Bringing the lived experience to women challenged by chronic pain, For Grace leadership has released their latest Women In Pain Nation video which looks at the load of day-to-day caregiving. This campaign, moving into its third year, will continue to explore topics that are personal and authentic to women with high-impact pain - and this video is no different as Cynthia Toussaint and John Garrett share how guilt-provoking it can be when one person has to do most of the leg work. Link here to watch archive videos from Women In Pain Nation!
Book publisher Harper One asked Team For Grace is review a new book about chronic pain and we were happy to oblige. Acclaimed author Darcey Steinke's fascinating meditation on her own chronic pain experience as well as journeys into other forms of pain (mental, emotional and spiritual) is not a conventional take on the subject. Far from it as she delves deeply into the evolution of how pain has been approached and misunderstood over time, as well as its treatments. Steinke also explores the meaning of suffering and what, if any, benefits can be had from it. Far-ranging and endlessly thought provoking, providing one revelation after another,This Is the Door is a must-read for those who dance intimately with pain in its many forms.
Here's For Grace's Story of the Month as we continue featuring women in pain who've made comebacks from the pitfalls of high-impact chronic pain. All was going well for Glenna McPartland, enjoying her single life as a preschool teacher. Then her body fell apart, getting sicker and sicker until she was eventually diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. Despite being challenged by constant anxiety, depression and pain, Glenna fought back to give her life purpose by becoming an advocate for other EDS patients as well as a writer and a poet.
The full power of expressive therapy was on display as For Grace leaders Cynthia Toussaint and John Garrett read excerpts from their book, Battle for Grace, at Unitarian Universalist Church of Studio City's first annual Literary Jam. Bringing in local writers to speak about their works, Cynthia and John shared how their chronic pain journey brought them from the pits of despair to peaks of love and compassion. Cynthia's excited to be writing Part Two of her forthcoming memoir, Scapegoat, which will spotlight the connection between childhood trauma and chronic illness as well as family estrangement and elder abuse. Check back for details!
