

Publisher: Aronson
Paperback: 365 pages

“Return from Madness is a profound and moving book. In the tradition of Oliver Sacks’ Awakenings it tells the dramatic story of patients suddenly liberated from lives destroyed by mental illness. Most of Degen and Nasper’s patients are forced to organize life around the illness, their psychological and social development cut short by its onset. The authors not only describe the startling relief Clozaril provides for symptoms of chronic schizophrenia, but understand that relief from schizophrenic symptoms demands deep reorganizations of living as the patients resume development and mourn decades lost to illness.”

Publisher: Aronson
Hardback: 242 pages

This excellent resource covers theory, diagnosis and treatment of masochism, discussing (and critiquing) Freud’s early “sadism turned round upon the self” theory and favoring more contemporary conceptions which view masochism as a result of disturbances in early parent-child interactions. The book cites case illustrations from the author’s own experience and is comprehensive in its use of relevant psychiatric literature. It examines a wide range of subjects such as masochism as defense, masochism and paranoid mechanisms, the role of sadism or aggression in masochism, psychotherapy and masochism, and the masochistic character.
“In my study of masochism, I seek answers to a series of controversial questions. The first is ‘What are the unique characteristics in the individual’s life history, particularly in the parent-child and family constellation, that make imperative the recourse to masochistic behavior?’”

Publisher: Aronson
Paperback: 264 pages