If you’ve ever felt alone, different and misunderstood
If you’ve ever felt like you need a trusting friend
If you are in search of a book to carry you on a journey of laughs and a few tears . . . I wrote this book just for you
What Readers are Saying...
Before the age of 30, Pestonji survives not one, but three brushes with death. Her memoir shows how the same relentless drive that can lead to self destruction can also provide the motivation to survive in times of crisis, and ultimately lead to self acceptance. – Caroline Senne, USA
Wow! I thoroughly enjoyed reading Dina’s story which is told with tremendous vulnerability. I felt like I was part of her journey, experiencing heartache during her struggles and joy in her triumphant moments. Dina candidly articulates what many individuals feel but fear saying out loud. Her story will undoubtedly resonate with many and will be a source of strength and inspiration for all those who read it. – Sonely Bulchandani, Canada
About the Book
Growing up, Dina Pestonji was afforded all the comfort, love and affection anyone could ask for. She should have been a happy, carefree girl. But from the age of 10, she felt uncomfortably “different,” like an ugly brown duckling in a sea of perfect girls with white skin and blue eyes.
In this powerful, brutally honest memoir, Dina vividly describes the losing battle that engulfed her mind and body—one with a hateful, self-loathing and cruel inner critic.
Consumed by a misguided obsession with fitting in, being exceptional and “perfect,” she unknowingly allowed a deep self-hatred to set in over the years—a hatred that not even her acceptance at the swankiest schools nor a dream job in California could change. Only after surviving a horrific car crash and a paralyzing stroke while still in her 20s, did she begin to see herself for who she really was: strong, independent, a fighter…blessed.
Surviving Myself is the captivating, emotionally charged story of the author’s journey to self-acceptance and inner peace, narrated with the refreshing candour of a close friend. Alternately humourous, shocking and heartbreaking, it is also the story of a family’s overflowing love.