In Brave New Medicine, Dr. Cynthia Li takes us on a journey that is as deeply personal as it is medically profound. Trained in Western medicine, Dr. Li once viewed practices like acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) with skepticism, even though they were part of her own cultural heritage. However, a mysterious autoimmune illness led her to a crossroads that conventional medicine couldn’t fix.
What makes this book so compelling isn’t just the author’s honesty about her health struggles, it’s how she slowly opens herself to a different model of care. When standard protocols failed, she began exploring functional and Eastern medicine, eventually enrolling in Traditional Chinese Medicine courses herself. In doing so, she rediscovered something that many of us in integrative care deeply value: healing is not just about silencing symptoms; it’s about listening deeply and without judgment to the body.
“I had to unlearn so much of what I’d been taught and begin honoring the innate wisdom within.”
Her story reminds us of what we often see in the treatment room: pain, fatigue, and imbalance are not signs of weakness; they are messages. When we slow down, tune in, and approach the body with respect, lasting relief becomes possible.
As someone committed to helping patients restore function, reduce pain, and regulate their nervous system, I found Brave New Medicine affirming and illuminating. It speaks to the growing need for a team-based approach to healthcare, one that honors both modern science and the time-tested knowledge of traditional systems.
Why I’m Sharing This
You don’t need to be facing a complex autoimmune condition to find meaning in this story. If you’ve ever felt unheard in a healthcare setting or questioned whether there was more to your symptoms than a single diagnosis could explain, this book may resonate. It gently reminds us that healing, while never linear, is possible when we are open, curious, and supported.
I’ve added Brave New Medicine to the Beyond the Treatment Room shelf because it captures something essential: the humility and strength it takes to reevaluate everything we thought we knew about health.
Katrena Haney
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