John Elliot Bradshaw was a distinguished American author, educator, motivation speaker and counselor. Bradshaw was instrumental in bringing up tabooed topics such as addiction, recovery, codependency and its remedies with the assistance of spirituality. He was a propagator of the self-help movement and is accredited with publicizing concepts such as ‘dysfunctional family’ and ‘wounded inner child’. These concepts were brought to light through his books namely ‘Bradshaw on the Family: A Revolutionary Way of Self Discovery’ and ‘Homecoming: Reclaiming and Championing Your Inner Child and Family Secrets’. Out of 6 books published by Bradshaw, 3 of them went on to become ‘New York Times’ best-sellers, which sold over 10 million copies and were published in 42 languages. He was nominated into the list of ‘The 100 Most Influential Writers On Emotional Health’ in the 20th Century. Apart from hosting numerous shows on the PBS network, Bradshaw made several appearances on popular shows such as Geraldo, Oprah, Dr. Ruth, Sally, Tom Snyder, Donahue, and many more. Here is a collection of some of the most enlightening quotes from this legendary educator, highlighting his thoughts and writings on issues pertaining to alcoholism, drug abuse, emotional and physical well being and spirituality. Read on the compilation of quotations and thoughts by John Bradshaw, the man who was often also referred as a theologian.
Since the earliest period of our life was preverbal, everything depended on emotional interaction. Without someone to reflect our emotions, we had no way of knowing who we were.
True love heals and affects spiritual growth. If we do not grow because of someone else’s love, it’s generally because it is a counterfeit form of love.
Shame is internalized when one is abandoned. Abandonment is the precise term to describe how one loses one’s authentic self and ceases to exist psychologically.
John Bradshaw
When our instinctual life is shamed, the natural core of our life is bound up. It’s like an acorn going through excruciating agony for becoming an oak, or a flower feeling ashamed for blossoming.
