The Choice: Embrace the Possible
A**A
One of the best Holocaust Memoirs I've read
Edith Eger promises a memoir of survival and delivers a profound master class in resilience and healing: Holocaust survivor turned psychologist? ✓ Unflinching honesty? ✓ Transformative insights that actually empower? ✓ “The Choice” will leave you humbled, uplifted, and forever changed.Dr. Edith bears her scars with courage and grace, inviting you into the darkest corners of the human soul, showing you how to light your own way out. Her journey from the death camp to her therapy couch is both heartbreaking and triumphant, and you feel every fear, every flicker of hope, as if it were your own.– Unvarnished memoir: Eger doesn’t shy away from the horrors she endured, yet never lets pain overshadow the power of choice.– Psychological insight: Each chapter distills hard-won wisdom—how to move from victimhood to agency, from bitterness to forgiveness.– Practical healing: Whether you’ve faced trauma or simply wrestle with regret, her exercises and reflections offer a tangible path forward.Moments that linger-When she describes the moment she chose to help a fellow prisoner despite her own suffering, you understand what it means to seize humanity in the face of inhumanity. And when she recounts guiding her patients to “choose to live,” you hear her gentle, unwavering voice urging you to stand up for your own life.“The Choice” doesn’t just tell a survival story, it equips you to write your own. It’s the rare book that makes you weep for what was lost, cheer for what’s possible, and believe that even in our deepest wounds, we hold the power to heal. If you read only one memoir this year, let it be this one. 5 stars—and I’ll carry its lessons with me always.
V**N
From Victim to Survivor: Choosing Your Path
OverallThis book is incredibly intriguing and delves into the psychological aspects of trauma and depression. It comprises two parts: an autobiographical account and a psychological exploration of how to cope with these challenges. It’s hard to imagine the extent of Eger’s experiences. I thoroughly enjoyed learning from her lessons and found the therapeutic practices she shares to be incredibly effective.Lessons“The Choice: Embrace the Possible” explores healing from trauma through the power of choice. Freedom comes from embracing the past, not being imprisoned by it. Secrets become trauma when truths are hidden; freedom requires dismantling that prison. We often hunger for approval, attention, affection, and the freedom to be ourselves. Survivors focus on "What now?" rather than "Why me?". The key is to ask, "What is mine to do with the life I’ve been given?".Even in extreme situations, inner ecstasy is possible. Worse than the fear of death is the feeling of powerlessness. Experiencing imprisonment, dehumanization, torture, starvation, and devastating loss did not dictate the kind of life that was possible for them. In the camps, survival was difficult and after being liberated finding hope and purpose can be even harder.One can always choose how to respond, realizing that this choice changes everything. Suppressing feelings only makes it harder to let them go; expression is the opposite of depression. Freedom means living in the present, not in a prison of "what ifs". Crises can lead to growth.A victim keeps the focus outside, blaming others. Revenge perpetuates hate, causing us to revolve, not evolve. Don't make happiness contingent on others' actions. Unhappiness often stems from taking too much or too little responsibility. Understand your own expectations versus trying to live up to others’ expectations. Act in service of your authentic self, even if it means giving up the need for approval. It's okay to help, but enabling others hinders their self-help. Instead of asking, "How can I help you?", ask, "How can I be useful to you?" to support them taking responsibility. Abdicating self-responsibility means giving up on creating meaning.Time alone doesn’t heal; it’s what you do with the time. Healing requires taking responsibility and risks, and releasing the wound. Avoid dwelling on the past with guilt and regret because we can’t control it. The biggest prison is in your mind, and the key is willingness to take absolute responsibility for your life; the willingness to risk; the willingness to release yourself from judgment, and to accept yourself.
Y**I
Inspiring book
Both my daughter and I loved this book. My daughter said it inspired her and gave her hope.
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