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Those of us who live with a chronic illness, deal with a lot of difficult emotions. I often find myself with feelings like frustration,boredom, loneliness, sadness, etc. For me, these emotions become their strongest at night, when I usually cannot sleep or go out. My biggest coping skills- going out for a walk or talking with a friend, are not options in the middle of the night. So, how can you alleviate these feelings when you are in your house by yourself? Dancing is one good way.

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From the woman famous for ‘The Princess Diaries’ comes a new series about a washed up teen idol who finds herself, for the first time in her life- a size 12. Without any career prospects and completely on her own, Heather
Wells takes a job as the assistant director of a college dorm (excuse me, residence hall,) at New York College. She thinks that she’s settling into a normal life, only to find that Fischer Hall is anything but ordinary. And when young college girls start dying mysteriously, Heather broadens her job description to include murder investigation.

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Last fall, Anne Fadiman came to my school to gave a terrific talk about her book- The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which prompted me to go out and read this book. I was not disappointed. It is the story of a young
girl, Lia Lee, with a severe form of epilepsy.

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When I go grocery shopping my favorite aisles are the natural foods section, because I love to find new foods I don't feel badly about eating, or bad after eating, as the case may be. I also look for new products that hide veggies from my finicky three year-old baby boy. Hey! They say if he won't go to the veggie, bring the veggie to him! Well, I say that too!

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There is a special kind of writing style that speaks to a woman’s spirit and makes her soul rejoice. It can be difficult to find such a book, but when found it is a real treasure. In the novel, “The Secret Life of Bees,” by Sue Monk Kidd, I found myself laughing and crying along with the characters. I felt deeply connected to the women in the novel and was sad to see my new friends go when the story came to an end. Sue Monk Kidd truly breathed life into this book, in a way that takes tremendous talent. I find myself longing for a sequel, just so I can see what my beloved characters are up to now! If you are a woman, you are almost guaranteed to love this book! The writing style is distinctly feminine and beautiful. I thought to myself, “It is about time I read something from a powerful female perspective.” For me, reading this book came as naturally as breathing.

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I am in love with this book. This book has become my daily friend, someone I turn to with each physical ache and trouble. Thanks to this book, I now have a daily yoga practice. After years of dabbling, I finally decided that my health issues called for taking a deeper look into what yoga could bring. That’s when this book crossed my path and I am deeply grateful.

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Suffering from Chronic Migraines for several years, on an everyday basis, has left me with very few options. While narcotics are not the first line of treatment, they are there as a last resort, and to some, the only resort. For many, the idea of taking a narcotic medication, either as needed or as an extended release dosage, provokes many feelings. Many people are afraid of stigmas and discrimination, sometimes even coming from ourselves.

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This book is subtitled ‘The Non-Drug Approach to the Treatment of Candida Infection’ and that gives you an idea of what it mostly contains. The first four chapters – ‘Candida albicans and common health problems’, ‘Candida and your defense systems’, ‘How Candida gets out of hand’ and ‘Candida and its consequences to your health’ – describe in depth the background to the condition of Candida overgrowth. But most of the book is taken up with the in-depth later chapters, which detail Chaitow’s non-drug approach to controlling Candida.

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Heather Van Vorous is a patient-expert in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) who has had IBS since she was a small child and who thought for years that she was the only person in the world with IBS. After a decade of not getting much help from the medical profession, she gradually learned which foods triggered her IBS and which foods soothed it, through years of trial and error. She then thoroughly researched why these foods had the physical effects they did.

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A healthy diet full of vegetables is often part of an ill person’s wellness plan. For my family, salad ranks high on the list of favorites. But the thought of washing, chopping and spinning all of that lettuce can be a daunting task for someone with chronic fatigue or arthritis.

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For most of my life, I have had long blonde hair of which I am very proud. However, arthritis and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome can make personal grooming difficult. One morning, after a shower, I was detangling my hair with a thin-handled comb, which snapped right in half when I encountered a knot.

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Recently I realized I needed something for my neck. After over 8 years of suffering with painful Fibromyalgia, the worst part always was the way my neck would freeze up in pain on me. It was time for a trip to the drugstore. I stared down the long aisle of pain relievers and began the hunt for something that might really help. As I neared the new variety of stickypatches, I considered a heating kind, but sometimes the heat is just as bad. My eyes fell on a name I remembered as a child- Tiger Balm. I looked at it, considered it carefully, and in the end it was well worth a try. It was a long time name brand, so it might be worth it. I took it home and put one on that night when I felt the familiar freezing up, pain and soon-to-result headache!

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