The Big Silence - by Karena Dawn (Hardcover)

About the Book

Wellness entrepreneur and cofounder of Tone It Up Karena Dawn opens shares her experience growing up with a paranoid schizophrenic mother and her personal mental health journey in her new memoir, The Big Silence: A Daughter's Memoir of Mental Illness and Healing. Hoping to empower others who are dealing with their own mental and emotional problems, Dawn reaches a depth of honesty, truth, power, and emotional gravity that's rarely achieved.

Book Synopsis

Quiet your mind, and the silence will help you hear your inner voice--the one that says, "Stay strong enough to forgive, to heal, and to have hope."

In her stirring, vulnerable new memoir, Karena Dawn reveals what it was like to grow up with a mother suffering from severe mental health issues, and how, during her teenage years, she desperately tried to escape her own inner demons. Addicted to pain-numbing drugs and crippled by severe depression, Karena learned how to use grief as a teacher, releasing herself from guilt and shame and finding the inner strength to go from abandonment to forgiveness, from hopelessness to healing.

Karena's bold and brave memoir shows us how staying silent about mental illness only reinforces the stigma. At the heart of her story is the eternal struggle we all share--how to move past the pain and suffering of our personal battles to experience life's joys. Through the healing power of nature, meditation, and fitness, Karena was able to forge a path to self-discovery and find peace.

Ultimately, The Big Silence reveals how a journey of self-love can lead to a renewed sense of identity and a life filled with hope and optimism.

Review Quotes

"Karena's revealing memoir demonstrates how one can truly create a new journey with a renewed sense of identity, hope, and optimism." -DEEPAK CHOPRA

"Karena's new book is about transformation. As she struggles to cope with her mother's mental illness, Karena learns it's not about being perfect, but about striving each day to learn, accept, and forgive. It's about using tools like physical movement and meditation that will improve the quality of your life. That is transformation." --JILLIAN MICHAELS, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"In honest and beautiful prose, Karena writes about confronting her struggles with bravery and courage, removing the stigma of mental illness and paving the way for others seeking empathy and acceptance."--JEWEL, musician, songwriter, and New York Times bestselling author of Never Broken

"Your book [will] reach the hearts and souls of everyone . . .[and] inspire."--DARLENE CORDERO, director of talent outreach at Chopra Global

About the Author

Karena Dawn is a wellness entrepreneur, trainer, cofounder of the Tone It Up app and New York Times bestselling author of Tone It Up: Balanced and Beautiful. Her lifelong passion for fitness, mindfulness, and spiritual empowerment have made her a leader in the wellness space. While she helps others practice self-care and find positive mental health, her own journey was anything but easy.