Dreams and Promises Stolen is a powerful memoir of survival and hope after a lifetime of physical and emotional abuse. The road to survival takes many turns, there are setbacks, you begin to believe it is your fault, or because of your empathetic nature, you feel sorry for the abuser, or you do not want to hurt or disturb the family you have cultivated. There are a million reasons you try to salvage what is unsalvageable.
The faces of the abuser are often charming, warm, compassionate, and supportive, making it easy for you to see yourself in a relationship with them. Months or years later their abusive nature surfaces and you find yourself in a living hell. Not wanting to believe it, you become the fixer. Blaming yourself and exhausting ever bit of your soul trying to fix the ugliness that has become your life.
It is with raw honesty that the author shares her pain, but with that her hopes that there is always a brighter future around the corner. She tells her story in hopes that others will recognize the signs sooner rather than later and save themselves from a lifetime of abuse, destructive behavior, sadness, and heartbreak.
Do not let this become your life story. Be vigilant in recognizing the signs. You can break free and live the life you so desperately want and deserve.
Notes: Until we fully recognize the facts surrounding domestic violence, the pattern will continue.
All victims will suffer emotional scars, many victims, physical scars and some will lose their lives.
Each year: 4,774,000 women in the U.S. experience physical violence by a partner. Two million injuries and 1,300 deaths are caused by domestic violence. 10,000,000 children are exposed to domestic violence, and they are three to four times more likely to perpetuate partner violence.
Three women are murdered every day by an intimate partner. Physical violence is a repetitive pattern. Eighty-five percent of domestic violence victims are women.
Shemanski, Carol Frayer: - Carol Frayer Shemanski hails from the upper Midwest and lived what she felt was a charmed young life. Married at the tender age of seventeen and a mother at age eighteen presented its challenges, but she never looked back, she only looked forward. Many have accused her of looking at the world through rose colored glasses. True...maybe, but it has served her well.She never aspired to be an author, but it became her passion late in life. She was not unlike many other young girls growing up in the fifties and sixties in the northern suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. Full of hope and promise and ready to grow and flourish. Although an intelligent and creative individual, she had no desire to further her formal education beyond high school. Carol does, however, consider herself a lifelong learner.Her career has taken many turns, from self-employment to climbing the corporate ladder to assisting in the growth and development of people who are less fortunate. She now lives a quiet life in picturesque Northern Idaho, which provides the perfect setting for her to continue with her passion, which is writing.
