This volume presents case studies of emotional abuse victims who, with the help of intervention, therapy and advocacy, are moved from states of despair to the path of recovery. The entire range of innovative methods for treating emotional abuse are outlined.

Perceptions of Health and Illness Section 1: Illness perceptions: Theory and measurement 1 Illness representations: Theoretical foundations 2 Children's perceptions of health and illness 3 Are there differences in perceptions of illness across the lifespan? 4 Measurement of illness perceptions in patients with chronic somatic illnesses: A review 5 Representations of medication and treatment: Advances in theory and measurement 6 Representations of disability Section 2: Illness perceptions in prevention and health Screening 7 Cognitive representations and preventative health behaviour: A review 8 Illness representations after the human genome project: The perceived role of genes in causing illness 9 Processing risk factor information: Defensive biases in health-related judgments and memory 10 Screening for cancer: Illness perceptions and illness worry Section 3: Illness perceptions in illness and treatment 11 Illness representations and the self-management of diabetes 12 Self regulation and psycho-educational interventions for rheumatic disease 13 Illness representations and breast cancer: Coping with radiation and chemotherapy 14 The role of illness cognitions and coping in the aetiology and maintenance of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) 15 Illness representations and recovery from myocardial infarction 16 Virtual narratives: Illness representations in online support groups