Hello friends:

For my next book, I’m interviewing women and young adults experiencing mood, anxiety and/or learning/cognitive issues, who are curious about the concept that brain based symptoms have neurobiological, immunological, physical roots. If you are, or know, a woman in mid-life, for whom this resonates, and are in an extended family that faces depression, anxiety, mood and learning/cognitive issues, and would like to share your experiences and possibly have me report on your journey of discovery, please message me (or have them message me) by commenting below, or, contact me privately, here. If you have a family history of mental health and autoimmune disorders, this is also relevant. Interviewees can absolutely be disguised.

This is what my attic office looks like as I map out the chapters for my next book, THE ANGEL AND THE ASSASSIN: The Tiny Cell That Changed the Course of Medicine — and Gives us a Radically New Way of Looking at Human Well-Being. I LOVE writing this book. The science is so exciting, and I think it will help so many readers. (Pssst… can you spot my writing companion in this photo?)

In this book, called THE ANGEL AND THE ASSASSIN: The Tiny Cell That Changed the Course of Medicine, and Gives us a Radically New Way of Looking at Human Well-Being, which will be published by Ballantine Books (a division of Random House) in 2019, I’m looking at groundbreaking, recent scientific discoveries at top labs around the country showing unequivocally that symptoms of depression, anxiety, learning disabilities, OCD, memory issues, and Alzheimer’s emerge because of overactive brain immune cells – called microglia – which function as the “white blood cells of the brain.” In the face of 21st Century triggers — from stress to toxins – these little cells get agitated and destroy neurons and synapses, causing “neuroinflammation” and “neurodegeneration,” the same way that your white blood cells cause inflammation in your body. This discovery – and the new understanding that the brain is an immune organ, ruled by immune cells (just like all the other organs in the human body) is one of the most exciting and important discoveries in the history of science, and is leading to exciting new avenues for treating seemingly intractable life-altering disorders.

The fact that our brain is an immune organ and is affected by our immune health on a cellular level is not often addressed, yet this fact can have a profound effect on how individuals view their suffering, and the treatment they seek.

My goal is to de-stigmatize these diseases by taking you into cutting edge labs where neuroscientists are showing that brain based disorders are due to physical changes that lead to disease symptoms – and show what we can do to heal. Thanks!!

If this whole idea captures your imagination, and you and or your family are affected by these disorders – let me know!!!

This year’s Learning & The Brain Conference

In other recent news, I so enjoyed lecturing at this year’s Learning & The Brain Conference, in Arlington, Virginia. (Learning & The Brain teams up with Harvard, Yale, MIT, Stanford, UC Berkeley, University of Chicago, Johns Hopkins, and other leading institutes to provide the latest findings on brain health and brain resiliency). I loved talking to an amazing group of educators about Childhood Disrupted: How Your Biography Becomes Your Biology – and how important mentors, adults and teachers are in helping kids achieve resiliency and well-being.

In my fall lecture series I’ll be speaking at venues including the amazing SIRPA international conference on chronic pain in London in October 2017;  Stonybrook Children’s Hospital, in Stonybrook, New York; and the South Carolina Children’s Trust, among other venues.

Don’t forget — reach out if my newest book resonates with you — I’d really love to talk to you! Comment below, or, if you prefer, contact me privately. Or, ping me on Facebook!

Thanks so much!

Donna

P.S. In case it’s helpful, fyi, I’m told that this weekend Childhood Disrupted is at its all time lowest price on Amazon — under $10.

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41 Responses

  1. Hello Donna

    I’m a 43 yr old woman and Your new book resonates deeply. If you are looking for contributions, I would be interested in helping.

    Kim

  2. Hi Donna. I’m 49 and very interested in your new book project. I’d love to discuss my experiences w you.

  3. Hi Donna!
    I’m 54 yrs old and your new book resonates with me on many points.

    I would like to participate in this project with you. Please contact me if you still need more participants. Thank you for this opportunity, Donna!

  4. I’ll follow up with those who’ve posted here, and the many readers who have contacted me privately via my website’s contact email, over the next few days. Thanks to all of you who have responded — I’m so grateful to you and am moved by your stories. Bear with me as I make my way through the many responses and, most importantly, thank you.

  5. Hi. We gave a family history of bipolar and a sister with severe auto immunillness. I’m interested in participating

  6. I’m interested in being part of your next book. I have MS, but function quite fully. Is not been on conventional meds, I’ve only done homeopathic. I have been dealing with anxietie issues at night for the past year, and yes I had quite a bit of childhood trauma.

  7. Dear Donna,
    I am interested in your project. I am 62 with lupus. I have struggled with anxiety and depression all my life. Though currently doing well with acupuncture, yoga, meditation and autoimmune protocol. Strong family history of OCD and anxiety disorders.

  8. Have a personal and family history of anxiety, depression and as result; PTSD. My (maternal) grandmother, brother and now my (paternal) uncle chose to end their suffering by committing suicide. Great proportion of family members are highly intelligent and talented, yet tortured souls. Wish there was a way to maintain the beautiful sensitivity without the pain. Or is it as Nicholas De Chamfort’s last words said: “And so I leave this world where ones heart must either break or turn to lead.”

  9. Hi Donna, i am interested in your study as i have been diagnosed with clinical depression, anxiety, diabetes, MS and vitiligo. I would be interested in participating.

    V

    1. I also wish to include that depression runs in my family from both parents. My brother also struggles with it and has been sick for many years for various reasons. He also has diabetes dince 24 yrs of age. My anxiety has gotten so bad i have heart palpitations and my memory over time, ive noticed, has become quite foggy. I have also dealt with all forms of abuse.

  10. Hello, I’m very interested in being interviewed about your book. Your work deeply resonates with me.
    I’m grateful for the work you do. I have a family history of trauma, mental illness and autoimmune issues. As a therapist, I work closely with these issues as well.

  11. Hi Donna, I would be really interested in participating. I have reoccurring bouts of anxiety, depression and cognitive difficulties since having first episode of depression 5 yrs ago. I also suffer from hyper vigilance. Also strong links of familial anxiety, depression, OCD etc. Thanks tracy.

  12. Hi Donna,

    I would love to talk to you and be a part of your new book. I come from a family of intergenerational trauma as well as PTSD and anxiety leading to disease.

    Kind regards Pippa

  13. Hi Donna

    We have spoken before and my dog Ranger and I have read all your books and Ranger posted his photo on your FB page . My mother and I both have Parkinson’s Disease and my family has a strong gene for alcohol addiction and in my case also expresses as an eating disorder. I work full time and am curious about the strength of my willfulness and denial that I have a pretty serious disease… Nobody in my family has been treated for anxiety or depression other than in treatment for Parkinson’s. We also don’t have learning disabilities. If you can use me I am in! Ranger too!

  14. I’m interested! Right age range and “right” problems- childhood trauma, PTSD, EDS, and chronic pain.

  15. Hi Donna, I just became familiar with you because someone recommended your book on a support forum. I’m 57 and chronically ill for years with Lyme disease and now a bunch of viruses. I’ve battled depression this whole time and dealing with past trauma. I feel these illnesses have changed me. I’m not sure I am someone who fits your criteria, but if I am, I am willing to participate. Your new book sounds exciting and I need to read your past books as well. ~ Trish

  16. Donna, this work comes along at a time I am exploring these connections myself. I am a 53 year old woman who meets the description of a desired subject. I live in Baltimore and work in Towson.

  17. Hello: I fit this criteria and would be willing to share my story. Fairly severe childhood abuse, dysfunctional family (with both parents from extremely dysfunctional families), etc. And I’m a lawyer but I’ve been on SSDI since my early 30’s due to multiple chronic illnesses – CFS/ME, MCAS, EDS, etc. Please email me if interested.

  18. Hello Donna,

    I am ery interested in your mission and want to participate!

    I am a nurse in integrative medicine. I have spent my entire life healing from ACE 9/10. Even so, I have multiple chronic diseases, including SLE, PTSD and major deppresive disorder.

    Being part of a bigger story that may help others who have suffered gives some purpose to the madness. Thank you for the work you do.

  19. Hi Donna,

    My therapist recommended your book The Last Best Cure, and I loved it. I would be happy to contribute if you still need participants. I have an autoimmune disease as well as a family history of anxiety and depression. I’ve struggled with my own anxiety and depression and, over the past 20 years have tried therapy, biofeedback, acupuncture and herbs, EMDR, medication, therapeutic yoga, and various other things!

  20. Yes, I’m 53, almost life long depression with a family history of depression ,trauma, and ocd. in the last 8 years I started having more and more allergies an sensitivities sometimes resulting in noticeable inflammation in my hips and, I suspect, places I don’t notice. I can’t always think clearly to answer questions but I’d like to help if I can. As another responder said, it could give some purpose to the suffering.

  21. Morning
    I would love to….
    Please let me know what to do for this process…you contacted me months ago when I reached out, asking if there was hope for me…. Ace score of 8!!
    Your response was thoughtful and gracious and above all, kind. Thank you again for that!
    Reading ‘head Strong’ by Dave aspery…..very very helpful too!!
    All the best, Senufa Salley

  22. Hi , I am 42 and have three kids. Was diagnosed with bipolar disorder I 1996 and I had early life trauma. I would be interested in participating .

  23. I’m mighty grateful for you and the work you’re doing!
    Thank you, Donna!!

    Also, I’m willing to share my experiences to help your research.
    Shalom!

  24. I’m mighty grateful for you and the work you’re doing!
    Thank you, Donna!!

    Also, I’m willing to share my experiences to help your research.
    Shalom!
    (P.S. I’m posting again with my email address that is connected to my WordPress blog account.)

  25. Hi Donna, I am a 65-year old woman with a host of physical issues including degenerative disc disease and COPD. I had a lot of ACE triggers as a child, including an alcoholic father who died when I was 13 and incest (my older brother being the perpetrator). In addition, I was separated from my parents for a year when I was sent away to boarding school at age six. In total, I was either living with another family or sent away to boarding school for six of my childhood years. Depression and suicide run in my family, although physical maladies seem to be my choice of neurosis. My daughter, who is 25, suffers from depression, however. I wish (and believe that) we can break this chain. Would love to participate in your project.

  26. Hello Donna. I am very interested in your work. I have read very little so far as I had just stumbled across your site. I am a 46 year old woman who suffered the loss of my mother at age 6 but was told I never went through a typical mourning period. This manifested in my mind and emotions totally shutting down when I was 16. I have had so many things in my lifetime that would have caused my now chronic pain (some would say fibromyalgia). I still to this day (and my family) am experiencing unbelievable stresses that I feel are feeding my current health problems and are stressors for my family’s future health problems. I have even contemplated writing a book about the events that have occured in my lifetime but have not found a way to plot the events so that others would be able to find interesting or maybe even believable. I would very much like to participate in your research as I have for some time felt that my health is affected by the constant state of “fight or flight” that has become my life. Thank you for seeing a need in society and healthcare that has no answers (or very few) at this time.

  27. Hi Donna..so sad to see so many of us suffering with very few answers or solutions. Thank you for what you do. I am almost 64yo. Lifelong scoliosis with all the stigma and trauma of being different and disabled….well, you obviously know what can happen. At a lifetime low currently…not much energy for your project, but would love to see a forum happen privately for all of us…where you can learn with each of us. Thank you again with all my heart. Great work.

  28. I learned about ACEs in May of 2017 when I was 70. My score was 6 and I was furious to learn that my health had been impacted.. I got your books and subscribe to the Aces Connection.I am glad that research is helping young people to learn resilience, however, it is a little late for me and my gazillion health issues. I am finding meditation very difficult to learn in spite of knowing that it is apparently the only way that I can help myself. If I can be of help in your latest project, please let me know.
    DGG

  29. Hi Donna, I would love to know more, I have been through so much trauma and stress in my 51 years, too many to mention but include multiple illness, rape, physical and mental abuse and sincerely believe these events and circumstances contribute to where I am now with my mental and physical health. I’ve come out the other side smiling but want to know more.
    Kind regards
    Janita

  30. YES, I am very much interested, but, I cannot convey information via emails… Will you be using some kind of questionaire {?} We have been in contact, prior [to this note] …a while back. blessings !

  31. I am immensely interested to be included in your new book. Growing up with an alcoholic bipolar father and suffering with my own mental health struggles throughout my life,I am hopeful that my input could further your book. I don’t believe my suffering is in vain if I’m able to encourage others with my story!

  32. I just came across your information from a post shared on FB, and I was so shocked because your words totally fit me that I’ve already shared your links with 4 or 5 friends and family.

    I’m 46. A childhood/teen years sexual abuse survivor by family members and my pastor.
    My parents were married a collective 13 times (mom died in 2012 and my dad is married to his 8th wife currently.

    I suffer from PTSD, autoimmune deficiency disease where I can’t fight off infections, Hasimoto’s, PCOS, degenerative disk disease, obesity, migraines, and more. I’m embarrassed and ashamed of my health issues.

    I’m willing to help with your next book if needed.

    Thank you.

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