Mending A History of Feeling Broken!
Turning Your Trials into Triumphs by Phoenix is an unforgettable self-improvement memoir that reflects one woman’s spiritual quest and journey toward healing. As a survivor of unspeakable abuse she passes along what has helped her not only survive and thrive but triumph over all of life’s challenges.
This book chronicles not only Phoenix’s own journey towards healing from multiple forms of abuse and emotional trauma—and becoming a bodyworker—but the recovery methods that have worked for others. In no way is this book merely a personal rant against a history of surviving “personal” violence. It is written as a universal story for anyone who has confronted spiritual abuse and freed themselves from its tenacious grip.
Phoenix gives her readers not only a profoundly moving story of personal courage, survival, and the transformative power of a loving spirituality, she gives them tools (in workbook form) to work through their own doubts, fears, obstacles, memories, failures and personal horrors. The book is full of Phoenix’s wit, hope, and honest foibles as well as her fresh (alongside tried and true) ideas for change.
Bodywork features strongly throughout this work but most thoroughly near the book’s end. Phoenix’s own experience of bodywork helped her not only recall and release horrific memories of childhood abuse, it helped her uncover her calling—something she believes was God’s particular wish for her. She writes, “My belief and faith in God and my understanding of [this book’s] principles gave me the courage to persevere in my trials. I believe they will give you inspiration to tackle your challenges.”
Turning Your Trials into Triumphs offers quite a bit of spiritual language: words of hope, forgiveness, compassion and understanding of why people (and especially children) suffer. And yet not one line of her faith-filled testimony is spoken as the final “Truth” (with a capital “T”). Rather, her Christian framework is very inclusive and sensitive to diverse religious, racial, sexual and ethnic groups.
As a scholar of religion, gender and violence myself, I found Phoenix’s vision for transforming violence through various self-improvement methods and skillful therapies to be a supportive complement to cultural and social understanding of violence in modern culture. Turning Your Trials into Triumphs teaches us more about love, spirituality, trauma, truth telling, and hope than all the self-help books combined. It is one of the bravest, most honest books I’ve read in years.
Most importantly, this book is written for her readers even as much as it is spiritual journey of the heart. I applaud Phoenix’s candidness and perseverance in her steadfast pursuit of the power of healing. Phoenix’s readers will be as helped as they will be blessed by her triumphs over her own trials.
Reviewed by Jennifer Manlowe, PhD, Psychology and World Religions, author of Faith Born of Seduction: Sexual Trauma, Body Image and Religion (NYU Press, 1995).
Order this book through her website.
Order this book through her website.
I wish I had more time to read... 