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I Need Help: A story of trauma, trials and triumphs
Chisara and her siblings were kidnapped from Nigeria and taken to the United States by their mentally ill mother, an act that would take a life-altering toll on her life. Arriving in the United States, she was disoriented and her childhood trauma began. Family and society stigmatized, ignored, cast her mother aside because of her mental illness, when really she needed help.
I Need Help crystalizes Chisara’s struggles with being raised by a mother with untreated mental illness, and it highlights the need for an open discussion in the Nigerian and African American communities. The book also details her first-hand experience with being raised in a chaotic environment with instability, neglect, abuse and how she struggled through trauma, with every trial and regained her sanity. It depicts how, with faith in God and help from her ancestors, she overcame the trauma, trials, and took steps to become triumphant.
This book lays bear the truth about unspoken and untreated mental illness in families and educates readers on how to seek professional mental health support. It shows how untreated mental illness in a caregiver can lead to innocent children being abused and neglected. Often leaving them grief stricken and in poverty. With simple yet conversational language, I Need Help also provides guidance on how to find mental health and psychological treatments without the stigma.
I Need Help crystalizes Chisara’s struggles with being raised by a mother with untreated mental illness, and it highlights the need for an open discussion in the Nigerian and African American communities. The book also details her first-hand experience with being raised in a chaotic environment with instability, neglect, abuse and how she struggled through trauma, with every trial and regained her sanity. It depicts how, with faith in God and help from her ancestors, she overcame the trauma, trials, and took steps to become triumphant.
This book lays bear the truth about unspoken and untreated mental illness in families and educates readers on how to seek professional mental health support. It shows how untreated mental illness in a caregiver can lead to innocent children being abused and neglected. Often leaving them grief stricken and in poverty. With simple yet conversational language, I Need Help also provides guidance on how to find mental health and psychological treatments without the stigma.
202 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 24, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 5, 2022
Inspiring and Helpful!
I connected with the story immediately. I was completely absorbed in every chapter of this book, so much so that I could not put it down until I had finished it. The author, Chisara Okehi’s story is so full of emotions and I felt every single one of them. She has gone through some emotionally difficult times and I could heavily relate to her story in more than one way. I know exactly how it feels just to pour my emotions on paper, and that’s exactly what she did. She poured her heart out into these words. You find yourself experiencing every emotion with her-as a young young girl in Nigeria straight to adulthood.
Chisara’s story pulled at my heartstrings....to say I shed a few tears is an understatement. In this book she talks about what it’s like growing up in Nigeria. She describes how fun and exciting it was to play with her siblings and cousins in the village. Unfortunately her mother kidnapped and brought her to America where she experienced a different type of lifestyle. She talks about how she was treated in America because of her skin color and Nigerian accent. I can very much relate to her experiences of colourism and racism because I grew up in Jamaica and then I migrated to America. It was very painful to read because it’s very sad to see that no matter which country you’re from, as long as you’re black with an accent you’re gonna be treated differently by the system and your classmates.
Chisara also goes on to tell her story of verbal, physical and sexual abuse and how it affected her mental health. I LOVED that she pointed out the stigma of mental illness in the black community. She gives fantastic tips on how to help you get through the trauma in life. She also provides in-depth information on how to help yourself heal using Mindful Meditation and its benefits. She goes further by discussing the effects, symptoms and treatments of PTSD.
It was an amazing journey to read as it unfolded through the challenges of Chisara and how she managed to get control of her life. My favorite quote from the book, “Trauma doesn’t define you.”
Thank you Chisara for sharing your life with the world ! You are AMAZING! I am so proud of you and the way you have conquered life thus far.
Highly Recommend!
I connected with the story immediately. I was completely absorbed in every chapter of this book, so much so that I could not put it down until I had finished it. The author, Chisara Okehi’s story is so full of emotions and I felt every single one of them. She has gone through some emotionally difficult times and I could heavily relate to her story in more than one way. I know exactly how it feels just to pour my emotions on paper, and that’s exactly what she did. She poured her heart out into these words. You find yourself experiencing every emotion with her-as a young young girl in Nigeria straight to adulthood.
Chisara’s story pulled at my heartstrings....to say I shed a few tears is an understatement. In this book she talks about what it’s like growing up in Nigeria. She describes how fun and exciting it was to play with her siblings and cousins in the village. Unfortunately her mother kidnapped and brought her to America where she experienced a different type of lifestyle. She talks about how she was treated in America because of her skin color and Nigerian accent. I can very much relate to her experiences of colourism and racism because I grew up in Jamaica and then I migrated to America. It was very painful to read because it’s very sad to see that no matter which country you’re from, as long as you’re black with an accent you’re gonna be treated differently by the system and your classmates.
Chisara also goes on to tell her story of verbal, physical and sexual abuse and how it affected her mental health. I LOVED that she pointed out the stigma of mental illness in the black community. She gives fantastic tips on how to help you get through the trauma in life. She also provides in-depth information on how to help yourself heal using Mindful Meditation and its benefits. She goes further by discussing the effects, symptoms and treatments of PTSD.
It was an amazing journey to read as it unfolded through the challenges of Chisara and how she managed to get control of her life. My favorite quote from the book, “Trauma doesn’t define you.”
Thank you Chisara for sharing your life with the world ! You are AMAZING! I am so proud of you and the way you have conquered life thus far.
Highly Recommend!
November 12, 2022
3,5⭐
I can tell how this book is important. Extremely important. I see how it can help so many people and how many, many readers unfortunately can relate to the author. I should love this book and objectively it's definitely a 5 star read, however the reason it's not is because I couldn't really get into the story. I couldn't connect with the author, I couldn't feel what she felt, I was seeing words on the pages, but I couldn't feel this connection, I should. And because I am suppose to give an honest review, I can't give more stars than this
I can tell how this book is important. Extremely important. I see how it can help so many people and how many, many readers unfortunately can relate to the author. I should love this book and objectively it's definitely a 5 star read, however the reason it's not is because I couldn't really get into the story. I couldn't connect with the author, I couldn't feel what she felt, I was seeing words on the pages, but I couldn't feel this connection, I should. And because I am suppose to give an honest review, I can't give more stars than this
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews