A Polish Girl in Siberia: Surviving and Transcending Exile

A story of survival, remembrance, and the healing power of kindness.

A big part of my healing journey involved translating my grandmother’s memoir Syberia: Oczami Dziecka, a story of her childhood survival during Stalin’s mass deportations to Siberia during WWII.

As I dove deep into my own family’s generational trauma, it illuminated not only an overlooked part of European history, but the quiet power of human kindness —the small, life-saving gestures of strangers that enabled her survival—and how these acts echoed forward through her lifelong work helping millions of people as a renowned physician.

She became a pioneer in Polish medicine - including using her research to make widely known the Chernobyl disaster’s effects on people’s endocrinological health. She has been honored with the Order Odrodzenia Polski, Poland’s second-highest civilian state award, and two Doctor Honoris Causa titles, reflecting her resilience, brilliance, and global impact on science and humanity.

Translating her story allowed me to heal our lineage, opening my eyes to see the sacredness in what my family endured. It taught me that survival isn’t just physical. It’s spiritual. Energetic. Relational.

I wrote this book as a tribute to the invisible threads that connect us, the power of ancestral healing, and the ripple effects of even the smallest acts of love.

The book is now available for pre-order, in partnership with Disruption Books, a subsidiary of West Wing Writers. Fill out the contact form below to be notified of updates, events and ways to pre-order a copy.