TITLE: SOMATIC ILLNESS AND THE PATIENT'S
OTHER STORY
AUTHOR: Broom, Brian 
ISBN hb: 1 85343 379 9
ISBN pb: 1 85343 381 0 
PAGES: 280
LIST PRICE hb: £ 40.00 ($ 55.00)
LIST PRICE pb: £ 15.95 ($ 25.00)
PUB DATE: 1997


 
 
DESCRIPTION: This is an unusual book that integrates Internal Medicine and Psychotherapy. Although conceptually informed, its principal provision is an in-depth, holistic approach to those illnesses that present physical symptoms but whose underlying cause may be psychological. The book is about seeing and not seeing. Modern doctors are rigorously educated but end up seeing only what they have learned from experts. There are some things which cannot be learned and one of these is the meaning  of the patient's illness. This must be discovered by the patient and clinician working collaboratively.
There are certain disorders such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Occupational Overuse Syndrome which have commanded much recent interest and which clearly require the non-dualistic (mind/body) approach. This book provides useful ways of responding to such disorders but it will also have special application to those diseases generally accepted even by hardened biophysicians as 'functional' or those disorders for which there is no clear or efficacious response; for example, chronic headaches, irritable bowel syndrom, mouth ulcers, and back pain.
This book is about what can happen when one takes seriously the connections between the presenting physical symptoms and the patient's story. The patient's story is a woven tapestry of events, perceptions of events and responses to events, all of which have meaning for an illness. Despite the high incidence of psychological distress being made manifest in the form of bodily symptoms, there is very little knowledge and expertise regarding the recognition and management of patients. Extensively illustrated with case studies,  Dr Broom's book is an important and timely contribution to the effort to remedy this gap in our knowledge.

" I found this an extremely interesting and useful book which combined good practical advice gleaned from years of experience, with thought provoking discussion on the matter of the "I". A must for those working in the field of mind/body medicine"

Counselling News, December 1997