Sandy BrewerI was recently introduced to Sandy Brewer through a friend in Los Angeles.  She mentioned that I needed to contact Sandy to do a podcast for she felt that her book and story about her life were nothing less than amazing.  I contacted Sandy and we spoke for awhile about her book and upbringing and I was convinced that I needed to let more people know about this amazing woman.  I received her book “Pursuit of Light” and was in awe by the strength and courage she must have had to manifest as a child growing up to cope with an amazingly horrific childhood.

In my this podcast with Sandy we discuss the trauma, triumph and the spiritual awakening necessary to live with such dysfunctional parents.  The abuse Brewer endured as a child was so horrific a reader may be forgiven for wondering why she didn’t go insane or commit suicide. Remarkably, Brewer not only overcame the handicaps of her own past but has also gone on to become an extremely effective therapist and inspirational speaker. Now, she has published a gripping and cathartic memoir that shares the profound lessons of her personal story.

Pursuit of Light has a double focus: It narrates the tragic story of Brewer’s childhood and also expounds the mature philosophical and spiritual perspective she has developed, which has allowed her to get beyond seeing herself as a victim. A reader quickly discovers the enormous gulf between what happened to her and what she has chosen to make of her life. The flashbacks into the nightmare world of her youth, in which mental, physical, and sexual abuse were the norm, are italicized and narrated in present tense, setting them off from the rest of the text and helping to lend them a startling immediacy no reader will soon forget.

As Brewer writes, “Choice impacts every area of our lives. Being a victim is a choice. Living life in the constant melodrama of a tedious soap opera…is a choice. Happiness is a choice.”

Sandy Brewer developed seminal techniques that allowed her to conquer the crippling legacy of her past. Enlightened and empowered by her journey of self-discovery, she is now committed to helping others make the same transition out of the darkness and into the light. This empowering narrative is a centerpiece of that work. Pursuit of Light provides an inspiring roadmap for how to follow the path Sandy Brewer has herself followed “through suffering to the stars.”

I thoroughly enjoyed my interview with Sandy and I highly recommend her book “Pursuit of Light-An Extraordinary Journey” I caution the readers, this book is not for the faint of heart for it depicts a a tragic upbringing, but the lessons learned and articulated in the book are so important to one’s spiritual growth.  Please visit Sandy’s website for more information about her coaching, and workshops.