I highly recommend the following book for anyone who has been abused emotionally and/or physically by a controlling parent, spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend:
POWER: Surviving and Thriving After Narcissistic Abuse: A Collection of Essays on Malignant Narcissism and Recovery from Emotional Abuse by Shahida Arabi.
After a lifetime of emotional abuse at the hands of my mother, and 30 years (on and off) of therapy, I finally understand my mother, her life and my life. Her behavior has never made sense to me. Now it does. This book changed my life and helped me to do what I should have done decades ago, which is to wash my hands of her completely. I can't recommend it enough.
