We recently connected with Lorna Greyling and have shared our conversation below.
Lorna , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?
When fifty five rebels descended on Nick and violently pushed him into a car, he knew he might never survive this day. Guns were fired and screams filled the air. The threats of the rebels on Lorna’s cellphone: “Pick a coffin! We’re sending him back to you in a coffin!”
With each phone call Nick made to her, she was painfully aware of the torture and beatings inflicted on him, while the rebels desperately tried to raise the ransom through the only way, they knew how……Violence and death. “Please, help me! Help me! They are going to shoot me!”
Lorna was shattered by his desperate pleas while the negotiators continued their cat and mouse game over the ransom for her husband’s life. Fear wanted to devour them both alive as the hours turned to days.
Both Nick and Lorna recount the traumatizing details of Nick’s abduction. Lorna frantically tries to remain strong for her three daughters and her dying husband while constantly confronted with a choice. The choice to believe the harsh reality in front of her, or the written Word of God.
Kidnapped is the gut-wrenching true story of a ten-day ordeal in which Nick fought for his life and sanity from one torturous moment to the next. Lorna on the other hand, was faced with a daily battle to keep her eyes fixed on her faith in Psalm 91……. “He who dwells in the shelter of the Almighty” and “For He will command angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways”
BIO.
Lorna considers herself first and foremost a Child of God, wife and mother of three. She is a model, actress, television presenter and author. Lorna’s modeling career only started at the age of 36 when she entered Mrs South Africa in 2014. In December 2016 she won Mrs Africa (TCP) and was able to represent the continent of Africa in America, Atlanta where she was bestowed the WORLD TITLE as Mrs Transcontinental 2017.
Lorna finds joy in the small things and especially in their relationship with Jesus Christ. She has a thankful heart and always finds ways to give back to people and the community, in order to glorify God.
Lorna is a motivational speaker, tv presenter and regularly acts as Master of Ceremonies at various events. www.lornagreyling.com
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Lorna is a wife and mother of three teenage girls. Former news anchor, actress and international award-winning model. She founded and owned the biggest wellness centre and day spa in Melville, South Africa. After COVID she lost everything. She took her last money, greeted her family and flew out to the US. She brought the only thing she had left to give – her story.
In America she launched her book, KIDNAPPED, and received the Nr1 new release award from Amazon. Kidnapped is a true story of how her husband was kidnapped, tortured and held for ransom. Lorna had to listen to the kidnappers beat him with a flat side of machete, while pretending to cut off his arms and head. Her husband would be screaming and begging for his life. The rebels would shoot, and then kill the phone. The silence was deafening. During this time, Lorna learned something very valuable, and she is using her story all around the world showing audiences how to have hope in unthinkable times.
She has since featured on numerous national and international media publications, and her talk show ‘Women Power” airs in over 250 million homes world wide. Lorna regularly acts as a motivational speaker, TV guest and emcee and has a passion to bring hope and joy through her incredible real life stories.
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/lornagreylingpublic/
Website – www.lornagreyling.com
Instagram ; lornagreyling
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs2htqS9nPsslhFTIXdrBFQ
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
When life broke me down, I discovered something powerful
Statistics show more than 5 million cases of PTSD reported in the U.S daily. Post-traumatic stress disorder left untreated, can result into depression and many other mental and physical illnesses that is crippling our society and lives today.
Lorna Greyling, a motivational speaker, TV presenter, actress and international award-winning model, says that when life broke her down, she found powerful ways to overcome trauma, and the possible effects of PTSD. Lorna and her family experienced immense trauma 11 years ago when her husband, Nick, was kidnapped, tortured, and held for ransom in 2010.
“When the fifty-five rebels descended on Nick and violently pushed him into a car, he knew he might never survive this day. Guns were fired and screams filled the air.
The threats of the rebels to Lorna over the phone was: “Pick a coffin! We’re sending him back to you in a coffin!
With each phone call Nick made to her, she was painfully aware of the torture and beatings inflicted on him, while the rebels desperately tried to raise the ransom through the only way, they knew how, violence and impending death. “Please, help me! Help me! They are going to shoot me!
Lorna was shattered by his desperate pleas while the negotiators continued their cat and
mouse game over the ransom for her husband’s life. Fear wanted to devour them both alive as the hours turned to days.
Both Nick and Lorna recount the traumatizing details of Nick’s abduction. Lorna
frantically tried to remain strong for her three daughters and what she believed to be, her dying husband…..” (Read the full story in her book ‘Kidnapped’ by Lorna Greyling) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GJPFR61/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_01WRQ6MR6Q53CA4VRRZ2
Almost every person will experience some degree of trauma during their lives. For some, it could even be a seemingly small event, like a first day at elementary school or moving to a different home. For others, divorce, abuse or a loss of some kind could activate trauma in their lives. Mostly any life-changing or challenging event could be considered traumatic, and it varies from person to person how traumatized they are because of it.
If these events and traumas are not recognized and treated, the person could silently suffer from PTSD. Although able to function quite normally for many years, a stressful situation or trigger event can push someone with underlying and untreated trauma, over the edge. These are the times when seemingly good and kind people act completely out of character.
Over-reacting, abuse, suicide, severe depression and even just struggling to concentrate or sleep, could all be signs of undealt trauma and in some cases even physical health issues have been linked to trauma. During and after the Kidnapping, Lorna used powerful truths to heal her from the trauma and help her take control of her life again.
“The first truth I learned is to reflect on the event or stressful day and recognize each individual action that took place. As you go through the event step by step, start forgiving each person that caused you harm or offended you, with the help of prayer and meditation.
Forgiveness has three steps:
* Forgive: Speak the words out loud that you forgive that specific person/s or entities for what they did or said.
* Release: Picture that person/s or entities in your mind, sitting in jail. Open the doors of the cell and let them out.
* Blessing: Bless that person/s or entities with good and kind words.
It’s very important to know that forgiving someone, does not in any way justify what they said, nor does it sanction their actions. But it just releases your heart from the bitterness and anger that will root in you if you don’t.
The second thing that was crucial during my recovery is the mental decision not to fear. It sounds impossible, but strangely enough, if you don’t actively choose to have faith, your natural mind automatically turns to fear.
The fear of: “what if” is a natural reaction to any stressful situation and it is most often the fear of the circumstance, that causes the most damage. Not the actual circumstance. Holding on to fear can determine your mental health and energy levels in the long term.
For example: When I moved to America, I read about a girl being kidnapped in Florida. My youngest daughter started middle-school that week, and she had to walk to and from the bus stop every day. (Coming from South Africa, this was new for me to let my child walk alone without supervision.)
Immediately my mind went to my husband’s kidnapping and all the movies I’d ever seen about children being kidnapped. Suddenly I felt very scared. My natural mind started to think about “what if” my daughter was kidnapped. Without much effort from my side, this fear started to circle in my mind. I wasn’t trying to think about it, the bad thoughts just came naturally. As soon as I became aware of these thoughts causing fear in my heart, I deliberately started to replace these thoughts of fear (what if she gets taken) with thoughts of faith (what if she is happy and safe)
Logically, if she is happy and safe, it would be a waste of time to worry about it. If she is not safe, is there anything I could physically do to change that? If not, would it help to worry about it? No. For the next few hours I focused on good thoughts. On the possibility that the best could happen, and she could come home today, unharmed. After a day or two of this, my thought patterns were changed, and I have not been worried since about my youngest daughter’s safety.
Choosing to have faith in a good outcome won’t necessarily change the outcome of the situation, but it will most certainly change your mental state during the waiting process.
The third thing that has changed my life, is awareness. The knowledge that you CAN choose your thoughts and change them, if and when you want, is powerful. Through being aware of your thoughts, one is able to choose good thoughts during stressful times. This physically and mentally strengthens you, while choosing to hold on to fearful thoughts, wears you out and can even make you feel physically ill.
Unfortunately, this choice process is not easy nor natural. It takes great effort and mind control especially when it is a big and stressful event. Sometimes, the things we worry about are small, and we might not even realize that we are worrying about something. The key however, is in the consistency of our doing. It’s a bit like going to the gym with your mind. In the beginning it’s hard and you might even feel like giving up. But, as you keep exercising your mental muscles of hope every day, your mind will get stronger and more positive, and after a while, fear, stress, and anxiety will leave your mind and body.
Just like training at a gym every day to get a great body, you need to train your mind every day. It takes time and effort to get mentally fit and healthy.
Like a gym, if you stop training, you will slowly go back to “saggy muscles” and a negative brain. “
Lorna explained that during the time of her husband’s kidnapping, she and her husband managed to practice these mental truths of Forgiveness, the choice to have faith over fear and the constant awareness of it.
The outcome was that they were able to heal from the traumatic event without much damage to their minds or bodies. But in the years after, life hit the Greyling family again and again with tragedy and trauma. Lorna was caught up in an armed robbery in South Africa, two car-high-jackings, the loss of her husband’s job, the loss of her job as news anchor, the loss of their home, hysterectomy, and finally COVID hit, and she lost her business. Through all of it, she tried to stay positive and push through with determination and mind control, but she gradually grew tired of her mental gym sessions and slowly started to fall into depression. Then the final attack came, and it broke her. Lorna and her family were attacked in a home invasion, and all her cameras, computers and working gear a long with personal belongings was stolen and was irreplaceable. She had nothing left to create an income for her family and everything she’d ever worked for was gone. She was literally broken to her core. Mentally and physically exhausted. She gradually started to leave her thoughts to run wild. Believing in the best outcome now seemed impossible after 10 years of unthinkable stress and loss. Slowly she lost hope that good things can still happen, and the best could still be possible. 10 years was just too long to hold on. She fell out of the marathon and was too tired to get back into the race.
At rock bottom, she started to be still, pray and meditate about how to get through these unthinkable times. Remembering the truths she applied during the Kidnapping of her husband, about forgiveness, choosing faith over fear, and the awareness of it: she slowly started to practice these simple steps in everyday living.
Even though there were still many challenges, life slowly started to look more promising, and things slowly started to fall into place.
Lorna is currently in America and recently launched her new book, Kidnapped. The book was awarded number one new release by Amazon. She has appeared on numerous National and international television, radio and podcasts sharing her story of hope and leaving a legacy of turning your tests into testimonies.
By practicing these three simple steps daily, Lorna believes that mental and physical health can be improved dramatically, and no matter where you might find yourself today, you could look forward to living the best years of our life.
To book her as motivational speaker or follow her on social media, go to her website www.lornagreyling.com
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
I learned so much through other inspirational people, and it helped me through so much in my own life. I now have my own talkshow on CJC called Women Power TV to provide powerful stories that will improve viewer’s quality of life and mental health. Watch our show on CJC network every Monday evening at 8pm or follow us on YouTube to be inspired and empowered by incredible people.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs2htqS9nPsslhFTIXdrBFQ
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lornagreyling.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lornagreyling/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs2htqS9nPsslhFTIXdrBFQ