{"id":10,"date":"2025-01-01T12:57:12","date_gmt":"2025-01-01T12:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/home-5015155794.webspace-host.com\/wordpress\/?page_id=10"},"modified":"2025-07-28T18:59:00","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T18:59:00","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/home-5015155794.webspace-host.com\/wordpress\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About Vannessa Viljoen"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I\u2019m Vannessa Viljoen \u2014 a writer, investigative journalist, creative mystic, and mother navigating transformation in public and in private. My journey lives at the crossroads of culture, care, and courage \u2014 shaped by Zimbabwean and Dutch heritage, informed by intergenerational trauma, and powered by an unwavering commitment to truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I write from the edges \u2014 of institutions, ideologies, and identities. I\u2019ve contributed to platforms like The Daily Mirror<\/em>, BBC Sounds<\/em>, Channel 4<\/em>, and West London Living<\/em>, and served as Editor-in-Chief of a trauma-informed publication amplifying voices often left unheard. My background in law sharpened my critical thinking, but it\u2019s lived experience \u2014 of honour-based abuse, neurodivergence, motherhood, disability, and spiritual deconstruction \u2014 that grounds my voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I speak not just from theory, but from what I\u2019ve lived. And I write so that others might feel seen \u2014 not for their perfection, but for their complexity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Who I Am Online: The Vigilant Butterfly<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On Instagram, I go by @thevigilantbutterfly<\/a> \u2014 a persona born not from branding, but from survival and vision.
That name is a reclamation. A reminder that vigilance is not fear \u2014 it\u2019s awareness. And that metamorphosis can still happen, even with broken wings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My IG is a living journal where I explore:<\/p>\n\n\n\n