Mulalo Ntsako Mabogo (34), a resident of Vleifontein, has released her first book, titled 16 Missed Calls.
The book deals with issues such as depression and anxiety, as well as gender-based violence.
Mabogo did her primary schooling at Eltivillas and she completed her matric at Makhado Comprehensive school. She grew up in Vhembe, where the issue of mental health was not a topic often discussed and, in fact, was mostly avoided.
Mabogo said that she had struggled with anxiety problems from a young age. "It is often very difficult to talk about mental illnesses, let alone acknowledge that one's vision and judgements are influenced by the illness," she said.
Her bouts of depression almost sent her to an early grave, and the pressure of being a single mother did not help. "This book speaks of all those experiences that a young girl can face in a community that she once felt safe in, but the most precious thing that she held close was taken away by people she trusted," Mabogo said.
During her journey, she felt at times that no God existed nor any good script was written for her, because she was experiencing heartache and headaches. "Every time I thought I was picking myself up to stand again, I was crushed. I started believing that maybe good things were only for the specific few and there's no need to pray. Still, in all the experiences, I managed to pick myself up and stopped being bitter towards myself and started believing that something great can still come out of the broken vessel. I started to find hope from a broken glass, realising that its pieces can be used to cut out something only if it is used correctly," she said.
Mabogo said that, through psychological sessions and prayer, she experienced restoration from within. Through this book, she wants to encourage someone who has experienced the same fate that there is a rainbow after a storm.