Sarita Fichtner
children’s book author
My Story
navigating life with a highly sensitive nervous system
I can’t do small talk. So let’s dive right in. I suffered from severe overwhelm in my elementary school years until about nine years ago. This was very situational and hovered around structured group settings such as school, work, extracurricular activities, etc. I felt like I lost my ability to learn and focus, and only retained shame, guilt and trauma, which resulted in anxiety and depression. This was very confusing for me as many of experiences outside of these settings were filled with a rich sense of love, excitement and passion.
On numerous occasions, I would fake being sick to avoid excruciatingly physical panic in elementary school. The horror from misinterpreting field hockey instructions on game day as a teen physically lingered in me for decades. Later, for a period in my twenties, I wasn’t able to hold a regular job for longer than 24 hours.
Popcorn pops, cookies crumble, humans feel
Unfortunately all of the above led to a crumbling of self-worth. Eventually, with mom’s advice (🥰), I began working in childcare which was the beginning of a pivotal shift. For the first time I was able to use creativity, imagination and emotional intelligence in the workplace, and felt deeply rewarded for it (something I now know is very important to HSP’s and their working environment). I also didn’t feel rattled by the energies of multiple team members or having to multitask under a microscope.
I began to feel comfortable and supported by my environment. Slowly but very surely, my ceiling of self-worth began to move higher and higher as I began accomplishing more than I could have ever imagined…
Fast-forward to starting a family, I knew I had to complete the inner-work in order to show up as the best mom for my kids.
I discovered Dr. Elaine Aron’s studies on Highly Sensitive People and Dr. Joe Dispenza’s work on rewiring your brain – and my life was never the same.
Since then, I have recognized the utmost importance of living as the truest version of yourself – the gravity of emotional well-being – and the significance of leaning into those seemingly different things that make you, YOU.
As I have been telling my kids they can do anything in the world, I realized I need to lead by example. So…in 2023, my author journey began. Written in support of highly sensitive children, the first book of the series, “Pop Out Loud, First Day of School”, honours emotions and aims to serve as a deliciously fun bedtime story, as well as a starting point for dialogue on big feelings.
Click below to listen to me speak with Juliette Fiszka from the Good in Motion podcast, on designing your life as an HSP!
Check out my podcast with April Snow: author, therapist and creator of one of Instagram’s leading HSP communities, below!
FAQ
frequently asked questions
What are your cats’ names?
Ollie (tabby female, 14), Tucker (ginger male, 12), Popcorn (calico, 4 months)
What is a highly sensitive person?
The term highly sensitive person, also known as HSP, was coined in 1996, by Dr. Elaine Aron. Being highly sensitive means that you have an increased sensitivity of the nervous system, and a deeper cognitive processing of social, physical and emotional stimuli. If you are an HSP, you feel everything very deeply, whether positive or negative. While this can lead to various forms of overwhelm, in seemingly “normal” situations, it can also allow you to experience life on a richly deep level. Only about 20% of the population is highly sensitive, but I believe that it’s more than that and that people have been repressing this trait until more recently, where it has just started to become celebrated in a more positive light. It is 100% possible to build a life that supports and thrives off of a highly sensitive nervous system.
What is your favorite snack?
Yup – it’s popcorn.
Where can I buy your book?
For the best quality, hardcover copies of “Pop Out Loud, First Day of School” are available directly through my website and in select retail stores. This version is best for gifts or keepsakes.
Currently, paperback copies of both books are available worldwide through online Amazon and hardcovers are available through Indigo.ca, Barnes & Noble.com and Walmart.com
Click here to see all buying options
Reviews are a fantastic way to help shine light on the power of sensitivity and to show your support for independent authors like Sarita! If you’ve read “Pop Out Loud, First Day of School”, please feel free to leave a review on Amazon.
Do you illustrate your books yourself?
Definitely not! While I am definitely a creative, and also love doodling, my drawing skills are average, at best. I wanted this book to be a masterpiece. So I hired the most talented illustrator (who also worked as my book designer) that I could have ever imagined! Please check out Aline Monjardim, and her fabulous work here. I worked very closely with her and we talked for hours in depth about the characters and their emotions and development that goes far beyond the book.
How did you publish your books?
I decided to self publish my book so I could stay in creative control. Self publishing also has a shorter timeline than traditional publishing, which was a bonus. Anyone can self publish! The difference: you lose some creative control when you publish traditionally, and you have to market and sell yourself when you self publish. I was a little overwhelmed by the amount of freelance editors, illustrators, printers and book designers there are out there online, so I hired The Self Publishing Agency to help streamline the process for my first book. They matched me with an editor, illustrator and printer, and coached me through book marketing. For my second book, I did it all on my own with my same illustrator/book designer, using the outline from of my first publishing journey.
How long did it take you to publish your books?
I wrote the my first story over the month of June 2023, and signed with The Self Publishing Agency at the very end of the month. This book launched at the beginning of October 2024, so almost a year and a half! I wrote my second story through the end of 2024, and began the publishing process in the new year. We had one unforeseen month-long set back as well as a one month break, and my second book was complete in October 2025, with a launch date of November 30th!
Will you write more books?
Absolutely. “Pop Out Loud” will become a series of at least eleven books! I have already written the third and forth book – and am bursting to publish them – I just need to spend a little more time navigating the post-publishing process, and then will begin. I plan to continue writing children’s books until the end of time.
Do you have a background in writing?
Not technically! As a child I was always writing poems, songs and short stories. I graduated from UBC with a BA in Sociology, but I was always most drawn to courses that required essays or creative writing. I remember being curious about majoring in English until someone laughed at that idea, assuming you couldn’t do much with an English degree (and *eyeroll* back then, I listened to other people more than I followed my own gut). After university, I spent most of my time nannying where I reignited my love for children’s books. From there I dabbled in entrepreneurship and my previous job was an ecommerce start-up. One small component of it included creative writing, which easily became my favourite part of the job. I often wondered if there were any full-time creative writing jobs out there. I never saw any, so I created one myself by writing “Pop Out Loud“. I am a big believer of people becoming successful in any area their heart is invested in, regardless of work and educational experience.