Durban psychologist pens novel on tackling trauma

DURBAN based clinical psychologist and writer, Dr Rani Samuel recently released her novel, In Search of Daniel, which tells the story of young Daniel who discovers a devastating family secret on his 18th birthday.

As his life spirals out of control, he embarks on a journey of healing from the mountain slopes of Cape Town to the heart of Rwanda and the ancient cities of Israel.

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Samuel works as a psychotherapist in private practice in Durban where she treats both hospital inpatients and outpatients. Her work embraces both the psychological and spiritual aspects of healing.

She has written two other books on mental health: Living Stones and Stepping Stones to Emotional Healing. Samuel said trauma and emotional distress is common globally as lockdown, isolation, and violence impacts the community.

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“What are the roots of emotional trauma? Interestingly, our entry into the world, through the womb of our mothers, is often where our traumas begin. Everything pregnant mothers experience, the baby she is carrying also experiences – both good and bad. Studies in the scientific field of epigenetics is showing that ancestral health, the amniotic environment of the womb, the circumstances of our birth and intimate relationships with our caregivers- all have significant biopsychosocial impacts on a person and can have life-long consequences,” she said.