reading

Contents

What’s it about?

Codependency manifests in many different ways

Making a change requires accepting things for what they are

Codependents have trouble with communication

Overcome your obsession by learning detachment

You can’t control others, and you need to stop trying

Remember that you are capable of thinking and feeling for yourself

Learn to love and care for yourself first and foremost

Final summary

Now read the book

What’s it about?

Codependent No More is a detailed look at what it means to be codependent, how you can learn to spot codependent behavior in your own life, and how you can then begin to change it. Many people are in codependent relationships and don’t even realize that this is the reason they are unhappy, unmotivated, and sometimes in the depths of despair. Identifying the problem is half the battle. Codependence is just as much of an illness as drug addiction and other compulsive behaviors that destroy lives. The only way to treat it is to understand it, accept it, and be willing to make a change for the better.

Codependence is becoming more widely recognized as a modern epidemic, which is why an increasing number of support groups are being created to help those who experience it, such as Al-Anon, which supports friends and relatives of alcoholics. It is often caused or exacerbated by having one or more people in your life who have unhealthy compulsive behaviors or addictions that are causing them to destroy their lives. This in turn means you feel desperately worried for them all the time and feel compelled to control their behavior and care for them—no matter the cost to you.