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Poetry That Helps Women Return to Themselves with Clarity, Courage, and Calm Certainty.
Through honest, unflinching poetry, Layla Schock offers language for what you’ve lived, permission to set boundaries, and the steady confidence to choose yourself without apology.
Layla's writings help women who have lived through emotional upheaval and quiet endurance find clarity, self-trust, and closure—without minimizing their pain, rushing their healing, or abandoning themselves to keep the peace, without minimizing their pain or pretending healing has to be neat, fast, or quiet.
Through poetry rooted in truth, tenderness, and hard-won wisdom, these books offer language for what you’ve lived, permission to set boundaries, and the courage to walk forward with calm certainty.
These words are for anyone learning how to let go of what hurt, trust themselves again, and walk forward with quiet strength.
You don’t need closure from anyone else.
You become it.
Start Your Journey
The I Thought It Was trilogy traces a woman’s journey from survival to self-trust. Beginning with I Thought It Was Normal, Layla gives language to the pain we learn to tolerate and the quiet moment when awareness begins.
I Thought It Was Healing moves through the messy, nonlinear work of rebuilding—where growth hurts, joy feels unfamiliar, and truth demands honesty.
The journey concludes with I Thought It Was Closure, a book rooted in clarity and self-reclamation, where the reader no longer seeks permission to move forward but chooses herself with calm certainty.
Together, these books offer a deeply human roadmap for anyone learning how to stop surviving their story and return to themselves.
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I Thought It Was Normal
This is the beginning—the moment you realize the pain you’ve been carrying was never meant to be endured. Through raw, intimate poetry, Layla Schock gives voice to the wounds we learn to normalize and the quiet strength it takes to name them. A powerful first step for anyone beginning to see their story clearly.
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I Thought It Was Healing
Healing isn’t neat, gentle, or linear—and this book tells the truth about that. These poems explore the messy middle, where growth hurts, joy feels unfamiliar, and becoming yourself requires letting go of who you once were. A companion for readers learning to rebuild with honesty and courage.
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I Thought It Was Closure
Closure isn’t an ending—it’s a return. In this final book of the trilogy, Layla Schock writes from clarity, self-trust, and the quiet confidence that comes after the storm has passed. These poems are for anyone ready to choose themselves, walk forward without apology, and live from truth instead of survival.
What Readers Are Saying...
From the first page, there was a calmness in the writing that settled something in me. The way she tells her story is gentle but powerful, and I found myself slowing down as I read, almost like the book was teaching me how to breathe again. So much of what she shared resonated with me. There were moments where I felt seen, moments where I felt understood, and moments where I simply felt soothed. Her poetic words have a way of reaching into the quieter parts of life, the parts most of us don’t talk about out loud, and giving them space and tenderness. What makes this book so beautiful is not just the story itself but the feeling it leaves behind. It’s honest. It’s comforting. It’s real. I loved every page. It’s the kind of book you carry with you long after you finish it.
Read these books if you have ever experienced pain grief, unbridled joy. Schock addresses the full gamut of emotions with tenderness and profound insight. Her reflections on motherhood evoke powerful emotions. She puts to paper an ark of motherhood. It’s what I’ve always thought and felt, but could never express as beautifully and gently as Layla Schock does. If you like Anne Lamont, Maggie Smith, Rupi Kauer, you’ve just struck gold by finding this book!
A heartfelt story of a woman’s experience in life! Very profound, and the poetry flows over the pages. It is full of laughter and tears and the author writes from her heart and soul. Definitely a five star!
Reading these books have taken me to the core of my heart… where I’m sitting…smiling & being held. Soooo beautiful and powerful Bravo Layla Schock!
Beautifully written with wonderful insight into life’s ups and downs!! Truly inspiring!! Loved it! 😍
This author writes poems that speak to my heart!
Engaging from beginning to end! Touched my heart, brought tears to my eyes and gave affirmation to my grieving process. The author is brave and bold and her heart is as beautiful as her words. A must-read for all women as they navigate the trials and tribulations, as well as the blessings of life!
In her books of poetry, Layla Schock plumbs the depths of emotion few of us can express in words. From the subtle childhood memories that brought us a joy we felt but could not express—to the heartbreak of doubt and betrayal we come to know in later life—this first-time author connects us to ourselves in a profound way. Schock writes in a refreshingly straightforward way that will attract even the most cynical reader. This poignant read will be a favorite addition to your library.
About
Layla Schock
Layla Schock is a poet, author, and source of encouragement to women navigating healing, clarity, and self-trust—especially those learning how to let go and choose themselves without apology.
Layla Schock writes the kind of poetry born from lived experience—the quiet ache you carry for years, the truths you finally name, and the healing you never expected to earn. What began as her private outlet for navigating heartbreak, identity, and the unseen weight of survival slowly became a trilogy of books that trace a woman’s journey back to herself.
Writing has always been Layla’s way of sorting what hurts from what helps, what stays from what ends. Through each poem, she offers readers the same refuge she created for herself: a place where honesty is allowed, tenderness is strength, and becoming whole is not a finish line but a return.
She hopes these books remind you that your story is still unfolding, that your voice matters, and that the path back to yourself—no matter how winding—is always worth taking.
If her words do anything, let them do this: help you feel less alone in the places you rarely speak about.
Layla Schock is a poet, author, and source of encouragement to women seeking healing, boundaries, and the courage to walk forward with clarity and self-respect.
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