Paperback available for New Zealand and Australia direct from me
So, what's this book about? LIFE.
A life that didn't go according to 'plan'. But a life that transformed me in ways I couldn't begin to imagine.
Here's the back cover summary:
We all have a Silent Warrior inside. It’s the part of you that keeps going when times get tough.
As a woman in her 20s, Paula was living a conventional life, busy creating a strong financial foundation with her husband before starting a family. However, at age 28, a fated moment sent her world into turmoil. Sneaking up silently and without warning, she soon learned that what she thought was solid and true, was in fact, not. The emotional fallout that followed became the catalyst that sent her body into premature menopause.
By 30, Paula was post-menopausal, separated from her husband, and weathering the storms of depression. How did she turn her life around? By developing her Silent Warrior.
In Silent Warrior – Transformation, Paula reveals her journey of body, mind, and spirit as she courageously navigates a life of synchronicity and life-changing experiences that influence not only her life, but the lives of others.
From her shocking diagnosis, the twisting pathways of loss and grief, to deep love and transformation, Paula’s journey will inspire you and show you that by following your heart, and developing a Silent Warrior spirit, you too can overcome life’s challenges, and watch magic unfold.
Read the beginning of chapter 1:
THE BEGINNING OF THE END
Unseen in the background, fate was quietly slipping lead into the boxing glove.
P.G. Wodehouse
New Zealand – December 2011
Dear Yogi,
I’m a firm believer in fate. In something bigger than ourselves that guides our lives to meet certain people at certain times, forging experiences to lead us to our destiny. I believe with all my heart; we were destined to meet. To become such an intricate part of each other’s being that we could perceive life no other way.
How is it, a childless 46-year-old woman from New Zealand could meet and come to love so deeply an 11-year-old boy from a small fishing village in Bali? I can’t logically explain fate or destiny, but I can explain the journey that led me to you.
When my life fell apart — newly separated, depressed, and post-menopausal at age 30, I had no inkling of the incredible voyage of discovery to come.
My diagnosis of premature ovarian failure (POF) at 29, just one year earlier, was a shock, to say the least. You may wonder what the big deal is — it’s only menopause, a natural part of a woman’s bodily changes. And yes, that’s true, but not when it happens 20 years earlier than it should. It is very much a life-changer on many levels.
Premature menopause was my catalyst. Death, growth, and transformation are the journey I took to you. Let’s begin…
The tourniquet tightened around my upper arm. I flinched slightly as the sting of the needle entered the crease of my left elbow where my most prominent vein lay. While my blood was being drawn, I wondered how many others would sit in this chair today, in a quest to solve the mysteries of their body. Three vials of dark ruby liquid later and, with a wad of cotton wool taped into the crook of my arm, I was back in reception to wait… wait… wait. Alone, and the odd one out amidst women in various stages of pregnancy scattered around the waiting room, I reached for an outdated magazine from the pile perched on the glass and chrome coffee table, thinking, ‘Damn you, Luke McAlister, I’m here because of you, while you’re at home playing happy families. You bastard, I curse the day you walked back into my life.’
Snapping to attention as my name was called, I followed the nurse down a long corridor, passing closed doors to hidden rooms on either side, until we arrived at the consulting room of the specialist gynaecologist I was there to see.
I lowered myself into the chair opposite him. The knots in my stomach tightened as my heart increased its anxious beat in my chest. I held my breath. The moment of truth had arrived.
Praise for Silent Warrior - Transformation
‘Raw, honest, authentic, and spellbinding… this truly is the heroine’s journey, as the author faces the biggest and most devastating challenge in her young life. It serves as a welcome reminder of how women diagnosed with premature menopause can navigate their lives to a place of gratitude and acceptance. How she has weaved her way through the minefields of her life to emerge transformed, should be an inspiration to both men and women alike, as courage and bravery are not bound by gender. If you need guidance and the wisdom of a bona fide, lion-hearted, warrior of the heart, then you will enjoy your emersion in this book, for it will reflect what lays within you.’
Rick Pursell – Author - Life Coach - TEDx Speaker
'Paula’s book found me on the precipice of falling into a hole of self-doubt or saying yes
to the rest of my life. It reassured me that we’re able to live life with as many chapters as we want, provided we keep choosing life and love. That our next big love, or next big life adventure is ready and waiting for us to claim it, regardless of how much life has hurt us, how old we think we are or how many times a great love has ended. I laughed, I cried, and I silently cheered her on, completely and utterly captivated by her strength, courage and heart.'
Naomi Holland - Author & Engineer
Silent Warrior - Transformation
Official Book Launch
Village Cinema, Historic Village, Tauranga 23 May 2023
Want to write your own book but don't know where to start?
After navigating her own journey, Paula can now help you. Check out her Ink & Inspiration Bali Writing Retreat in 2026
