Getting Free: You Can End Abuse and Take Back Your Life [Expanded Second Edition] 0931188377, 9780931188374

Citation preview

GETTING

FREE YOU CAN END n and TAK ABUSE

BACK YOU R

LIFE

Ginny NiCarthy

The book

that has

changed

of thousands of

thi lives

women

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

GETTING FREE

n

i

Z'-

the Library.

-1

GETTING FREE You Can End Abuse and Take Back Your

Expanded Second Edition

Ginny NiCarthy

Seal Press

Life

Copyright

©

1982, 1986

All rights reserved.

No

by Ginny NiCarthy. part of this

book may be reproduced

in

any form

except for the quotation of brief passages in reviews, without the prior permission from The Seal Press, 3131 Western Avenue Suite 410, Seattle, Washington 98121.

Cover design by Clare Conrad. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

NiCarthy, Ginny. Getting free you can end abuse and take back your Ginny NiCarthy. Expanded 2nd ed. :

life

/

by

—

p.

cm.

Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-931188-37-7 $12.95 1. Abused women— United States— Handbooks, manuals, 2. Abused wives— United States— Handbooks, manuals, etc. HV6626.N5 1990 :

362.82'92-dc20 Printed in the United States of America 20 19 18 17 16 15

etc. I.

Title.

89-77263

CIP

Acknowledgements

couldn't have learned what I did about the problems of women if my colleagues Naomi Gottlieb, Holly Moss and Cheryl Richey hadn't supported my establishment of the Abused Women's Network as a project of the Women's Institute. Their dedication never flagged, even when the Network seemed at times to be engulfing the Institute. In the early phases of the book, women at New Beginnings Shelter For Battered Women, the Abused Women's Network and the downtown groups read each chapter as it was written and gave me invaluable comments. If I became discouraged there was always one of them urging me on so they could read the next chapter. For reasons of confidentiality, I can't name those women, but I want them to know it might never have been finished at all, had it not been for their enthusiasm. Rachel da Silva and Barbara Wilson took a risk when they decided to depart from their usual publications of literature. Knowing that others had turned down Getting Free because they thought there wasn't enough of a market, they wanted to take the chance because they knew there was a need. The book exists because of their decision and their courage to see it through. A core of fundraisers planned and produced events, fliers, tee shirts and even the traditional baked goods: Linda Golaszewski, Mary Hambly, Marsha Kelley, Jane Cahill. I'm especially grateful to Rachel da Silva for the numerous hours and imaginative work that went into fundraising events and products, as well as editing and every phase of the book's production. Faith Conlon dedicated countless hours to editing and helping in organizational problems. Carol Richard's comments and suggestions, enriched by provocative conversations about the lives of abused women and their children restimulated my excitement in the later stages of the book. I thank the following people for reading either substantial portions of the book or a chapter or two in their areas of expertise: Gay Abarbanell, Sally Buckley, Cathy Cado, Jane Cahill, Susan Crane, Deborah De Wolfe, Ann Fetter, Kay Frank, Wanda Fullner, I

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Acknowledgments for the Expanded Second

Edition:

emot 'onal abuse and teen abuse chapters,

respectively.

n

helped wrn toTnde^ nyH P e T ,e

ab ° Ut lesbian abu

t

problems, I'm

esS veraSufm

in particular the

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