The River of Forgetting: A Memoir of Healing from Sexual Abuse

"People don't make up things like that for fun." That's what Jane Rowan's therapist tells her when Jane reports fragmentary memories from her childhood that hint at sexual abuse. A busy, successful scientist, Jane at first fights the implications, but when vivid body-memories sweep through her, she finally has to admit that something indeed happened. As her mother is dying, Jane must decide whether to confront her. Meanwhile, bizarre harassment at work echoes the earlier trauma. Jane's talented and unconventional therapist provides a lifeline of love and guidance; the intimate unfolding of this relationship is a central through-story. Gradually Jane learns deep trust both for her therapist and her own intuitions. Using creative arts to access her strength and aliveness, Jane reconciles with both her parents' love and their betrayal. This deeply personal memoir invites the reader behind the closed doors of the therapist's office and into the author's journal and her very body. Jane's tender story shows how we can use the challenges of painful childhood traumas to transform our lives with power and joy.