From struggling Trelawny boy to UK author, Psychotherapist

According to Jamaica Observer (General News), AT age 13, Ontonio Dawson watched as friends his age moved on to high school while he remained behind, carrying the disappointment of failing the secondary school entrance examination. For years, he struggled with reading. The combination of academic challenges and bullying due to his weight took a heavy toll on his confidence. “This felt like the most embarrassing experience and for a long time I felt inferior and was affected by this,” he recalled during an interview with JIS News. More than two decades later, that struggling boy from Carterwood in southern Trelawny is a 36-year-old psychotherapist in the United Kingdom (UK), an author, tutor, guest lecturer, entrepreneur, and mental health advocate who now helps others navigate some of the difficulties he once experienced. During an interview with JIS News, Dawson reflected on the remarkable journey that took him from struggling to