Here we list books we recommend on chronic illness, including memoirs of people living with these illnesses and conditions. We also recommend books on the science or lack thereof related to these illnesses, as well as medical books that might be of i...
Sections
4
Chronic Illness
Medical Memoirs
Medical Non-fiction
Sexism and Racism Healthcare Gaps
Chronic Illness
Great overview of fibromyalgia and potential ways to manage this complicated condition.
The FibroManual: Complete Fibromyalgia Guide
Pippa offers great advice of all aspects of living with an energy-limiting chronic illness. Also her website and blogs/social media are great to follow!
How to Do Life with a Chronic Illness: Reclaim Your Identity, Create Independence, and Find Your Way Forward
This is a comic book memoir of a patient with ME/CFS.
Notes from a Sickbed
Great memoir in which Meghan describes her search for answers for her medical symptoms and all the struggles that come with that.
The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness
Describes the efforts of the scientist Ronald W. Davis in the search for a cure his son Whitney Dafoe, who has severe ME/CFS.
The Puzzle Solver: Scientist's Quest to Cure
Medical Memoirs
This memoir details Suleika's diagnosis, treatment, and aftermath of cancer during her 20s.
Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted
Memoir of young writer who develops chronic pain in her hands.
Look Ma, No Hands: A Chronic Pain Memoir
Great memoir from a palliative medicine physician.
Dear Life: A Doctor's Story of Love and Loss
Medical Non-fiction
Great overview of the issues with TBC, the history, patient stories, and more.
Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection
Great memoir/search for answers for unique medical issue, with antibiotics-resistant bacteria and bacteriophages as the main topic.
The Perfect Predator: A Scientist's Race to Save Her Husband from a Deadly Superbug
This is a fun book about the human body and what we know about it.
The Body: A Guide for Occupants
Sexism and Racism Healthcare Gaps
About how sexism in medicine is causing women not to get the healthcare needed.
Doing Harm: Truth About Bad Medicine & Science
The title says it all, medical history on how women's health has been approached, and the dramatic consequences.
All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women's Bodies and Why It Matters Today
Not on chronic illnes, but great memoir of a Black physician and the racism that is embedded in the healthcare system.
Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine
Another great comprehensive book studying the gender gap in healthcare and other areas of life.
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
