During the summer I like to take things a little slower, and that means curling up with a good book. My reading list is ever expanding and growing, so this list is a snapshot of some of the books I can't wait to read this summer. 

There are so many great books related to chronic illness, or better yet, wellness, that it was hard to narrow it down to ten. 

Chronic Illness Summer Reading List 2017: 

1. You Are the Universe: Discovering Your Cosmic Self and Why it Matters by Deepak Chopra, MD and Menas Kafatos, PhD

In the most recent offering from the alternative medicine guru, Deepak Chopra teams up with a physicist to explore our role in creating the universe. Understanding the science behind co-creation can be powerful to chronic illness patients who often feel powerless. Plus, the dark blue and gold cover is simply beautiful. 

2. Life is Your Best Medicine: A Woman's Guide to Health, Healing, and Wholenss at Any Age by Tieraona Low Dog, MD

​This book was recommended to me by a healer, and I can't wait to dive into it. Tieraona Low Dog has a positive message about health and healing that will benefit anyone with a chronic illness. 

3. No Mud, No Lotus: The Art of Transforming Suffering by Thich Nhat Hahn  

No mud, no lotus has been my battle cry since the beginning of my chronic illness journey. I even got a lotus tattoo to signify it, but admittedly I haven't yet read this book. The book is about how we run away from suffering, when instead we should be facing it and allowing it to transform out lives. 

4. Medical Medium: Secrets Behind Chronic and Mystery Illness and How to Finally Heal by Anthony William 

A friend of mine, April Moor, who writes the blog Happy Healin' Vegan, talked about how this book changed her life and it has been on my "to read" list ever since. 

​5. Nourish, Heal, Thrive: A Comprehensive and Holistic Approach to Living with Lyme Disease by Rika Keck 

​This book was sent to me by the author and I have been enjoying both her writing style and the incredible detail of her healing strategies. Her words are encouraging and loving, which we all need. 

6. The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You by Elaine N. Aron 

Many people with chronic illnesses are also highly sensitive people. This book provides some insight on how to cope when life is a little more intense for you than most. 

7. Carry On, Warrior: The Power of Embracing Your Messy, Beautiful Life by Glennon Doyle Melton

I just finished Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton about her marriage struggles. In it she briefly opens up about her struggle with Lyme disease. All people with chronic illness are warriors and this collection of essays touches on how to keep going when life gets you down.  

8. How to Be Sick: A Buddhist-Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers by Sylvia Boorstein 

Buddhist principles of mindfulness have guided my healing journey, so when I saw this book I knew I had to read it. The challenge of how to live well when sick is a difficult one, and I hope this book provides some thoughtful insights on the topic. 

9. The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness by Mickey Tresscott, NFP and Angie Alt, NTC, CHC

I first became acquainted with Mickey Tresscot and Angie Alt form their website about the autoimmune protocol diet. This is their most recent offering and I can't wait to dive in. 

10. Anything is Possible by Elizabeth Strout 

I read Elizabeth Strout's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Olive Kitteridge, and loved how it transformed me to a place and life completely different from my own. There are so many books about healing we sometimes forget to take a break from it all and get lost in a good novel.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think? What's on your summer reading list? 

"We read to know we're not alone." from Shadowlands by William Nicholson 

Moven-May is a writer from Scotland. She was a teenager when she was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, only to find out later it was actually Lyme disease. Morven-May has written a novel about Lyme based on her experience. She hopes to raise awareness of Lyme in a part of the world where it is rarely recognized and difficult to find treatment. Read on to learn all about Morven-May's fascinating story and where you can buy her book:

​Tell us a little about who you are and what you do: 
I'm from the Highlands of Scotland and I am the author of the novel Finding Joy. I've been ill a long time, so I'm still learning what I can do now my health is improving. There's a lot of trial and error but the discoveries make it worthwhile.

​
What is your Lyme story? How do you think you contracted Lyme and how long did it take you to get a diagnosis?  
I was a teenager when I contracted Lyme disease and had to drop out of school. I don't remember any one bite in particular, but I remember being bitten as a child. It took around four years before I was diagnosed with Lyme disease. The Doctors were adamant that I could not have Lyme disease because my blood results were negative. When the Doctors couldn't find any cause for my symptoms they decided that I must have ME/CFS. Once this diagnosis was made I was left to fend for myself—I was 18 and by this point, I was housebound and increasingly bed bound. We began hearing about people in our area who had been diagnosed with ME/CFS, and then later diagnosed with Lyme disease. My mum did a huge amount of research and found a frightening amount of correlation between my symptoms and those for Lyme disease. I was very lucky because at the time I could not have done the research needed to discover what was wrong with me. My mum managed to find a private hospital where I was diagnosed with Lyme disease and co-infections.  It was quite extraordinary getting the private blood results back, which proves I have Lyme, after being told so forcefully that I couldn't have it by the hospitals. For the past six years, I have been undergoing intensive treatment and in the past year, there has been significant improvement in my health. I hope it continues but in case it doesn't, I intend to live as much as I can.

You're about to publish your debut novel about Lyme disease this summer. Tell us about the writing process and about the book: 
I have to admit that my writing process is a bit chaotic. I seem to get my ideas at the most inconvenient times, so I tend to grab the closest thing to me and quickly write it down before I forget. I have lots of bits of paper, receipts and opened envelopes full of scribbles. Then I sit down with a big cup of tea and just write—my bits of paper often scattered around me in an unorganized mess. Since having Lyme, my concentration has been very poor but when I write the world slips away and time just disappears—I'm completely absorbed by it.

What is the one thing that you have found most helpful in treatment?
I think the thing I find most useful in the treatment and recovery stage has actually been protein shakes. When I was really unwell, I used to take one after having a shower because the exertion was so huge and I found it really helped with the physical exhaustion. Now I'm doing better, I take them after I've been for a walk. I've found that they really make a difference.
 
What do you want people to know about Lyme disease?
I really want people to know the truth about what living with Lyme is like. My book is, I hope, an honest account of a life with Lyme. The story is told from three different points of view because I felt, given the huge effect this illness has had on my family and friends, that their story needed to be told too. Although the book is about what it's like to live with Lyme, I hope to use it to raise awareness about Lyme disease.
 
If you could take away one symptom, which symptom would you take away and why? 
That’s a really difficult one...there's sadly so many to choose from.
 
What are you most grateful for in your healing journey?  
That one's easy...my family and my friends are what I am most grateful for. Writing my book has only reaffirmed to me how lucky I am to have them by my side and how truly extraordinary they are.

What changes do you still feel you need to make in order to heal?
I should probably drink less tea. 
 
Is there a person who inspires you in the Lyme community?
Bada UK was a great charity who helped a lot of people, sadly they're no longer running.
 
Please share a mantra or quote that inspires you:  
"The secret to happiness is freedom...And the secret to freedom is courage." - Thucydides

You can find Morven here:
Website – www.morven-may.co.uk
Twitter – @Morven-May
Facebook – @morvenmay

I'm always looking for new stories and perspectives on Lyme disease, healing, and wellness. If you are interested in being featured on The Lyme Interview, head on over to my Connect page.

"The whole of life is about another chance, and while we are alive, till the very end, there is always another chance." - Jeanette Winterson

Dr. Bill Rawl's book, Unlocking Lyme: Myths, Truths, & Practical Solutions for Chronic Lyme Disease, comes from an interesting perspective because Dr. Rawls himself was diagnosed with Lyme disease. I appreciated a doctor who is willing to use the term "chronic Lyme disease" in the title of his book.

Because Dr. Rawls has chronic Lyme himself, there is a strong sense of empathy for the patient in the book. I especially appreciated this description of the Lyme experience:

"Just when you think everything is turning around, you have a setback for seemingly no reason. On top of that comes the fear of slipping back into a cycle of never-ending misery. How long will this last? Will it ever get better, or will I have to live this way for the rest of my life?"

In the beginning of the book, Dr. Rawls discusses why he believes it has been so difficult for chronic Lyme patients to get recognition, funding for research, accurate testing, and better treatment:

"The status quo is the accepted norm that most everyone follows. While it isn’t always correct, it’s assumed to be correct, and most people never veer from it their entire lives. When it happens not to be correct, changing it is like swimming against a stiff current.

People typically don’t voluntarily choose to swim against the current because it’s difficult and sometimes hazardous - the choice is often made for them by life’s situations." 

For Dr. Rawls, it was being diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease. His life situation forced him to critically evaluate his practice as a conventional medicine doctor. He educated himself and learned all he could about alternative therapies, and the result is this comprehensive book.

Unlocking Lyme has good readability. It seems Dr. Rawls took into account it would be read by Lyme patients who need larger print and short paragraphs. It is complete without being overwhelming.  

One thing this book helped clarify for me was how I could've been bitten by a tick so long ago, only to have symptoms show up years later. Dr. Rawls has a very similar story. It turns out, my body was in a stalemate the borrelia microbe. Some people can remain in this state for the rest of their lives, but in my case a stress and a breakdown of my immune system caused me to become symptomatic. The microbe broke the stalemate and was beginning to win the battle.

Along these same lines, Dr. Rawls asks an interesting question: "Are people getting sicker from Borrelia today more than they were in the past?" 

He speculates that it is not an increase in tick bites or borrelia infections, but an increase in immune dysfunction is causing our simmering pots to boil over. The increase in immune dysfunction is caused by artificial foods, stress, and toxins in the environment. He calls these factors, "system disruptors." He comments, "Once chronic immune dysfunction becomes established, the misery can last a lifetime."

Dr. Rawls encourages the Lyme patient to start with a self-assessment of personal system disruptors and make the ultimate goal of increasing wellness, not eradicating disease. He gives detailed insight into how to minimize system disruptors in all areas, dedicating a chapter to each.

To treat chronic Lyme disease, Dr. Rawls recommends a holistic approach. He believes in primarily treating with herbal therapies, specifically the Buhner protocol. If this is your treatment of choice, it will be extremely helpful in determining your herbal and supplement regimen. I was grateful to learn that houttuynia herb (the herbal treatment I currently take) is recommended for Lyme and Babesia.  

I have a couple of criticisms of the book. One, Dr. Rawls states that antibiotics have a place in Lyme treatment, but that there are serious concerns about long-term antibiotic use. He recommends very restricted use of antibiotics citing lack of research. While I respect his preference for — and expertise in — herbal protocols, I think there's an opportunity for a more broad-minded perspective on the vast range of treatments for Lyme.

My second criticism is not of Dr. Rawls specifically, but about discourse on Lyme treatment in general. Dr. Rawls does not discuss cost, which is one of the most challenging aspects of supplementation and protocols for Lyme patients. Dr. Rawl's list of recommended herbals and supplements isn't excessive; however, it is significant, and wouldn't be covered by insurance. The cost of high quality supplements and herbal protocols, especially when regimens are constantly changing, is a burden on Lyme patients. I feel in a comprehensive book about Lyme, addressing ways to minimize the cost would've been a refreshing addition.   

For me, the most useful sections of this book were the thorough lists of types of medical providers, laboratory testing, and symptoms for each type of microbe. Unlocking Lyme will stay on my shelf next to my other Lyme books as a great reference, and I would recommend you check it out. 

"Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is a wonderful moment." - Thich Nhat Hanh