Karen Duffy’s book is part memoir, part how-to guide for living with chronic pain, part lesson in philosophy and etymology, part ‘do you know this quote or cool fact?’, and part funny anecdote. I wound up loving the etymology and the information about philosophy in Karen’s book. Karen’s prescription for pain management wasn’t revolutionary. She covered a lot of the usual techniques - exercise, self care, medication, trips to the doctor and hospital, managing your symptoms, managing your friendships.

What Karen adds that was refreshing is an authority that I find lacking from even the most respected works on chronic pain. Because she’s lived it you can’t very well dismiss what she’s saying because she’s been there, done that, and has the practical examples of how she’s applied it right there in black and white. I find it much easier to hear someone who has lived what they’re describing. Karen also understands too well the isolation and uncertainty that come with chronic illness, something textbooks don’t deal with well, if at all.

Karen’s writing style is engaging and I felt like I was chatting with a friend, albeit one who couldn’t hear my responses. I initially found the lack of fluidity between chapters somewhat off-putting and the plethora of quotes distracting but I got used to both. While there were some things said in humour that I didn’t find funny, there was a lot that I related to and found really funny.

While I admire Karen’s resilience, optimism and penchant for making the best out of a truly awful situation, I equally respected that she is authentic in giving her readers a peek inside what bad days look like as well. What I got from this book above everything else was acceptance, hope and encouragement. What Karen gave me while reading is encouragement to do the best I can each day.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley (thank you so much to NetGalley and Skyhorse Publishing’s imprint Arcade Publishing for the opportunity) in exchange for honest feedback.