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216p, 2014, Non-Fiction
My Rating=5 Stars
Source: Received a copy from the publisher for an honest review
We all have a story—hidden secrets buried in dark and rocky earth. Our task is to unearth—to release the pain and discover the good, discover the healing, discover the love. Uncovering the darkness makes space for the light.
After her mother took her own life, Wendy Parmley learned firsthand the heartache, despair, and loneliness that accompanies losing a loved one to suicide. At one point she even contemplated taking her own life as well. In this uplifting true narrative, you too can discover how to:
• Forgive yourself and others
• Open your heart
• Seek help when you need it
• Draw closer to the divine
Embrace the light and learn how to heal your soul and overcome loss as you read this touching and tender account of a woman opening her heart years after her mother’s suicide.
When Wendy Parmley was 12 years old, her mother committed suicide. Her father emotionally left the family for a while, too, leaving her to care for her four younger brothers and sisters. As an adult, she had an accident which later prompted her to tell her mother's story and how she was able to heal from that tragedy many years later.
This story is told in flashbacks and left me in tears several times, as I felt what she endured as a young, scared and shocked 12 year old and how that affected her entire life. She tells the good, bad and ugly and I found it difficult to read at times. As an adult, she has a better understanding of what her mother may have been dealing with at the time and her reasons for ending her life.
This book was interesting to read and I enjoyed reading about her healing experiences. Her relationship with her father was rough for a while so I was interested to find out what happened there. While the topic has the potential to be depressing, I didn't feel that at all while reading Wendy's story. There were definitely dark, difficult times but hope and healing were spread throughout this book as well. This book is thought-provoking and definitely worth reading!
Author of Hope after Suicide: One Woman’s Journey from Darkness to Light, and suicide survivor of 40 years, Wendy has long advocated for suicide prevention. She participates on various professional and community based groups dedicated to that end, including Hope4Utah and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP).
Wendy also recognizes the need to unashamedly support those who must continue to live in the painful aftermath of a loved one’s suicide and passionately lends her voice to that cause. Wendy was a favorite speaker at the recent Salt Lake City National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) annual conference and at the Chainbreaker Foundation. Wendy’s heart-felt story leaves the audience filled with an abundance of love, understanding, and hope as she shares her own journey from heartbreak to hope and, finally, to healing.
Prior to her bike accident, Wendy worked in nursing leadership for 14 years, earning her nursing degree from Utah Valley University in 1991. Wendy graduated with her MBA from Brigham Young University in 2007 and was honored to be the convocation speaker. Wendy has three sons and daughters-in-law, one daughter, and two beautiful grandchildren who fill her life with sunshine. She and her husband Mark live in Orem, Utah.
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Hope after Suicide has been endorsed by Hope4Utah’s executive director, Dr. Gregory Hudnall. It has also been listed on AFSP’s list of resources and received a positive review from the American Association of Suicidology. Parmley was invited to represent her work as a panelist at the 2015 Virginia Festival of the Book.
1 comments:
Okay, she is amazing. I don't think this one is a book I can read, but this woman is amazing. I love that she is an advocate for suicide prevention! I am sure it was a great book :)
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