I loved this book. I work in the medical industry, so this was a wonderful reminder that there is so much to do when it comes to disease management (specifically chronic illnesses), and to read this message come from a doctor made it all the more powerful. I loved the message that we know our bodies best, and functional, individualized medicine is the direction we need to be heading. Wonderful, incredibly thought-provoking read. ( )

Summary: When a physician trained in internal medicine experiences a debilitating autoimmune illness that the medical establishment couldn't heal, she pursues a journey addressing both body and mind that allow her body to heal.

Cynthia Li was proud of her training in medicine. After surviving a tragic loss, she marries David and begins a family. And with the birth of her first child her own health begins to unravel because of an autoimmune illness beginning with her thyroid, an illness where her immune system attacked her body--a racing heart, sleeplessness, loss of energy and a host of other symptoms that left her unable to get off the couch. She had become the "difficult patient." There seemed to be neither cause nor remedy that doctors who shared her training could find. She struggled through a second pregnancy, with tensions in the marriage growing.

The book traces her journey toward healing that began with asking a new question, "how to get off the couch?" She began with her sleeplessness by addressing her daily rhythms and sleep rituals. She gives herself permission to receive and become part of a community of support. She discovers the importance of daily doses of nature. She recognizes that toxins in her home and her body can contribute to inflammatory responses and takes steps to detoxify. She learns to pay attention to intuition for what to work on next. She discovers the connection between mental states and gene expression and learns the importance of moving from flight or fight stress to "rest and digest" states that heal rather than inflame tissue.

Perhaps one of the most interesting chapters was the one on learning to inhabit your body. She recognizes how we are often disconnected and out of touch with our own bodies. She found a great deal of help through meditative techniques, qiqong practice, and acupuncture to harness and release the power of qi. She mentions in passing weird occurrences in her home as she was engaged in these practices, and this raised a red flag for me. As a Christian, I believe in a God in whom we "live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28) and in whose presence and power we are strengthened both spiritually and bodily. I also believe there are influences not of God that may be malign. I think there is a larger conversation to be had about mind-body meditative practices than can be had in this review, and the need for spiritual discernment in their practice. None of this is to question the experience of Dr. Li, nor the importance of reconnecting mind and body.

She also discovered what many are discovering--that our gut health, the biological mix of organisms in our intestinal tract--can be out of whack. She practiced and proposed a 30 day reset diet and ongoing dietary practices to address this. She found the importance of breaking old habits that no longer serve one well. It has often been said that "laughter is the best medicine" and she discovered how important play and laughter are in improving our immune function. She started investigating hidden root causes behind chronic conditions, especially food allergies and stealth infections like the Epstein-Barr virus. Having experienced loss, she learned how to "bring grief out of the shadows." Finally, she learned that in coming out of chronic illness, it was important to reclaim one's purpose and find and tell one's story.

She summarizes this journey in fifteen steps of "how to get off the couch." After the narrative, she includes a section with practical advice and websites for following the fifteen steps, practices she has now integrated into her own medical practice.

This work is a gentle but powerful critique of Western medical practice. She notes the pressure of fifteen minute patient visits, the shortcuts taken in listening to patient histories that may ignore childhood traumas and family histories that may be at the root of health problems, the over-reliance on lab panels that can come back normal even when there are real problems. She observes the neglect of the factors learned in medical school that contribute over time to disease and our definitions of "health," our neglect of the connections between mind and body, and the importance of seeing patients as whole people, and the importance of what our bodies are exposed to and what we put in them.

More importantly, Cynthia Li articulates a whole-life approach to health, nearly all of which happens outside doctors offices. It addresses how we eat, sleep, work, and play, and the environments within which we live, and our relationships with other human beings. Her book reminds us that before what we do, we are human be-ings. She explores how we "be" healthy, something no doctor may do for us, but can only do with us.

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Disclaimer: This review, like the book, is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice, which if needed, should be sought from a trained professional.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. The opinions I have expressed are my own. ( )

Wow! Did a physician just realize that prescribing multiple tests including drinking some radioactive juice, and taking god knows what prescriptions isn't the best way to treat disease? I enjoyed this immensely as I have loved ones suffering from other autoimmune disease and they also do not take the traditional medicine route. I am so sorry Dr. Li struggled for so long before realizing that every body , literally heals different and with different treatment not always what the good doc in the white coat tells you to do. My favorite part were the 5 causes of disease and the 7 ingredients to optimal health. This should be what I read on the posters in the Dr.s office. ( )

Part memoir and part informative advice for others dealing with autoimmune issues, this was a compelling and frightening book to read. After all, the author is an internal medicine physician so if she struggled to figure out the cause(s) of her debilitating symptoms, then imagine how difficult it is for people without a medical background. I feel this book (and other similar memoirs) should be mandatory reading for physicians, both those currently attending medical school and those who have been practicing for many years.

I don't want to say too much about Dr. Li's personal journey, as that is best left for the reader to discover. I do hold the opinion that medical professionals who have gone through a major illness often end up being more empathetic doctors and am glad Dr. Li was eventually able to continue on with her work in health care. In contrast to some patients with autoimmune related symptoms, it was fortuitous that one of her lab tests finally offered some answers to help point her in the right direction toward some sense of normalcy. Although I have read similar recommendations in other books, I especially appreciated the "How to Heal" section filled with specific ideas to help restore the mind, body and spirit.

Thank you to the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program, Reveal Press and the author, Cynthia Li, MD, for providing me with a free copy of this book to review. ( )

Not a bad read. The author does a good job of telling her personal story and had some interesting and sometimes even funny personal experiences to share. It’s a book I would recommend to those who want to understand a little bit more about medical education training and how the current medical field may not be seeing the full picture when it comes to understanding disease and treating it. The subtitle is a bit misleading although the author does find and use unconventional and alternative methods to treat her autoimmune illness such as acupuncture, they only help improve her current situation and do not cure her. Nonetheless they work better for her than conventional drugs. I appreciate the author’s raw honesty about everything including some of the struggles she experienced in her marriage. Overall, it was a good read. ( )