In Going Within, Vanessa Albright shares her life story and how her spirit guides, past-life regression, therapy, meditation, and books on mind/body/spirit connection have helped her realize that she is “sensitive and vulnerable yet strong and resilient.”
Albright was born in 1952 with bilateral hip dysplasia. Intensive surgical intervention started early; the trauma of having a cast sawed off her body when she was 18 months old haunted her for years, ultimately helping her identify as a highly sensitive person. In her early 30s, she heard the first of her spirit guides command her “To write a book,” which gave her a sense of purpose.
Going Within delves into her relationships with her parents in detail, with multiple examples of why she feared and loved her father and felt she was a burden to her mother. Lifelong insomnia, a sense of worthlessness, and trouble bonding with an intimate partner sent her to therapy, past-life regression workshops, and books on reincarnation, spirit communication, and the mind/body connection. Her spirit guides’ communications are sprinkled throughout her memories—for example: “Your anger is immature” and “The next time you feel bad, love that part of yourself” —as guideposts to her recovery.
Albright has searched her memory for years to understand why she was so fearful and self-loathing. She seemingly puts every incident in the book and readers are left to discern essential moments of insight from mundane events. It gets easier in the book’s second half when the spirit guides appear. Their instructions, separated from the text in boldface, provide relief from the many stories about her therapy sessions.
Overall, the guides’ pithy prescriptions for being happy—“Learn how to release the past” and “Love all, and forgive all—no exceptions” —and the list of books at the end which Albright found useful will likely be more helpful and interesting for a fellow seeker than the granular details of her life.
Also available as an ebook.
