And in Health A Guide for Couples Facing Cancer Together

Here are engaging and digestible lessons for couples navigating the life changes brought about by a cancer diagnosis. Dan Shapiro draws on his more than twenty-five years of clinical work as a health psychologist who has researched and worked with couples facing cancer, and on his own experiences of being both the patient (having and beating Hodgkin’s lymphoma in his twenties) and the supporter/advocate (when his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer) to weave together insights on facing cancer while maintaining a strong relationship. And in Health gives advice in short lessons on the main areas of concern or conflict that can come from life with cancer—from diagnosis to treatment and life post-treatment.

Topics include:

   • How to forge yourselves into a powerful team and avoid common conflict points
   • Dealing with physicians and getting the best care possible, along with tips for navigating the medical world
   • Strategies for coping with the emotions that can interfere with your relationship—anger, mood swings, spouse fears, and depression
   • Distinguishing between supportive and draining people in your lives, and learning to invite and accept help
   • Opening to new types of intimacy and making peace with dependence

Dan Shapiro, PhD, is the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Professor of Medical Humanism and the Chair of the Department of Humanities at Penn State College of Medicine. He earned his PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Florida and went on to Harvard Medical School, where he completed his fellowship in medical crisis interventions. Shapiro is the author of Mom's Marijuana, about his personal cancer experience, and Delivering Doctor Amelia, on his psychological treatment of a physician.