Prickly Cactus: Finding Meaning in Chronic Illness

A portrait of disability due to lupus (SLE), and the eventual healing of body, mind, and spirit through medical treatment, physical therapy, and spiritual practice. It offers inspirational and informative insight into both Western and Eastern healing modalities, and into the vital role of family and friends in recovering from a chronic autoimmune disease that afflicts millions of Americans, especially women. At the height of her thriving career as a university professor, researcher, prolific writer, and influential advocate for education, Concha Delgado Gaitan was suddenly stricken with unbearable pain and partial paralysis. Diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), she began the long and arduous process of taking control of her own healing. This entailed first creating a language to describe her physical symptoms, accessing the wisdom of traditional and alternative healers, and building a supportive community in which she could literally reinvent herself, transforming her life and overcoming adversity.