Brave New Medicine

“In Cynthia Li’s spellbinding book, we encounter the moving story of a physician struggling with her own autoimmune illness. Li’s writing is so intimate — and so exacting — that it cuts like a knife. She raises fundamental questions about the future of medicine, her own future, and about being a doctor and a patient at the same time. The result is a beautiful book that will be read and remembered for years to come.”
—Siddhartha Mukherjee, doctor and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies

“I love this book, a harrowing and somehow also charming account by a brilliant doctor of how she healed her body, mind, spirit and soul from a debilitating autoimmune disease. After her doctors had given up on her, with a husband and two little children at home, she broke out of the constraints of Western medicine, and found her way home to health, renewal, and her own true self. This beautifully written prescriptive book is going to change and even save people’s lives.”
—Anne Lamott, New York Times bestselling author of Bird by Bird, and Almost Everything: Notes on Hope

“Each year brings a new stack of ‘how-to’ health manuals, but Dr. Li’s book is different. It’s a moving, personal—and sometimes unsettling—investigation into the deepest questions surrounding chronic illness. What makes us sick? How do we live with the uncertainty of a mysterious condition? How do we define health in an age when conventional medicine focuses almost exclusively on disease management? The answers Dr. Li arrives at in her exploration changes her as a person, and the way she practices medicine. Her book is full of wisdom for both healthcare practitioners and those suffering from chronic illness.”
—Chris Kresser, MS, LAc, New York Times bestselling author of Unconventional Medicine and The Paleo Cure

“It is a major concession to admit how much Li’s book inspired me, given how deeply skeptical I am about alternative medicine. When Li, a physician herself, develops a terrifying syndrome that regular medicine can’t even identify, she becomes her own doctor, charting her symptoms, doing experiments, seeking help from whoever offers it. Emotionally, she rises from a crouch of defeat to the confident stride of an explorer — and you will find yourself rising with her.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Natural Causes and founder of the Economic Hardship Reporting Project

“Eat, Pray, Love meets The Anatomy Of An Illness meets a Deepak Chopra workshop in this engaging, exquisitely written doctor-as-patient memoir. Dr. Li humbly, humorously, and honestly unearths the roots of her debilitating illness, but the gifts don’t stop there. With 15 practical, grounded tips for How To Heal, this book also serves as an unconventional, whole health prescription sure to facilitate the healing journey of others. With raw transparency and the kind of courage we need among both doctors and patients, Brave New Medicine charts a new terrain, bridging conventional medicine with functional medicine, nutrition, environmental health, intuition, and spirituality, all through a highly entertaining, hard-earned miracle story.”
—Lissa Rankin, MD, New York Times bestselling author of Mind Over Medicine and The Daily Flame and founder of the Whole Health Medicine Institute

“This is a memoir for our time. Cynthia Li is a superbly trained physician of internal medicine whose life comes to a halt by a life-threatening, complex illness the mainstream medical community doesn’t know how to treat. Her struggle is replicated thousands of times over by others who face similar mystery diseases. While the path to recovery is rarely simple, Dr. Li’s journey and scientific explanations offer hope to many who are suffering. She writes with insight, wisdom and passion. Her honesty will touch you deeply. Don’t miss this book.”
—Michael Lerner, author of Choices in Healing, and president and co-founder of Commonweal

“Dr. Cynthia Li is an extraordinary physician with a comprehensive understanding of autoimmune disease as a practitioner and a patient. The insights she provides in this new book are essential for any patient suffering from autoimmunity. Her book challenges the current healthcare system model that is in such serious need of revision. This is a must-read for anyone suffering from an autoimmune disease.”
—Datis Kharrazian, PhD, DC, award-winning researcher, clinician, and best-selling author of Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms When My Labs Are Normal?

“In Brave New Medicine, Dr. Li masterfully describes her hard-won transformation from dis-ease to wellness, as she discovers the freedom beyond dogma and formulas, and the wisdom of living the full human experience. She reveals the secret of healing, which is very different than treating.”
—Master Mingtong Gu, international teacher and founder of The Chi Center

“Dr. Cynthia Li shares a deeply personal and inspiring journey wherein she falls through the cracks of the conventional medical model but then discovers her own lifesaving path through functional and integrative medicine. Her book also includes an excellent resource filled with practical tips for those who want to learn how to take natural steps to recover their own health and vitality.”
—Akil Palanisamy, MD, Harvard-trained integrative medicine physician and author of The Paleovedic Diet