from beginning to end—telling your story
No one’s story is like yours. You began this journey by sharing a part of your story, and throughout this book, other women have shared parts of their story with you. From beginning to end, you have opened the chapters to your story and learned necessary skills to reclaim your life. Your story is one of a beautiful young woman who knows what it means to survive and thrive!
From the onset of this book, we had one person in mind: you. We hope this book has helped you to find your way and given you hope to conquer life’s mountains. Dealing with trauma doesn’t make you a weak person; it makes you strong. You have nothing to be ashamed of; in fact, you should be proud. You are a survivor. May you continue to build confidence and find the strength to achieve your dreams. As we bring this book to a close, we want you to know your unyielding desire to push through difficult times makes you a remarkably strong and resilient young woman. ~Raychelle and Sheela, the authors
Your story, your life, has a lot of wonderful things that await you. To quote the famous Dr. Seuss, “Oh, the places you’ll go!” As each day passes, you write more and more in your book of life. Of course, what you have experienced will always be a part of your story. While you won’t be able to take the traumatic experience out of your book, the rest of the story doesn’t have to be defined by your past.
Complete the story and fill in the spaces with information that you have learned throughout this book. Feel free to flip back to prior activities and revisit your growth throughout this process.
Once upon a time, there was a girl named (your name) who struggled with . Over time, she realized she needed to take better care of herself by . She also learned she could cope by using to help her get through life’s difficult times. In order to work through her past, she had to explore unhelpful coping skills such as that interfered rather than helped with her recovery. Also she had to explore painful emotions including to help her work through her past.
Fortunately, as time went on, she began to practice the skills to develop into a strong and courageous young woman. She learned to believe in her abilities and live in the moment. She found her voice and learned to respect herself by .
This extraordinary young woman (your name) has some wonderful dreams to fulfill including . So, watch out world for (your name). Oh, the places she will go!
In this book, more than fifteen women have written to you with personal words of inspiration. They wanted to help encourage you throughout your journey. At the beginning of the book, you wrote your own words of inspiration, but now you’re in a different chapter of life. What words of inspiration would you like to provide to end this chapter?
My personal words of inspiration:
words of inspiration
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for letting us be a part of your journey. You are an amazing young woman, and we are inspired by your courage and strength. It is our sincere wish that you will continue to grow personally and know you are a survivor! Wishing you all the best as you continue your journey. ~ Raychelle and Sheela, the authors