Maha Rahmeh
Born in Syria and briefly raised in Istanbul, Maha Rahmeh moved to Sweden with her parents at a very young age in search of a better life.
The transition was not immediately seamless, as Maha struggled to read and write for a long time.
Discouraged by her learning difficulties, she convinced herself for several years that she did not have what it took to become a writer.
By listening and observing the world around her, Maha gradually discovered that this was not true. Everyone has a story to tell, and her, Maha-A song of abandonment, was first written in three weeks after 30 years of silence.
Maha, who is a proud mother of two daughters and a survivor of domestic abuse, trauma and chronic depression, now writes every day and is no longer afraid to share her stories on stage with the world. She considers her readers her best friends, and nothing makes her happier than knowing that she helped them build a better life for themselves.
The Author Talks To UK Talk Radio
"My story is an inspiration and a tribute to the courage and resilience of women all over the world. I am your sister, your mother, your daughter, your best friend. I am every woman who has walked this earth and carved a path for herself."
The first book I remember as an audio book is "The Brothers Lionheart" by Astrid Lindgren. I suffered both from concentration, reading & writing difficulties. I dreamed of reading and writing books as a child. Never thought it was possible for me. And today I have my book MAHA in two languages and the third is almost ready.
When did you first start writing?
I have always written and discarded my lyrics as soon as I found an error. No one had ever told me how the writing process works. I had a very bad self-esteem for 30 years. I am constantly working on to improve myself. I'm glad I got tired of throwing texts and started collecting my notebooks even though I only wrote a few pages in them. 2016 after I left the sheltered accommodation I had the opportunity to write. I wrote for 3 weeks in a row, which resulted in MAHA- A song of abandonment.
We are promoting your book, tell us about it?
I never liked my name as a child, so I took the opportunity to honor the little child in me who stood by my side for better or worse by naming the book title "MAHA" as my name. It’s my way of showing love and acceptance of the power that has been ingrained in me all these years. The subtitle represents the beautiful melody that despite the abandonment was played inside my heart.
In the book, I put a lot of focus on childhood trauma. An untreated trauma can lead to a miserable life for the victim. When I realized that, I was already stuck in a destructive relationship, together with my two children, for over 10 years. You get to follow my journey through darkness.
What do you want people to get from your book?
What I want to convey with "MAHA" is that with a better understanding of your trauma, you can begin to forgive yourself and others around you and later on, you will start to fall in love with yourself and life in general. With everything that comes your way, bad or good, you will look at it differently. I encourage people to allow themselves to go through these steps that result in reconciliation, success, and freedom for them. We can only influence our future.
Who is your favourite writer and why do you like them?
I listen to all kinds of speakers who inspire me to learn more and read their book. Like Les Brown is a man who I love deeply. Lisa Nichols is a woman I look up to. I transformed my life with help of their teachings. I spent many audio-hours on Christer Olsson who is one of Sweden's best authors and coach. My mentor and coach, Jonathan Ljungqvist is the man who help me to, push myself further out of my comfort zone in 2022. I show them all huge respect and lots of love. I have my readers who make me even take the extra step to grow because of the daily feedback I get from them. So grateful for them taking time to read my story.
