There are books you read for entertainment and then there are books that feel like oxygen. This Thing in My Head, the unflinching debut by British-Nigerian writer Jessica Aike, is one of the latter. Fierce, vulnerable, and unfiltered, this collection is less about storytelling and more about soul-searching. And it refuses to whisper.

With the kind of honesty that cracks through cultural silence, Aike writes for those who were never taught how to speak up and proves that healing begins when we finally do.

A Portrait of Pain, Power, and the Private Battles No One Sees

Split into thirty reflective chapters, This Thing in My Head is a deeply personal excavation of the unspoken. Each piece reads like a truth you almost forgot you knew: the weight of being “the strong one,” the ache of missing yourself, the confusion of outgrowing people you love.

It isn’t polished or curated. It doesn’t tidy up trauma with a bow. Jessica Aike writes from the in-between, where grief, healing, and identity collide and asks you to stay with her there. Not to fix it. Just to finally feel it.

The Courage to Be Seen Without Armor

What makes Aike’s voice stand out isn’t just her ability to tell a story, it’s her refusal to dilute it. She names what others skip over. Abuse. Culture. Faith. Loneliness. Anger. Love. These aren’t buzzwords, they’re lived realities. And instead of writing around them, she writes through them.

There is no performance here. Just quiet truths that echo long after the page is turned. Her writing doesn’t say, “Look at me.” It says, “Look within.”

A Safe Space for the Broken, the Brave, and the Becoming

Jessica Aike knows what it means to carry silence like a second skin. A survivor of bullying and a long-time advocate for abused children, she’s spent over a decade dismantling the walls built by shame and silence. In this debut, she shares what she’s learned, not as a teacher, but as someone still learning.

Readers will recognize themselves in her experiences: the childhoods no one protected, the friendships that faded with growth, the hunger for love that sometimes cost too much.

But they’ll also find something else: permission.To feel what they’ve buried. To say what they’ve feared. To choose themselves.

What Sets This Book Apart

• Written in a deeply human, conversational voice that doesn’t try to impress, just to connect

• Tackles complex topics like abuse, black identity, generational trauma, and emotional growth with honesty and clarity

• Provides reflection without preaching, and compassion without condescension

• Speaks directly to women, especially Black women and women of color, in a way that feels seen, not studied

This is not a guidebook. It’s a mirror. And Jessica Aike holds it steady.

A Voice That Can’t Be Ignored

While this may be Aike’s first full-length book, her impact isn’t new. Her work has been featured in respected publications like Afritondo, Literally Stories, The Eyes of African Women, and Fiction on the Web. Her advocacy against the mistreatment of children especially within cultural systems that mistake silence for strength has been consistent and powerful.

Whether she’s calling out emotional manipulation or unpacking how culture damages self-esteem, Aike delivers her message with both grit and grace.

Who This Book Is For

• Readers searching for clarity after years of internal confusion

• Women unlearning the idea that love must be earned through suffering

• Those navigating boundaries, identity, and the pain of letting go

• Anyone craving a book that speaks to the real, messy, and miraculous process of healing

From Survival to Self-respect

More than anything, This Thing in My Head is about remembering that you are allowed to protect your peace. That you can be kind and still have boundaries. That survival doesn’t have to be the only story you know.

Jessica writes: “May you learn that self-respect is a powerhouse. It triggers growth and tells you to give to yourself first the love you so readily give to others.”

This is the kind of wisdom that doesn’t shout. It sits with you. And it changes you.

About the Author

Jessica Aike is a British-Nigerian writer, speaker, and mental health advocate. Born in Lagos and raised in London, she has used her platform for over eleven years to create safe spaces for hard conversations especially around abuse, silence, and emotional survival. She believes deeply in the power of introspection, emotional literacy, and rewriting the narratives we’ve been handed.

Her debut book, This Thing in My Head, is both a personal offering and a communal lifeline.

Availability

This Thing in My Head is available now through Amazon and other major online booksellers.

Media Contact
Company Name: The Empire Publishers UK
Contact Person: Jessica Aike
Email: Send Email
Country: United Kingdom
Website: https://www.theempirepublishers.co.uk/