I know that each person addresses their healing in their own way, and here is my 2 cents worth when it comes to books on IC. 3 years ago, when I was diagnosed I bought quite a few books on IC which, for me, turned out to be not as helpful or inspiring as I hoped for. Many of the books made me more fearful, some approached healing in a differnt way to the treatment I choose for myself which was treating with Matia so I learned nothing from those, and some confused me (lets face it - IC is not a disease that is easily defined so there are many, many opinions out there). For me the only IC book I really enjoyed reading and the one I got the most out of is Matia's PhD. Once I realised the IC books did not give me the answers I was hoping to find, I turned to whole body healing books and books on nutrition and those became my best to read. I really liked "The 12 stages of Healing" by Donald Epstein -- it made me think about how to accept my diagnosis which was not so easy to do and then to move on. I also came to realise that many of the emotions I was going through as a result of a dis-ease in my body was "normal" -- People with illnesses (not just IC but any illness) all go through a grieving period before we see hope. This book helped me to accept all the emotional trauma that goes along with dis-ease and deal with it and not think I was a "freak" for feeling and thinking the way I started to. I also liked "Spontaneous HEaling" by Andrew Weil. Go to amazon.com and call up mind/body healing, natural healing, food and helaing and you will come across so much litreature that sheds more light on healing than on disease. I found the IC books I read made me depressed because all i was focusing on was the negativity of the disease rather than a way to health. Anyway, I hope my response has helped you in your decision on which books to spend time and money on-- and whatever that choice may be -- happy reading!!

Before I found my way to Matia I read quite a few of the IC specific books that were available. They mostly left me feeling overwhelmed. There were so many things to try, so many different diets, herbs, and philosophies. How could I possibly navigate this on my own? This encouraged me to keep searching until I found Matia. A lot of the things that were recommended in the books are things that Matia's program discourages. I had to put all those books aside and just listen to Matia's recommendations. Her dissertation is full of great information. Like dwee, I also found the general healing books to be helpful and have found some great books just searching on Amazon. I've read Dr Weil's Spontaneous Healing and also his Healthy Aging book. Caroline Myss has some interesting books too, like The Creation of Health. Her books have a lot to do with the connection between our emotional state and the physical manefestation of illness that can result. Her books introduced concepts to me such as the importance of envisioning my body as being well now instead of sometime in the distant future.
Carol

hmm, interesting question.  When I first got sick I read Cath Simone's book, something Tears, I can't remember the full title.  I mostly read it to try to understand better what was going on and to realize I was not alone or some kind of freak, that someone else had gone through the same stuff.  But I felt totally overwhelmed by the amount and variety of treatments listed in her book.  It was actually her book that solidified to me I needed a knowledgeable person directing the process.  I knew I couldn't stay on the Elmiron and the other stuff, but I needed help with the alternative.  I came to find out through Matia that some of the things mentioned in the book would not have been the most beneficial.  I do read some things on the ICA website from time to time, to see what they are coming up with in research but I often feel they are barking up the wrong tree.  I was always interested in beating the disease and healing my body, not pain management or covering symptoms to survive.  But I do find much of the literatiure depressing, so I don't read a ton, just enough to stay informed about what is going on in the Ic world at large