Cancer patients today are writing for their health. They are among the hundreds of thousands — from poets and monks to homemakers and politicians — who practice journal writing to find equilibrium in times of stress, clarity in moments of decision, and optimum physical well-being. Cancer patients know that successful treatment depends upon a strengthened immune system. Researchers like James W. Pennebaker, Ph. D., author of Opening Up, The Healing Power of Expressing Emotions (1997), have confirmed that people who write about their upsetting experiences show improvement in immune system functioning.

When author Chia Martin was diagnosed with cancer in April 1998, she turned to her own longstanding practice of journal writing as a lifeline — to deal with her questions, to cope with a roller-coaster of emotions and to future explore the journey of her soul. This book contains Chia’s practical, comforting, and non-sentimental reflections about her own writing process, and guidance in how to apply tried and true methods of journaling — including poetry, dialoging and letter-writing — to the particular challenges faced by the cancer patient.

Non-writers will love this book as much as seasoned journal keepers.