Book Nook: Write for Life - Communicating Your Way Through Cancer and Chronic Disease

Write for Life: Communicating Your Way Through Cancer and Chronic Disease is an interactive, easy-to-read, and stimulating workbook, a companion to the Write for Life communication workshops, and it's now available to everyone. Write for Life offers a platform for patients, caregivers, survivors and medical professionals to freely express themselves and learn from the stories of others.

I had a chance to interview author David Tabatsky to learn more.

Why did you decide to create this workbook?

I was teaching writing and communication workshops in cancer centers around the country, in places such as MD Anderson (Houston), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston), Rush U. Cancer Center (Chicago), Winship Cancer Institute at Emory U. (Atlanta), Abramson Cancer Center at U. of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia), Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Seattle), Duke Cancer Institute (NC), Clearview Cancer Institute (AL), and U. of California Cancer Center (San Francisco), as well as for organizations, such as The American Cancer Society, The American Medical Students Association, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Lungevity, and Gilda’s Club. The workbook was initially designed and created for those people (patients, caregivers, medical staff) who, for one reason or another, could not attend but were keenly interested to be in the loop. The response was quite [positive so I decided to go ahead with the publication of the book for the general public.

How can writing be so instrumental in the mental, emotional, and spiritual health of people with cancer and chronic illnesses?

Anyone with a disease or chronic condition is vulnerable, and they need an expanded toolkit to meet the challenges they face. Creative writing, role playing, and humor, plus practical problem solving through improved organizational skills, and useful strategies for better communication with doctors, nurses, and loved ones, are all useful tools. Twenty years of research indicates that expressive writing––dealing with one’s deepest thoughts and feelings––may contribute to improved physical and emotional health. For example, a study in The Oncologist found that chemotherapy patients who participated in a single 20-minute writing session improved their outlook on cancer and their overall life quality. 

How can it help facilitate doctor-parent communication?

Unfortunately, most traditional care focuses on physical treatment while ignoring people’s emotional, psychological, and spiritual needs. When patients, with the assistance of their caregivers and/or loved ones, plearn to prepare for their visits by writing down their questions and concerns, this is key to better communication and improved outcomes. It sounds simple, but I'm continually amazed by how many people never thought of writing down their questions before their appointment. This one but of preparation can make a world of difference!

David Tabatsky received his BA in Communications and an MA in Theatre Education, both from Adelphi University. He is the coauthor of Rx for Hope: A Cancer Care Model to Optimize the Immune System (with Nick Chen, MD), Reimagining Women's Cancers: The Celebrity Diagnosis Guide to Personalized Treatment and Prevention (with Dr. Mark Boguski and Dr. Michele Berman), among many others. Tabatsky lives in New York City.

For more information, please visit www.tabatsky.com and www.writeforlife.info.