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linical psychologist Dominique Manias had always planned to write a book to share her knowledge and guide readers as they navigated their “stormy weather”. As with many of us, life got in the way until in an instant she was faced with her own mortality. A vibrant 30-something mother of four sons, Dominique recalls the catalyst that got her started on her book Switch Your Light On. “After many years doing therapy with thousands of patients I began to see a common thread that formed the undercurrent of most people’s problems. This inspired me to one day write a book that would serve as a guide towards self-discovery. I kept saying I would start sometime in the future – but was so busy building my own family and working long hours there was never a gap.” At the end of 2017 Dominique found a lump in her breast and was subsequently diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer, followed by months of debilitating medical procedures. “My perspective of time changed,” she remembers. “Suddenly I realised I could no longer ‘bank on
Awakening your SOUL
TIRED OF ALWAYS MAKING THE SAME MISTAKES AND NOT BEING ABLE TO MOVE ON IN LIFE? CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST, DOMINIQUE MANIAS, SHARES HER STORY OF SELF-DISCOVERY IN HER BOOK SWITCH YOUR LIGHT ON, TO ENABLE ALL OF US TO NAVIGATE THROUGH LIFE AND GET THE EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS WE WANT, WRITES LEE CURRIE 34
tomorrow’. So I began writing Switch Your Light On so that my sons would have a light to guide them through their lives in case I wasn’t able to be there for them. However, I first needed to help myself in order to share my knowledge. As I did my research – often late into the night – I began a deep and intensive personal journey. I lived each chapter of the book during my recovery process in order to be able to share some fundamental principles.”
Stress running rampant Alarmingly, according to the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) one in six South Africans suffer from anxiety, depression or substance abuse problems and this does not include
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