Over mij | Live Your Essence

I am Hanna
van der Sande

My path led me from the theater to yoga and coaching—always with the same question: how do you stay true to yourself? How can you transform setbacks and rejection into strength, while keeping your heart open?

I've written down my personal journey in the form of stories. Think of it as a glimpse into my life, from my first night in the Netherlands to now. Chronologically, I describe how I experience life as an adoptee: sometimes very concretely in daily experiences, sometimes in what I do to cope with the harsh reality. These are stories about pain and resilience. About the question: how can I heal my trauma?

Don't get lost in your pain, know that one
day your pain will become your cure.

- Rumi -

My story

#001 Mrs Karpati

Excerpt from story no. 1: My arrival at the home in Tehran had occurred exactly a week earlier. Picked up from the home in Shiraz, where I had been taken, at about six months old, by the police on February 17, 1976. Outside, the sun was shining, and my mother's determined gaze masked her hopes and fears. She was waiting, perfectly prepared, with the brown suitcase next to the bust of Farah Diba, probably fifteen minutes early to be on time. A nurse dressed me and took me down

1 min read

I am Hanna van der Sande

Don't get lost in your pain, know that one day your pain will become your cure.

My story

#001 Mrs Karpati

I am Hanna
van der Sande

Don't get lost in your pain, know that one
day your pain will become your cure.