Finding Joy with an Invisible Chronic Illness

Occasionally, I’ll be posting older reviews I’ve posted in other forums. This is one of those. I was given an advance reader copy of Finding Joy with an Invisible Chronic Illness earlier this year in exchange for this review, which was posted to the review website and the publisher’s review files. I was diagnosed with Lupus around 15 years ago, so this particular book had a personal meaning to me.

Patients with chronic illnesses often feel alone and misunderstood by everyone they encounter including their medical staff and close family or friends.  After reading Finding Joy with an Invisible Chronic Illness by Christopher Martin, I finally feel as though I have been heard and am part of a larger group.  Martin’s discussions on how any chronic illness impacts multiple facets of a patient’s life and relationships felt as thought he were writing about my experiences with an invisible chronic illness.

I am grateful that the author takes time to acknowledge patients will each have a different experience as they walk through the day-to-day life with a chronic illness.  I appreciate that this book covers how a patient can make subtle changes to improve their mental health.  Being a psychologist and patient, himself, Martin brings a unique perspective to the challenge of mental health shared by many suffering from chronic illnesses.  I have already begun using the advice on how to reframe my situation and thoughts to find more joy in life instead of the gloomy outlook that can take hold of the ill.  He allows that we need to truly feel our negative emotions but also should process and move past them rather than dwell on them long-term. 

Working with a medical professional can be a frustrating task for the chronically ill.  Martin shares tips on how to make the best use of the limited time we get with our providers to gain diagnoses, treatment plans, and medical reviews as necessary.  As a patient, this was extremely useful for me.  I have worked through the lists in this section of the book and built notes to take with me to my next appointment to help me better communicate with my provider.

I also value that the information in Finding Joy with an Invisible Chronic Illness can be helpful for those who care for patients.  When a caretaker has never suffered from a chronic illness or been exposed to the medical providers and treatments common to chronic illnesses, it can be overwhelming and frustrating for them at first, too.  Martin directs some tips to these caretakers to help them become better advocates for patients and improve their own mindset in this situation.

I give Finding Joy with an Invisible Chronic Illness a 5 out of 5 stars.  This book is wonderfully written and edited to give patients and their caregivers a resource to improve their outlook on life with their illness and become better advocates for medical diagnosis and treatment.  As a chronic illness patient, I find this book very helpful and have only a positive response to reading it.

I would recommend this book for anyone who is directly or indirectly impacted by a chronic illness.  While the advice is directed towards patients and caregivers, it would be beneficial for anyone connected to these patients to read this book to help remove the stigma that comes with an invisible chronic illness.

What I’m reading

• Current print book: Dark Angel, John Sandford
• Current audio book: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin
• Book I’m most looking forward to: China Rich Girlfriend, Kevin Kwan