For Grace is celebrating 2026 as the year of the comeback - and so it is with our July Story of the Month as we continue this inspiring theme. Pattie Rosario's first 15 years with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) was an endless cycle of disappointing doctor appointments leading her toward less function and eventually a wheelchair. Then she found a therapy that turned everything around - and Pattie has since been an unstoppable one-woman show who touts the redemptive power of self-advocacy, reminding us that remission is always possible.
Everyone loves a comeback story - and so it is at For Grace as we're still seeking submissions for our Share Your Story Project's 2026 theme. We all know the tales of how high-impact chronic pain can derail a life, turning it upside down and inside out. But what about those stories where someone's pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, dusted themselves off and moved on to a thriving new life? If you have a comeback story of redemption and renewal from the depths of chronic pain, link here to find out how to submit. We'd love to hear from you!
As they say, all good things must come to an end. And so it is that Team For Grace has discontinued its fight to land a Pain Awareness Month resolution in the Golden State for the 23rd year in a row. With language that touts women as under-served for pain care, sadly headwinds at the Capitol have turned against women's issues in 2026, making this change too huge a challenge to overcome. As disappointed as we are for the organization as well as the hundreds of thousands of women in pain who reside in California, we gratefully thank authoring legislators and their staffers who supported this incredible run over the years. Rest assured, we'll be asking all to call their legislator's offices in September to start the push for 2027!
Pleased to report For Grace founder Cynthia Toussaint has reached the half-way mark of her memoir that will focus on the impact of early trauma on the development of chronic illness as well as the pitfalls of family dysfunction and the powerful choice of estrangement for self-preservation. As a follow up to her 2013 Battle for Grace, Cynthia has spent years studying how trauma sets up the body for bad outcomes - and she hopes, when completed, Scapegoat: How Childhood Trauma and Family Dysfunction Nearly Took My Life and How I Survived will help women in pain identify their trauma, find release and move on to post-traumatic growth.
