Books For Disabled Women, General
With the Power of Each Breath: A Disabled Women's Anthology
Susan Brown, Debra Conners, and Nancy Stern, eds; Cleis Press, $10.95
Essays"One Resilient Baby", by Cheryl Green in Listen Up: Voices from the Next Feminist Generation: New Expanded Edition (it's not in the first edition; this is the black and red cover, not the pink cover), Barbara Findlen, ed, Seal Press, 2001
Disabled Women's Awareness Network of Canada produces several excellent books for women with disabilities, including a manual on starting support/advocacy groups for women with disabilities. Some of these books are listed on this page. You might find more information on the website of DAWN Ontario. (sorry i don't have the other DAWN group website links to add here yet)
Meeting Our Needs: An Access Manual For Transitional Houses, Shirley Masuda and Jillian Ridington, DisAbled Women's Network (DAWN) - Canada, 1992. Also available on tape. To Order, Book: $20, Tape: $10 Plus Postage. Contact: DAWN Canada #203 - 658 Danforth Ave., Toronto, Ontario, M4J 1L1. Phone: 1-416-406-1080; Fax: 416-406-1082. TDD (TTY): 416-406-1081
(This is an excellent book for any service providers at programs for women who have been abused, or sexually assaulted, or are homeless, as well as the typical transitional housing programs in the United States, or people who use such programs, particularly since I have never seen a book anything like this in the U.S. Applies to women with psychiatric disabilities as well as women with physical disabilities. Has some very empowering words. Highly Recommended- jen)
Violent Acts Against Disabled Women, Joanee Doucette, DAWN, Toronto, 1986
Who do We Think We Are: Self Image and Women with Disabilities, DAWN Canada, Vancouver, 1989
Sexuality and Physical Disability: Personal Perspectives, Ryerson, E; C.V. Mosby, 1981
A Guide to Pregnancy and Birth for Women with Disabilities; Judith Rogers and Molleen Matsumura, 1991
Restricted Access: Lesbians on Disability, Victoria Brownsworth & Susan Raffo, eds, 1999
The Sexual Politics of Disability, Tom Shakespeare, Kath Gillespie-Sells and Dominic Davies (eds), 1996
Bigger Than the Sky: Disabled Women on Parenting, Michael Wates and Rowen Jade, 1999
Nolo's Guide to Social Security Disability: Getting and Keeping Your Benefits, Morton, DA and Sherman, S, eds, Nolo, 2001
Social Security Benefits: How to Get Them! How to Keep Them!, Ross, JW, 1984
Ilness as Metaphor; Susan Sontag, Vintage Books, 1979
Illness as Metaphor and AIDS and its Metaphors, Susan Sontag
100 Years of Medical Advice to Women Barbara Ehrenreich
Our Bodies, Our Selves The Boston Women's Health Collective, Simon and Schuster, 1984 plus many later editions
Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom
The Medicare Answer Book; Geri Harrington, Harper & Row, 1982
The People's Hospital Handbook; Ronald Gots and Arthur Kaufman, Avon Press, 1978
Autobiography of a Face, Lucy Greely
Chronic Illnesses: General:
Write Now: Maintaining a Creative Spirit While Homebound and Ill, Dion, S., Puffin Foundation, 1993, Orders: S. Dion 432 Ives Ave., Carneys Point, NJ 08069
What to Tell Your Child About Birth, Death, Illness, Divorce, and Other Family Crises; Helen Arnstein, Merrill Company, 1974
Sick and Tired of Feeling Sick and Tired: Living with Invisible Chronic Illness, Donoghue, PJ, and Siegel, ME; Norton, 200
500 Tips for Coping with Chronic Illness, Jacobs, Phd; Reed, 1995
Successful Living with Chronic Illness, Lewis, KS; Avery, 1985
We Are Not Alone: Learning to Live With Chronic Illness, Pitzele, SK; Workman, 1985
Living With Chronic Illness: Days of Patience and Passion, Register, C; Bantam, 1987
Living Well With a Hidden DIsability: Transcending Doubt and Shame and Reclaiming Your Life, Taylor, S and Epstein, R; New Harbinger, 1999
A Delicate Balance: Living Successfully with Chronic Illness, Wells, SM; Plenum, 1998
Autoimmune and Immune-Related Diseases
The Body at War: The Miracle of the Immune System; John Dwyer, MAL Penguin, 1988
Understanding Your Immune System; Eve Potts and Marion Morra, Avon Press, 1986
HIV and AIDS (we need some additions here)
And the Band Played On; Randy Shilts, St. Martin's Press, 1987
"Woman Who Clears the Way", by Lisa Tiger in Listen Up: Voices from the Next Feminist Generation: New Expanded Edition, Barbara Findlen, ed, Seal Press, 2001
Chronic Pain and Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia and Chronic Myofascial Pain: A Survival Manual: Second Edition, Devin Starlanyl and Mary Ellen Copeland, New Harbinger Publications 2001
The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook: Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief, Davies, C; New Harbinger, 2001
Making Sense of Fibromyalgia: A Guide for Patients and Their Families; Wallace, DJ and Wallace, JB; Oxford University Press, 1999
Alternative Treatments for Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Insights from Practitioners and Patients, Skelly, M and Helm, A; Hunter House, 1999
Fibromyalgia: A Handbook for Self-Care and Treatment, Hulme, JA, Phoenix Publishing, 1995
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Fibromyalgia: The Revolutionary Treatment that Can Reverse the Disease Dr. Paul St. Amand and Claudia Craig Marek, 1999, Warner Books
The Fibromyalgia Relief Handbook, Cunningham, C.; United Research, 2000
Fibromyalgia: The New Integrative Approach - How to Combine the Best of Traditional and Alternative Therapies, Hammerly, M..; Adams Media Corps, 2000
Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFS/CFIDS)
Osler's Web: Inside the Labyrinth of the CFS Epidemic, Hillary Johnson; Crown Publishing, 1996 (a must-read on the background of this illness in the U.S. -jen)
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Treatment Guide, Erica Verillo and Lauren Gellman, St. Martin's Griffin, 1997 (an excellent resource for symptom-specific treatments compiled by information from people who live with this illness, possibly getting a little outdated now, but definitely still very valuable - jen)
What Her Body Thought - Susan Griffin (Griffin is a feminist sociologist and this book is not about CFIDS specifically but is partially about her experience with it, including an excellent description of life with CFIDS, being bedbound, etc, highly recommended - jen)
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and Other Invisible Illnesses: The Comprehensive Guide, Katrina Berne, PhD, Hunter House Publishers, 2002
(also definitely invaluable and full of very useful resources - see her other book listed below and saphie's comment - jen)
Love and Other Infectious Diseases: A Memoir; Molly Haskill, William Morrow Press, 1990
Betrayal By the Brain: The Neurological Basis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia Syndrome, and Related Neural Network Disorders; Dr. Jay Goldstein, Haworth, 1996 (a most confusing book particularly if you have trouble concentrating, but definitely very interesting and full of serious research, one of those i've read in parts, in bookstores, at different times - jen)
A Companion Guide to Dr. Jay A. Goldstein's Betrayal by the Brain: A Guide for Patients and Their Physicians ; Courmel, K, and Goldstein, Haworth, 1997 (see above for why this might be helpful - but i haven't read it)
The Doctor's Guide to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Understanding, Treating, and Living with CFIDS, Dr. David Bell, Addison Wesley Longman, 1994 (this is rather outdated now, but has long been one of the most popular books on CFIDS & Dr. Bell is one of the doctors in the US who has spent the most time treating it)
A Parents' Guide to CFIDS: How to Be an Advocate for Your Child With Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome; Dr. David Bell and Robinsons, Haworth, 1999 (the Robinsons are parents of children with CFIDS)
Faces of CFS: Case Histories of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Dr. David Bell, MZR Publishing, 2000
Adolescence and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Journeys with the Dragon, Brotherson, NE; Haworth, 2000
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Hidden Epidemic; Jesse Stoff, Charles Pellegrino, Random House, 1988
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Lymbic Hypothesis; Jay Goldstein, Haworth Press, 1992 (confusing, but interesting if you can grasp it - jen)
The Clinical and Scientific Basis of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Dr. B Hyde, The Nightengale Research Foundation, 1992
CFS: Hope and Help for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Karyn Feiden, Prentice-Hall, 1990
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Victim's Guide to Understanding, Treating, and Coping with this Debilitating Illness; Gregg Fisher, Stephen Strauss, Paul Cheney, and James Oleske, Warner Press, 1989
The DIsease of a Thousand Names; Dr. David Bell, Pollard Publishing 1990
Living With Chronic Fatigue: New Strategies for Coping with and Conquering CFS, Susan Constont, Taylor Publishing,1990
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Natural Guide to Healing; Steve Wilkinson, Sterling Press, 1990
Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired; Neil Solomon, Wynwood Press, 1989
Unraveling the Puzzle of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Michael Rosenbaum, Life Sciences, 1992
Running on Empty: Living with Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome, Katrina H. Berne, Ph.D, Hunter House, 1992 ("invaluable" - saphie)
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the Yeast Connection, William G. Crook, M.D., Professional Books, 1999
Environmental Illness, Multiple Chemical Sensitivities, Allergies
The Rebellious Body: Reclaim Your Life From Environmental Illness or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Janice Strubbe, R.N., Insight Books, 1996
Clinical Ecology; Iris Bell, Common Knowledge Press 1982
The Healthy House; John Bower, Carol Press, 1989
The Healthy Household; Lynn Marie Bower, The Healthy House Institute, 1995
Non-Toxic, Natural, and Earthwise; Debra Lynn Dadd, J.P. Archer Press, 1990
Emerging Infections: Microbial Threats to Health in the United States; Joshua Lederberg, et al, eds; National Academy Press, 1992
Coping With Your Allergies; Natalie Golos, Simon and Schuster, 1986
Detoxification: Personal Survival in a Chemical World; Theron Randolph, Healthmed Inc., 1988
Alternative Approaches to Allergies: The New Field of Clinical Ecology Unravels Environmental Causes of Physical and Mental Ills; Theron Randolph, Harper & Row, 1988
Alternative Healing
Coyote Medicine: Lessons from Native American Healing, Lewis Mehl-Madrona, M.D., Fireside, 1997
Total Wellness: Improve Your Health By Understanding the Body's Healing Systems, Joseph Pizzorno, N.D., Prima Publishing, 1996
Psychiatric Illnesses and Mental Health
A Slender Thread Diane Ackerman
Toward Empathy: Access to Transition Houses for Psychiatrized Women, G. Satori, Whitehorse: Second Opinion Society, 1995
Vulnerable: Sexual Abuse of People with an Intellectual Handicap, Charlene Senn, Family Violence Prevention Program, Ottowa, Canada, 1988
The Rights of Mental Patients; Bruce Ennis & Richard Emery, Avon Books, 1978
Rights of the Mentally Disabled: Statements and Standards; Hospital and Community Psychiatric Services, American Psychiatric Press, 1983
The Psychiatry-Law Dilemma: Mental Health Versus Human Rights;'Elio Maggio, Vantage Press, 1981
Psychiatric Slavery:, Thomas Szasz, The Fress Press, 1977
The Common Sense Guide to Mental Health Care; Christine Ammer, The Lewis Publishing Company, 1982
Is There No Place On Earth For Me?; Susan Sheehan, Vintage Books, 1983
Becoming Anna: The Autobiography of a Sixteen-Year-Old, Anna Michener, University of Chicago Press, 1998
Depression and Bipolar Disorder (Manic Depression)
You Are Not Alone: Words of Experience and Hope for the Journey Through Depression, Julia Thorne, Haper Perennial, 1993 (self-help book that is encouraging)
The Beast; Tracy Thompson (great first-hand account)
Undercurrents: A Life Beneath the Surface; Martha Manning (encouraging first-hand account)
Prozac Nation; Elizabeth Wurtzel, Riverhead Books, 1994 (great first-hand account)
An Unquiet Mind; Kay Redfield Jamison, M.D. (excellent first-hand account of bipolar disorder by a psychiatrist who has the disorder herself but also researches and treats it)
The Bell Jar; Sylvia Plath (classic, only put here as sometimes it helps to know someone can relate, but if you like Plath please read her poetry as she was a lot more than a person with depression who killed herself)
Manic Depressive Illness; Kay Redfield Jamison, et al (see her other book above)
Lithium Treatment in Manic Depressive Illness; Mogers Schou, Karger 1983
Concepts of Suicide, David Lester (ed), The Charles Press, Philadelphia, 1990
Survivors of Child Abuse and Adult Sexual Assault/ Rape
Courage Above All: Sexual Assault Against Women with Disabilities, L. Simpson and M.C. Best, DisAbled Women's Network (DAWN) - Toronto, 1991
The Memory Bird: Survivors of Sexual Abuse, Caroline Malone, Linda Farthing, Lorraine Marce (eds), Temple University Press, 1997 (excellent anthology with poetry, artwork, short essays, all written by a collective of survivors)
Getting Through the Day: Strategies for Adults Hurt as Children, Nancy Napier, Norton, 1993
The Sexual Healing Journey: A Guide for Survivors of Sexual Abuse, Wendy Maltz, Harper Collins, 1991
Incest and Sexuality: A Guide to Understanding and Healing, Wendy Maltz, Lexington Books, 1987
Don't Tell Me to Take a Hot Bath: Resource Manual For Crisis Workers, Shirley Masuda for DisAbled Women's Network - Canada, Safety Net/Work Project: Suicide and Abuse; Family Violence Prevention Division, Health Canada, and Human Resources Development Canada (this book also fits into the Domestic Violence category, and others; it is meant to be of use for crisis workers)
For Your Own Good: Hidden Cruelty in Child Rearing and the Roots of Violence, Alice Miller; Farrar, Strauss, Giroux, 1983
Thou Shalt Not Be Aware: Society's Betrayal of the Child, Alice Miller, New American Library, 1986
Healing the Incest Wound, Christine Courtois, PhD, Norton, 1988
Father-Daughter Incest, Judith Herman, Harvard University Press, 1981
Memory Slips
In the Open: Women Survivors of Abuse Tell Their Stories, Kathleen Tudor (ed), Roseway Publishing Co. (Lockeport, Nova Scotia), 1996
The Courage to Heal, Laura Bass and Ellen Davis, Harper and Row, 1988
The Courage to Heal Workbook: For Women and Men Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, Ellen Bass and Laura Davis, Harper & Row, 1988
I Never Told Anyone: Writings by Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, Ellen Bass and Louise Thorton (eds), Harper Perennial, 1983
The Secret Trauma: Incest in the Lives of Girls and Women, Diana Russell, Basic Books, 1986
Outgrowing the Pain: A Book for and About Adults Abused as Children, Eliana Gil, Launch Press, 1983
Life After Trauma: A Workbook for Healing, Dena Rosenbloom, Phd and Mary Beth Williams, PhD, The Guilford Press, 1999
Speaking Out, Fighting Back: Women Who Have Survived Child Sexual Abuse in the Home, Sister Vera Gallagher, Madrona Publishers, 1985
Voices in the Night: Women Speaking Out About Incest, Toni McNaron and Morgan Yarrow (eds), Cleis Press, 1982
If I Should Die Before I Wake, Michelle Morris, Dell, 1982
This is About Incest, Margaret Randall, Firebrand Books, 1982
The Obsidian Mirror: An Adult Healing From Incest, Louise White, Seal Press, 1988
Inside Scars: Incest Recovery as Told by a Survivor and Her Therapist, Sheila Sisk and Charlotte Foster Hoffman, Pandora Press, 1987
Conspiracy of Silence: The Trauma of Incest, Sandra Butler, Volcano Press, 1985
After Silence: Rape and My Journey Back
For Teenagers, Specifically:
Reviving Ophelia, Mary Pipher
Changing Bodies, Changing Lives: A Book for Teens About Sex and Relationships, Ruth Bell, Random House, 1980
Domestic Violence/ Battering/ Adult Abuse
Violent Acts Against Disabled Women, J. Doucette, DisAbled Women's Network (DAWN) - Toronto, 1990
Violence and Abuse in the Lives of People with Disabilities, D. Sobsey and C. Varnhagen, Centre for Human Development and Research, Vancouver, 1989
Chain Chain Change: For Black Women Dealing with Physical and Emotional Abuse, Evelyn C. White, Seal Press, 1985
Mejor Sola Que Mal Acompanada: Para la Mujer Golpeada (For the Latina in an Abusive Relationship), Myrna M. Zambrano, Seal Press, 1985
Getting Free: A Handbook for Women in Abusive Relationships, Ginny Nicarthy, Seal Press, 1986
Naming the Violence: Speaking Out About Lesbian Battering, Kerry, Lobel (ed), Seal Press, 1986
Eating Disorders and Body Image Problems
Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia, Marya Hornbacher, Harper Collins, 1998
(so many other books glamourize it, describe women with ED's as lab rats, etc - this is a first-hand account that describes the experience like it actually is, with the ugly truth and specifically does NOT glamourize eating disorders like many books which women with eating disorders - as she thankfully points out in this book - do read specifically because those stupid books glamourize eating disorders and do not tell the facts about the physical and mental and social results of having one -jen)
"The Body Politic", by Abra Fortune Chernik, and "It's a Big Fat Revolution", by Nomy Lamm, and "Ruminations of a Feminist Fitness Instructor" by Alisa L. Valdes in Listen Up: Voices from the Next Feminist Generation, Barbara Findlen (ed), 1995 first edition, 2001 "New Expanded Edition", Seal Press (highly recommended book; Chernik's essay is a rarity, a feminist talking about her experience with anorexia and how feminism helped her - jen)
Body Outlaws: Young Women Write About Body Image and Identity, Ophira Edut (ed), Seal Press
The Obsession: Reflections on the Tyranny of Slenderness, Kim Chernin, Harper & Row, 1981 (classic, definitely worth reading, as are all her books - jen)
The Hungry Self: Women, Eating and Identity, Kim Chernin, Harper & Row, 1985
Consuming Passions: Feminist Approaches to Weight Preoccupations and Eating Disorders, Second Story Press, 1993
Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body, Susan Bordo, University of California Press, 1993 (academic sort of style/approach, makes good points on the objectification of women's bodies - jen)
A Hunger So Wide and So Deep: American Women Speak Out on Eating Problems, Becky Thompson, University of Minnesota Press, 1994
The Body Betrayed: A Deeper Understanding of Women, Eating Disorders, and Treatment, Kathryn J. Zerbe, Gurze Books, 1993 (Gurze specializes in publishing books related to eating disorders and has a catalogue you can order)
Am I Thin Enough Yet? The Cult of Thinness and the Commercialization of Identity, Sharlene, Hesse-Biber, Oxford University Press, 1996
Stick Figure; Lori Gottlieb, Simon & Schuster, 2000 (first-hand account by an adolescent, good part is it does describe physical ramifications)
Body Traps: Breaking the Binds that Keep You from Feeling Good About Your Body, Judith Rodin and Ruth Streigel-Moore, William Morrow & Co., 1992
Many Mirrors: Body Image and Social Relations, Nicole Sault, ed, Rutgers University Press, 1992
Never Too Thin: Why Women are at War with Their Bodies, Roberta Pollack Seid, Prentice Hall Press, 1989
Transforming Body Image, Marcia Germaine Hutchinson, Crossing Press, 1985
Fed Up and Hungry: Women, Oppression, and Food; Lawrence, M.L., Bedrick Books, 1987
Hunger Strike: The Anorectic's Struggle as a Metaphor for Our Age, Susie Orback, Norton, 1986
Such a Pretty Face: Being Fat in America, Marcia Millman, Norton, 1980
Feeding the Hungry Heart: The Experience of Compulsive Eating, Geneen Roth Bobbs-Merril, 1982
Shadows on a Tightrope: Writings by Women on Fat Oppression, Lisa Shoenfielder and Barb Wieser (eds), Spinsters/ Aunt Lute, 1983 (San Francisco)
Self-Harm/Self-Injury/Self-Mutilation
A Bright Red Scream; Marilee Strong (invaluable and excellent)
Women Who Hurt Themselves; Dusty Miller (older but also great)
Bodily Harm: The Breakthrough Healing Program for Self-Injurers; Karen Conterio and Wendy Lader of SAFE Alternatives (may be very useful to you if you have a problem with self-injury; provides specific methods of self-help)
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence, from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror; Judith Herman, M.D., Basic Books, 1992 (absolutely invaluable and a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the ramifications of trauma in terms that are professional but also also possible to comprehend; Dr. Herman is a leader in research in this field - jen)
Traumatic Stress: The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body and Society; Bessel Van der Kolk, et al. (he's an old white guy, yes, and this is kind of outdated, but there is some good research-based information here)
Dissociative Disorders:
The Myth of Sanity: Divided Consciousness and the Promise of Awareness, Martha Stout, Phd; Viking, 2001
(here take on DID and other dissociative disorders is that they are more common and not as dramatic as they are usually thought to be; very thought-provoking and far more hopeful for people diagnosed with such a disorder than most of the ridiculous first-person accounts which are horrific to read in the first place are)
