A Journey Toward Inner Balance - The Story of Silvija Josipović Beronja 

This is based on an interview with the participant, incorporating her personal reflections, memories, and experiences. Her perspective has been carefully adapted and written in the third person while preserving the authenticity of her voice as part of the In Their Element project.

Silvija Josipović Beronja approaches mental health in a somewhat unconventional way—through personal development, emotional awareness, and the search for deeper causes behind the challenges people face. Her current professional path was not something she planned in advance. Instead, it gradually developed through her own experiences, health difficulties, and a strong desire to understand herself better.

Although she graduated from the Faculty of Economics, Silvija did not pursue the traditional career path that might have been expected after completing her studies. Instead, she chose to follow her own direction—one that led her toward personal growth, exploring the connection between the body and emotions, and eventually helping other people.

One period of her life was marked by serious health difficulties that no one seemed able to explain clearly. She experienced an extreme lack of energy, lost a noticeable amount of weight, and found everyday functioning increasingly difficult. When she arrived at work, she could sometimes manage only fifteen minutes before becoming completely exhausted.

She visited several doctors and searched for an answer to what was happening within her body. Although it was obvious that she was unwell, medical examinations did not provide a clear explanation for her symptoms or a solution that would help her regain her strength and stability. The uncertainty made everything even harder because she knew that something was wrong, yet she did not know where to look for the cause.

Silvija often says that God takes care of everything when the time is right. During that difficult period, she was given an opportunity to participate in a programme at a centre created for managers, where participants could slow down, step away from everyday pressure, relax, and reconnect with a deep sense of inner peace. That experience marked the beginning of a new chapter in her life.

During the programme, she was introduced to the basic principles of traditional Chinese medicine and to a different way of understanding human health. She was particularly drawn to the idea that a person should not be viewed only through an individual symptom or organ, but as a whole being whose body, emotions, life circumstances, and inner balance are interconnected.

According to the approach Silvija encountered, health difficulties are not examined only in the area where a symptom appears. Instead, the wider picture of a person’s life is also considered. For example, when someone experiences heart-related difficulties, attention is not focused solely on the organ itself, but also on other factors that may be affecting the person’s overall condition. This perspective encouraged Silvija to ask herself what her own body was trying to communicate and why she had lost so much energy.

Over the course of approximately one year of education, self-development, and applying what she had learned, Silvija says that she gradually experienced a significant improvement in both her physical and emotional well-being. She began to understand the patterns that may have contributed to her exhaustion, anxiety, and the emotional states she associated with depression.

This experience changed not only her health, but also the direction of her entire life. What began as a personal search for answers gradually developed into a desire to share her knowledge and experience with others.

Today, Silvija helps people look beyond the surface of their difficulties and explore their possible underlying causes. When a person comes to her with anxiety, for example, the aim of her work is not simply to reduce the uncomfortable feeling. Together, they explore when the anxiety appears, what may trigger it, which emotions may be connected to it, and whether certain life experiences or behavioural patterns could be contributing to the problem.

In her work, she uses a variety of personal-development methods and tools, including energy psychology, an approach that connects psychological processes, physical reactions, and emotional experiences. She adapts her methods to each individual because she believes there is no single universal solution that works for everyone.

Silvija believes that people carry many answers within themselves, even when they are not immediately able to recognise them. Those answers may be hidden beneath fear, suppressed emotions, everyday pressure, and the expectations of others. For this reason, she aims to create a safe space in which a person can slow down, feel supported, and honestly explore what is happening within them.

Her journey shows that difficult and uncertain periods of life can sometimes become the beginning of profound personal transformation. Through her own experience of exhaustion, uncertainty, and searching for answers, Silvija found her direction—one in which she now uses her knowledge, personal experience, and approach to help others understand themselves more deeply and move toward greater inner balance.

Silvija’s message to others:

“Every problem comes into our lives to help us grow, become closer to ourselves, and discover our purpose in this life. That is why we should not run away from our problems or allow them to stop us on our journey toward personal happiness and inevitable growth.”

If you are interested in Silvija’s work, you can follow her on the social media links below.