Highly intelligent, athletic and a gifted musician, she was destined to excel in whichever field she chose to pursue. At the age of 16, Emily was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2) and less than a month later, she was in hospital and fighting for her life. Over the coming years, NF2 would steal her education, her smile, her hearing, her ability to walk. With her life plans in ruins, Emily struggled to find meaning and identity. Good things in her life weren't good any more. Because they were no longer there. With gentle humour and heart-breaking honesty, Emily shares her story. Slowly and painfully, she discovers value in new places, seeing the rainbows in the silence.

    It started the revolution in patients working with their doctors and using humor to boost their bodies' capacity for healing. When Norman Cousins was diagnosed with a crippling and irreversible disease, he forged an unusual collaboration with his physician, and together they were able to beat the odds. The doctor's genius was in helping his patient to use his own powers: laughter, courage, and tenacity. The patient's talent was in mobilizing his body's own natural resources, proving what an effective healing tool the mind can be. This remarkable story of the triumph of the human spirit is truly inspirational reading.

    From miraculous pregnancies to dirty protests, and from violent attacks on prisoners to heartbreaking acts of self-harm, she has witnessed it all. In this memoir, Amanda reveals the stories, the patients and the cases that have shaped a career helping those most of us would rather forget.

    

    Geoffrey Kurland was a busy man. His work as a Pediatric Pulmonologist, caring for children with lung diseases such as cystic fibrosis and asthma, led to long hours on the wards at the University of California, Davis Medical Center. At the same time, he was in the midst of training for the Western States Endurance Run, a grueling 100-mile long footrace across the wilderness of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. His long training runs, the responsibilities of patient care and teaching, and relationships attempting to replace his departed girlfriend occupied most of his life. Dr. Kurland’s ordered world is suddenly turned upside-down when he is diagnosed with Hairy Cell Leukemia, a rare blood cancer with a low survival rate. His work, his running, and his friendships are altered by his struggle to survive. He finds he must undergo many of the procedures he performed on his patients, must endure surgery and chemotherapy, and must relinquish control of his life to his physicians, surgeons, and his disease. He learns first-hand what cannot be taught in medical school about the consuming power of a chronic illness and its treatment.Confronting his own mortality, Dr. Kurland is now the patient while remaining a physician and runner. With the support of his physicians at the Mayo Clinic, the University of California, and the University of Pittsburgh, he resolves to continue to live his life despite his potentially fatal disease. He discovers his personal inner strengths as well as weaknesses as he struggles to confront his illness and regain some of the control he lost to it. Along his nearly two and a half year journey, we follow Dr. Kurland as he endures surgical procedures, chemotherapy, and life-threatening complications of his illness. He emerges into remission with new inner strength and understanding of what it means to be a doctor. He also finds that he is still a runner, with the same goal, to run the 100 miles across the Sierra Mountains.REVIEWS: “Taut, dramatic, and intensely real…Very well written.” --Oliver Sacks, the best selling author of SEEING VOICES and HALLUCINATIONS"[MY OWN MEDICINE] should be required reading for every medical professional. Kurland never asks for sympathy or pity. [...] What comes through powerfully is his humanity, which his own bout with illnesses has clearly enhanced, and from which both his patients and his readers will benefit." --THE NEW YORK TIMES"While training as a pediatric pulmonologist, Kurland told a patient, 'I know how you feel'; years later, when he was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia, he discovered just how untrue this was. [...] The way in which serious illness alters one's sense of self and of life is compellingly expressed in this energetic, nervy narrative, as Kurland's illness and eventual recovery collide with a host of profound shifts—a big career move, the death of a colleague, an unravelling relationship with his girlfriend, and a deepening one with his parents." --THE NEW YORKER"MY OWN MEDICINE is rich in detail, enhanced by the author's skillful handling of the narrative...The book depicts a man who, faced with the painful reality of his own mortality, acknowledges his condition and gears himself to face the challenge." --PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE
“The story of Kurland’s battle with a disease that almost took his life is compelling and poignant. Unlike other chroniclers of illness, however, Kurland is a physician caring for critically ill children. Perhaps it is inevitable that his observations on life, death, and suffering should be so informed by his work. The result is a narrative that is both unique and deeply insightful.

    • Explains how sensitivity to foods is responsible for many chronic and misdiagnosed ailments such as migraines, sinus problems, and persistent fatigue. • Includes a step-by-step process for identifying food allergies and intolerances and reshaping your diet for better health. Many people suffer from chronic, unexplained health problems--migraine headaches, poor digestion, recurring sinus symptoms, aching muscles and joints, persistent fatigue--whose causes remain elusive, even to doctors. When conventional tests fail to provide a clear-cut diagnosis, doctors often suggest that these symptoms are due to stress or anxiety, but now Jonathan Brostoff and Linda Gamlin demonstrate that quite often food allergies and food intolerance are the true culprits in these situations. The authors provide clear explanations of the causes of, as well as the differences between, food allergies and food intolerance and offer numerous case studies on problems all too familiar to many readers. More important, they provide much-needed solutions and treatments for these problems. Along with a wealth of illustrations and charts, Food Allergies and Food Intolerance includes an invaluable step-by-step process for diagnosing food intolerance with a three-stage elimination diet and a system of gradual food reintroduction. A must for anyone who suspects a chronic condition may be linked to dietary sensitivity, Food Allergies and Food Intolerance supplies information that often results in dramatic and long-lasting improvement in people's health and in their lives.

    THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERUnlock the secret to extraordinary health by reducing high uric acid levels—the hidden risk you didn't know you had—by the author of Grain Brain and Brain Wash.What do obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, fatty liver disease, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke, neurological disorders, and premature death have in common? All can be stoked by high uric acid levels. Our most respected scientific literature is bursting with evidence that elevated uric acid levels lie at the root of many pervasive health conditions, but mainstream medicine for the most part remains unaware of this connection. This is especially alarming because a large number of Americans don’t know they are suffering from increased levels, putting them at risk for developing or exacerbating potentially life-threatening illnesses. Offering an engaging blend of science and practical advice, Drop Acid exposes the deadly truth about uric acid and teaches invaluable strategies to manage its levels, including how to:Reduce fructose and foods high in “purines” through simple dietary edits Lower uric acid levels through natural hacks like consuming tart cherries, vitamin C, quercetin, and coffeeIdentify common pharmaceuticals that threaten to increase uric acidImplement lifestyle interventions, like restorative sleep and exerciseEasily test your uric acid levels at home—a test routinely performed in your doctor’s office during regular check-ups but typically ignoredFeaturing the groundbreaking “LUV” (Lower Uric Values) diet, 35 delicious recipes, self-assessment quizzes, and a 21-day program for dropping levels, Drop Acid empowers readers with the information they need to address this hidden danger and live longer, leaner, and healthier lives.

    Dr. Atkins' New Diet Cookbook contains over 200 of the most-asked-for recipes at the Atkins Center. These meals provide every bit as much emotional satisfaction as any pre-Atkins way of eating. And as you follow the Atkins diet, you will never feel hungry. It is guaranteed to melt the pounds away quickly and provide you with the tools to stay at your ideal weight for the rest of your life. Dr. Atkins' New Diet Cookbook also provides a medical update on dieting the Atkins Way, convincing scientific and clinical data demonstrating the health benefits of low-carbohydrate eating, a complete carbohydrate gram counter, and a guide to nutritional supplements. For those who haven't read Dr. Atkins' New Diet Cookbook, there is a brief description of the Atkins diet in its four progressive stages; an effective way of breaking up and explaining what will be one continuous lifetime diet.

    Walt Larimore moved his young family to Kissimmee, Florida, to start a small-town medical practice in 1985, he had no idea he was embarking on an enterprise that would change his life in ways both large and small. But there's no telling what you'll run into as a family physician in a rural, small-town community.Perfect for anyone yearning for a simpler, slower pace of life, as well as fans of Dr. Larimore's popular Bryson City series, The Best Medicine is a tender and insightful collection of stories chronicling one young doctor's passage from inexperience to maturity as a physician, husband, father, and community member. Filled with characters colorful and crusty, warm-hearted and hot-headed, witty and winsome, these captivating stories glow with warmth, love, and humor. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll wish Dr. Larimore was your doctor.

    On a spring night in 2010, Noel Holston, a journalist, songwriter, and storyteller, went to bed with reasonably intact hearing. By dawn, it was gone, thus beginning a long process of hearing-restoration that included misdiagnoses, an obstinate health-insurance bureaucracy, failed cochlear-implant surgery, and a second surgery that finally worked. He negotiated the gauntlet with a wry sense of humor and the aid of his supportive wife, Marty. Life After Deaf details his experience with warmth, understanding, and candor. It’s the story not only of his way back to the world of the hearing, but of a great marriage that weathered serious testing. Their determination and resilience serve as a source of inspiration for all.Life After Deaf is not just for the more than forty million people in the United States alone who cope with some form of hearing loss, but is also for their wide circles of friends, family, caregivers, and audiologists. This highly readable book will be an invaluable guide and source of hope for the large number of baby boomers now handling hearing loss.

    They told her that she had the worst case they’d ever seen of a rare Scandinavian disease called celiac. At first, this diagnosis – and its requirement of total adherence to a gluten-free diet – seemed like the simple answer to a lifetime of strange symptoms including anemia, insomnia, pneumonia, mouth ulcers, missed periods, and neck pain so severe that for months preceding the diagnosis she hadn’t been able to turn her head. But even on the diet – and as glutenphobia erupted in this country, with nearly a third of Americans avoiding gluten —Abel still didn’t feel well. When doctors, nutritionists, and websites all offered contradicting information on gluten and diet, she began to panic. How would she know what to eat? In this powerful, wide-ranging and emotional story about the limits of medical knowledge, Abel discovers why she wasn’t diagnosed with celiac as a child. She considers how environmental fears and Internet anecdotes lead people to avoid gluten. And she grapples with the question that confronts us all: how to live calmly, even joyfully, in the face of uncertainty. Heather Abel worked as a reporter and news editor in Colorado and San Francisco and taught creative writing at the New School University and UMass Amherst. She lives with her family in western Massachusetts where she is finishing her first novel.

    Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFIDS) and fibromyalgia are illnesses characterized by severe long-term fatigue, achiness, "brain fog," and recurrent infections, among other symptoms. The conditions are frequently misdiagnosed and patients often receive confusing and misleading information from health practitioners.Dr. Teitelbaum, one of the country's leading experts on CFIDS and fibromyalgia, has experienced and overcome these illnesses himself. In this revised edition of his landmark book, he examines the possible causes of the disorders and provides instructions for patients on how to eliminate them, using both natural and pharmacological methods. He offers compelling evidence that these disorders can be treated effectively, and provides the latest scientific research and cutting-edge discoveries about these diseases as well as sound, compassionate advice on dealing with them. Notes. Index.

    Illnesses such as influenza, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and coronary heart disease have also been connected to a lack of this vitamin. Until not too long ago, not getting enough Vitamin D (the sunshine vitamin) was only associated with rickets, the childhood bone disease. Now, Soram Khalsa, M.D., sheds new light on the power of this long-forgotten vitamin. He reveals how to recognize signs of Vitamin D deficiency, which has reached epidemic proportions in North America, and then shares insights from his Beverly Hills medical practice, where he normalizes his own patients’ Vitamin D levels for their optimal health.

    Dr. Russell Blaylock, a board-certified neurosurgeon, combines many years of medical practice with study of thousands of research studies to create this monumental book.

    The shocking story of blinded eyes, and the medical school that allowed it.