Breaking the Fall

by Lisa Rosenberg Sachs

Breaking the Fall opens as Sherry Berger, a therapist on the northwest side of Chicago, contemplates how to reconcile her apparently middle class life with the life and death emergencies of her clients. Sherry has secrets of her own and she hopes that these secrets won’t impact her ability to help her clients.


As the reader meets Sherry’s clients, she’ll see Sherry’s frustration and agony. Sherry tries to help them overcome barriers to their healing that our society places before them, often unexpectedly and at crucial times in their lives. Her clients are people that we meet everyday, but whose stories are hidden from view. They often face obstacles to achieving their goals, maintaining their equilibrium, and in some cases, even surviving.


Will Sherry decide to continue to work with these challenges or will she choose another path? Will she resolve her own family issues or will her clients’ problems engulf her?

ebook

First published September 4, 2015

About the author

"Breaking the Fall" is Lisa Sachs' first published book. Lisa Sachs was born and grew up in New York but has lived most of her adult life in the Chicago area. She was a social worker there for over 25 years working with children, families, the disabled, and other people at risk. After listening to everyone's stories throughout her career, she decided to write about some of them. By doing this, she found her own voice. Her experiences as a social worker still inform her writing. It's there in her stories and blogs. She is currently working on her second book. To learn more about her, visit her blog at www.listeningtomytravels.blogspot.com.

Reviews

[Jill Dobbe · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read based somewhat on the true stories that the author and her colleagues dealt with in the social work field. Sherry, the social worker in Breaking the Fall, deals with clients who have many problems including poverty, health, abuse, etc. and along with their stories, Sherry has a life of her own with a teenage daughter that she tries to manage.

The author writes with the compassion and knowledge that only someone in the field can know and have. After working as a social worker for 20 plus years, I can only imagine what the author has seen. There are several different client stories relayed in the book and the author describes in detail how difficult it is for them to get the help they need, and in a timely fashion. While reading about the lives of people in difficult situations, it made me realize just how needy and vulnerable some people are. When children are involved it is even more heartbreaking.

I enjoyed Lisa Sach's book very much. Her writing was personable, believable, and engaging.

[Urenna Sander · Rating 3 out of 5]

Social Worker, Sherry, works at a mental health center in Chicago. Like most social workers, she is compelled to be a rescuer. She is supportive and attentive to the needs of her clients. In addition, she assists them in how to maneuver the bureaucratic system to obtain Medicaid and disability.

Happily married and the mother of two, Sherry has angst about her teenage delinquent past. Sherry understands teens can make decisions concerning friendships; however, they face more challenges. She agonizes over her teenage daughter, Francy, wanting to ‘fit in,’ and the negative effects of wrong choices.

Sherry has a full plate with family matters and her caseload. Her client cases are like a plate of hors d’oeuvres or canapés; small, light courses until you arrive at the main course, which is Wilma’s story.

As young children and adolescents, Wilma and her four sisters were assaulted by men who used power and position: a maternal uncle and their mother’s boyfriends. Their mother’s character is revealed as harsh and neglectful, lacking love, and showing disloyalty toward her daughters. She blames her daughters not her boyfriends when they are sexually abused.

Each sister has suffered from the adverse circumstances in their lives. Wilma has mentally blocked the abuse. Two of her sisters used drugs to help negate their experiences; however, one sister is now drug-free, married, and has embraced religion. The eldest sister, who works in California, seems to identify with her own gender in relationships.

Wilma is divorced and works as an administrative assistant. She arrived at Sherry’s office after being devastated over the sexual abuse of her nine-year-old son in daycare. Since then, her son has acted out in the classroom, fighting his classmates. Distraught and depressed, Wilma requested Family Medical Leave from her job.

Sherry always gives her clients homework. She suggests Wilma discuss her childhood past with her sisters.

I couldn’t connect with Sherry’s character. There was not enough depth concerning her or her family life. However, Wilma’s character and life were weighted with emotional impact.

The author mentioned that studies report childhood sexual abuse happens across all racial, ethnic, and economic strata.

The author discussed several different characters. Since the characters gave their point of view, it would have been helpful to have chapters named after Maureen, Letitia, Wilma, etc. This method is beneficial to readers.

[Debra Diggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. Sort of a series of different stories about people that need help. They all get counseling from Sherry, who is a counselor at a social services building. It makes me wonder how people in social service manage to do their jobs without becoming depressed.

[Bada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Break a leg!!