Book Nerds tackle ‘What Happened to You’

EZULWINI – What happened to you!

The second edition of a book review by Book Nerds Eswatini tackled ‘What Happened to You’ book, authored by Oprah Winfrey and Dr Bruce Perry. The book review took place on Saturday at Mantenga Lifestyle.

The second edition of the book and mingle was headlined by Clinical Psychologist Celeste Jacobs Richard. Her co-host was Lindokuhle Mthupha.

The event took place in a totally different setting. The book review was done outside and the weather was permitting.

Attendees gathered around and sat under a white tent while the book review proceedings went on.

The two ladies led the conversation on trauma, resilience and healing by delving into the book.

The book was originally published on April 27, 2021. Dr Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey penned down this book to help people heal and overcome.

Traumatic

When breaking down the book Clinical Psychologist Celeste Jacobs said: “Oprah’s look into trauma, including how traumatic experiences affect brains throughout your lives. What they mean about the way we handle stress, and why we need to see it as both a problem with our society and our brains if we want to get through it,”

She further advised people to always speak out about their trauma and not bottle them in because they hold them back.

“Have you ever wondered why you react in a certain way to some situations? Or why you cannot kick a bad habit? Instead of asking ourselves, ‘What is wrong with me?’ we should shift the question to ‘What happened to me?’”

Trauma is difficult to address, but it can affect us for years. Experiencing abuse or neglect as a child can change how we respond to stress as an adult, for,” said Jacobs.

The attendees expressed their happiness with the second instalment of the book and mingle and were looking forward to the third one.

Nolwazi Khanyile who attended the event said she had gained a lot of insight from the book and the session as a whole.

“What we experience during childhood has a profound effect on our brain as an adult; we can learn positive regulation strategies later in life to help us deal with trauma and it is possible to overcome trauma with the right support,” she said.

One of the attendees Vuyiswa Sibiya having a chat with the host Celesete Jacobs Richard.

(INSET) Booknerds Eswatini partnered with Wine Botique and people were treated to complimentary drinks on arrival.

Celesste Jacobs co-hosted the event with Lindokuhle Mthupha.

An aerial view of the people who attended the second edition of the book review.

(Pics: Delisa Thwala) Clinical Pyschologist Celeste Jacobs Richards unpacking the book to the over 200 guests that had come for the book review at Mantenga Lifestyle on Saturday.

a section of the antandees listenning in on the book and mingle.