The Sexual Healing Journey: A Guide for Survivors of Sexual Abuse, 3rd Edition

Wendy Maltz’s The Sexual Healing Journey is a compassionate and empowering guide for survivors of sexual abuse. With clarity and sensitivity, Maltz offers practical tools, exercises, and insights that support healing at every stage. Her approach is both gentle and encouraging, making the book a valuable resource for survivors as well as their partners and therapists. It’s a hopeful and affirming read that helps reclaim intimacy and trust.

I highly recommend this book for both survivors and partner's of survivors. Wendy shares loads of information about how the abuse affects someone and why safety in relationships is vital to healing. Safety for emotions and physically will help bridge the gap where closeness is desired. She has practical steps for healing and at the end of the book, there's a list of resources for further information and help. It's helped me understand my behaviors and fears and begin to address them. I'm so glad I read this.

This book helped me realize that I was sexually abused multiple times in my life, which was a major turning point in my trauma recovery. However, my reaction was so strong that I don't recommend reading this without having an established therapist. It affected my mood and caused some nightmares, which I put 0 blame on the author for; it's just the nature of trauma. Ultimately, it was very validating to read and eased my mind about many of my doubts, and helped me gain the courage and skills needed to reconnect with my husband on a sexual level. He also purchased a copy so that he might more easily recognize things that could trigger me, and to gain insight on what he can do when that happens.

This is an excellent book, and 95% of it is very useful and helpful, an excellent resource. There are a few tiny sections that still need to be updated to reflect contemporary understanding of sex positivity - "Healthy sex" has to be qualified and not just assumed to be a certain type of sex (monogamous, vanilla, etc.). It's okay for people to be 'promiscuous' (the phrase is now sexually robust), watch porn, make porn, partake in BDSM, and do all kinds of fun things. None of those things is inherently harmful or 'unhealthy.' We need to explore sexual practices without judgment, and then learn about ourselves when they are hurtful because of non-connection or fun and light because of non-connection, reenacting trauma in a retraumatizing way or trauma reenacting in a reparative way, when sex is coming from a place of disgust or shame, and when it is a manifestation of lust and/or love. There's no quantifying that, no right or wrong, it's different for everyone, and when we don't make space for robustness, we're passively slut-shaming. Other than those parts - and really it's just a handful of paragraphs that that happens - this is a fantastic book.

I know several other reviews mention that this book has triggering personal stories, but for me, reading other people's stories has been so helpful on my journey. It helps me to see parts of myself in others, and recognize these behaviors I have developed as a result of CSA. The stories make me feel less alone and more connected to other CSA survivors. Also, the assessments and exercise suggestions have been super helpful to me.

This is an amazing book. It gets right down to the root of sexual trauma. It goes to places you have been afraid to go, discusses the things you never wanted to discuss with anyone. Most of all it answers the questions you never thought of asking, or were afraid to. I'm ⅔ thru the book and it is definitely one that will stay on my shelf for future reading and resources. Wendy Maltz is a great writer and she does so with compassion. It's in no way intrusive and she has been thru sexual trauma herself, so she has an idea of where her readers are coming from. Definitely 5 stars!

If you have any past trama or possible childhood sexual abuse GET THIS BOOK. I am half way through and already i am doing 100x better! I am discovering things and actually healing! So understanding easy to read, she knows what goes on in abuse and you will feel so less alone and empowered!! I am a victim of sadistic repeated rape and i thought i lost parts of me I'd never get back but with this book i am getting these parts back plus so much more positivity! Do yourself a favor and invest in this book. It will pay you back guaranteed.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has been sexually assaulted, molested or other sexual trauma. I have not been able to date a man for the past 20 years due to my past trauma. When I ran into an old friend, we wanted to start dating. The fact that I new him made me feel safer. He recommended seeing a sex therapist who deals with past traumas that keep you moving forward and trusting again. She recommended this book for me and my boyfriend. I did not read the parts where people talk about their past experiences, but those stories were great for my boyfriend to understand what I was going through. THen there is a complete section in the back that helped me to move on with my life, and be able to say "NO" to my boyfriend when I felt sexually pressured. THis book, as any other couples book, will really benefit you if your boyfriend, lover, new relationship partner reads it also. It is up to date as far as psychology goes, and has allowed me to come out of my shell and start a relationship again!