For many years I have been studying the phenomenological approach to chronic illness and this book is an excellent addition to my book collection. As patients we are assessed, diagnosed, treated and discharged by our health service, hopefully in our pre-admission state. However, there are drawbacks to this medical model, the first one being that some people cannot be fixed, The second drawback is that while focused on the medical, we forget the psychological trauma of illness or accident, what pain does to the brain and the potential for psychiatric issues such as PTSD. What doctors need to understand is a patient’s ‘lived experience’ of that illness and be willing to bridge the gap that exists in their communication.

I would recommend thisbook highly to anyone dealing with illness and it should be required reading for all junior doctors and GPS. Even though it was originally written in the 1980s the lessons are applicable today because that gap still exists. Excellent.

As someone who worked in public health and has a chronic illness, I really enjoyed the insights this author shared.

This is a wonderful book. I've had a chronic illness for several decades and in that amount of time, I've read quite a few books on the subject and this was one of the best.