Triumph

Healing the devastation of incest and other sexual child abuse is like negotiating a dark labyrinth. It seems never-ending. In this second edition of Triumph: A Journey of Healing from Incest, Trysh Ashby-Rolls shares more of her story. Readers have frequently asked: Did you ever see your mother again? What happened to your father? What of Rob? Was your sister abused? Do you still write? Are you in a new relationship? Survivors still on their own journeys or just starting out will read about the resourceful ways Trysh coped between counselling sessions and how her life gradually changed. For years people assured her there was light at the end of the tunnel. She thought it nothing more than the headlights of an oncoming train. She was wrong. The light is a life of dignity and serenity never known before.

Healing the devastation of incest is like negotiating a dark labyrinth. This second edition of Triumph, first published in 1991, covers not only the first years of healing but the years since then. Trysh Ashby-Rolls' childhood was filled with shameful secrets and the confusion of keeping up appearances. It was only after a crippling illness and rare spinal cord surgery that she remembered her father sexually abusing her as a toddler until age eleven when he used her in a child pornography ring. With the help of a treasured and knowledgeable counsellor, she gradually learned that the abuse was not her fault. Through discovering little Mary Patricia, she lovingly reparented and got to know herself. Slowly, reality set in. Her rage and grief erupted. She wrote letters of confrontation and disclosure to her parents, but quickly realized that "forgive and forget" was not an answer. She questioned the existence of God and discovered a new spirituality. As Ashby-Rolls changed, so did her relationships. The man who had unconditionally loved and supported her, until his own pain forced him into recovery, found someone else. Her son stormed off to live on the streets. She decided to move from downtown Toronto to a cabin in rural British Columbia, write a book and make a new life. Her self-esteem increased. She learned to love her body, gave up her addictions and compulsions, and successfully combated insomnia. After reporting her father to the British police, he was arrested. It became safe to remember the worst that happened to her. As she let go anger and blame, she made peace with her mother and son, and learned to live with paradox. Trysh Ashby-Rolls hopes her book will encourage others on a similar journey. Although it sometimes seems it will never end and that there is no light at the end of the tunnel, healing continues and the light is a life of dignity and serenity never known before.

Trysh Ashby-Rolls is an author and journalist who writes on challenging social issues. Although she began her career in 1981 working in television and radio, a decade later she wrote her first full-length book after undergoing emergency spinal cord surgery. That book, Triumph: A Journey of Healing from Incest, became a bestseller. It has taken her around the world reading, speaking and facilitating workshops. In 1998 she graduated M.A. with Distinction from the University of London, England, focusing on psychological trauma and recovery. Since then she has written more narrative non-fiction books and contributed to several anthologies.