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IN SPECIAL DEDICATION
Rene Renick and I founded Renick & Smart Associates in 2018 to help others understand the inner experience of survivors of controlling or abusive relationships so they may effectively help them stay safe, recover from the trauma, reconnect with their sense of self and fully heal. Rene and I worked together for almost 15 years and collectively, brought nearly 50 years of experience from working with survivors and community members in the field. Rene A. Renick, my partner, mentor, best friend and the one of the most talented and passionate advocates I've known, passed away in the fall of 2019. The world lost a powerful, inspiring force. I used to joke that Rene taught me everything I know and I was going to make a bumper sticker that said, "What Would Rene Do?". But in reality, it was the women. The women I served and those who came before me. I dedicate my work to you, Rene, and the thousands of women who taught us. With the utmost respect and admiration to the survivors who courageously share their stories and pain so that we may walk a few steps in their mighty shoes and that they may be seen and heard.
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You are always with me.
About the Stages of Healing
The Stages of Healing/Recovery of the Lost Self © 1994, 2006, 2018 is a conceptual model, or roadmap of sorts, of the healing process for victims of domestic violence, and the key foundational concepts that assist organizations, helpers and survivors break the cycle of violence and help victims recover a sense of self.
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Rene Renick wrote the original Stages of Healing/Recovery of Lost Self Model in 1994 to help the healthcare community better understand the internal world of survivors so they could help and intervene more effectively. She used her learning from her clinical work with women in an outreach therapy setting to identify the common milestones victims/survivors of domestic violence experienced using their voices and language to tell the story. It is unique in that it was developed organically to capture a victim’s experience and the impact of that experience on her life.
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