DailyGood
DailyGood

For the last 27 years, DailyGood newsletters have offered a daily email that inspires you to respond to life with creativity and kindness. To join a community of 148,408 subscribers, subscribe here.

Aug 27, 2012

"Life offers its wisdom generously. Everything teaches. Not everyone learns." --Rachel Naomi Remen

The Literary Physician & How Stories Heal

When physician-writer William Carlos Williams was asked how he managed his dual careers, he replied, "It's no strain. In fact, the one nourishes the other, even if at times I've groaned to the contrary." It's a philosophy shared by Rita Charon, director of a new program in narrative medicine at Columbia University, where students and clinicians learn to shape the fragments of medical work -- a symptom, a conflict, a difficult conversation -- into coherent narratives that reflect not only their points of view but also the patient's. Here, Charon explains how a habit of narrative writing can change the way a medical professional sees her patients and herself.

READ FULL STORY

BE THE CHANGE
Bring narrative writing to your next project or activity, tying a variety of perspectives into a cohesive thread.



SOME MORE DAILYGOOD STORIES ...