Women of Silence- Grace Gawler
Grace Gawler’s book Women of Silence is recommended by oncologists. It is known as the definitive breast cancer book with a proven track record since 1994, and still the only book that addresses the unspoken, in the breast cancer journey.
Women of Silence is a book ahead of it’s time. It is index in detail so that patients can read the material one section at a time, healpful when feeling overwhelmed and traumatised by diagnosis. The first edition, 1994 was a best seller for its genre and was re written, updated- including new chapters, when I was living in the UK in 2003 following groundbreaking bionic surgery that I had in Holland earlier that year.
Wearing the shoes of a patient with a life threatening condition, gave me even greater insights as to what is possible with regards to healing, how we can change, and how much we can change when deeply ensconced in life altering trauma. I learned that change is easier than we think – that effective recovery was about keeping it simple- targetted and utilising the less is more principle.
The vehicle for the information in Women of Silence is my experience of working with thousands of women going through breast cancer. Importantly the book is written by a woman for women. Long ago I recognised that the emotional side of healing and recovery from all kinds of illness, not only breast cancer was not addressed by male authors in the same way. The approach seemed to be more of a mental approach rather than an understanding of emotions. There are wiring differences, gender specific differences in the way we as women process information; particularly our emotional material.
Based on my experience I have also written a 30 page handbook A Helping Hand, for all people going through the cancer experience. This handbook is also based on the less is more principle….one page for each year I have been in practice! The handbook emphasises the important things that help us heal as human beings and can be used in conjunction – with no conflict with medical approaches. The handbook draws on my experiences with more than 12,000 people affected by cancer