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Compassion Heals: From Self-Care to Healthcare By Lees Tomlinson

H Johal

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Compassion Heals: From Self-Care to Healthcare By Lees Tomlinson
Lee Tomlinson had a life many would have considered charmed. A successful world-trotting tennis pro, international businessman, marketing genius behind the American Film Institute’s 10-year long 100 Greatest Movies CBS TV specials and multi-million-dollar fundraising campaign, major Hollywood film studio owner, loving husband and near scratch golfer.
Until the world crashed down, and he was subsequently diagnosed with Stage III+ throat cancer, and subjected to months of life-threatening, debilitating chemo and radiation, and extreme pain–so extreme he could not eat or even swallow.
Towards the end of his grueling treatment, while hospitalized for a severe infection, a never-ending stream of insensitive, unkind acts totally lacking in compassion by the hospital staff, sent Lee into an abyss of emotional despair that made him choose suicide over life.
Fortunately, another doctor, a dear friend, stopped him by deeply apologizing on behalf of a healthcare system that had failed to provide him-and so many others, with even a hint of compassion. And with one simple suggestion–inspired Lee to use his gifts as a speaker, customer service expert and leader to restore compassion to healthcare–not only for patients, but also for all the overworked, under-supported, burned-out healthcare professionals who’ve literally lost the ability to provide the compassion that got them into medicine in the first place.
Lee’s powerful crusade is documented in his new book Compassion Heals: From Self-Care to Healthcare. But there is a message here for more than healthcare professionals (HCPs). There’s a message for all of us about the power of compassion to heal others’ mental, emotional and physical pain – but to also love and heal ourselves – and in doing so, help heal the world at a critical time in our history.
Lee’s book presents the evidence that compassion heals by sighting numerous scientific studies, books and resources. But the most telling statistic he cites is that more than 50% of Americans believe that healthcare and healthcare professionals totally lack compassion. Data shows that people die because of compassionless care, not just from medical errors.
Compassionless healthcare has become more the norm over the past 25 years. Left unchecked, the future of healthcare is unthinkable.
And that’s why Lee is driven to make a difference. He has taken to the stage as “Patient Lee” dressed in nothing but a hospital gown, and presented his mixture of humor, compassion, urgency, encouragement and call-to-action at more than 200 venues, including keynote presentations to Johns Hopkins Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering, UCLA Medical Center, Eli Lilly & Co., Providence Health & Services, David Geffen School of Medicine, Bristol Myers Squibb, Siemens Medical Imaging, City of Hope Cancer Center, Adventist Health, and national conferences for the Oncology Nurse Society (ONS), Academy of Oncology Nurses and Patient Navigators (AONN), Association of Integrated Health and Medicine (AIHM) and Hematology/Oncology Pharmacy Association (HOPA).
The problem, as Lee discovered when speaking with members of his audiences, is that HCPs are totally spent themselves, bereft of energy and emotional sustenance. More than 60 percent of them are suffering from burnout and, as such have zero compassion to give anyone because they’re not given themselves enough to stay healthy and able to do so.
So much of Compassion Heals is a recipe for self-care. Ways that healthcare workers can step off the treadmill and restore themselves, so they can freely give from a well of wellbeing and compassion within.
Far from being punitive, Compassion Heals is in itself a healing balm. Filled with understanding and kindness for those who are falling short, along with those who are in their hands, this book is just the tip of Lee’s mission. The Movement is designed to reconnect America’s healthcare professionals with the compassion that got them into healthcare in the first place. Lee has also launched the Compassion Heals Challenge in which he invites his audiences on stages, podcasts and beyond–not just HCPs, but all of us–to commit to purposely providing one additional compassionate act daily, for themselves or others, for 7 days and share them on the www.challenge.leetomlinson.com website.
Lee’s only just getting started. He’s still got 20 million HCPs to reach! Continuing to speak on major stages everywhere in his hospital gown, he is also developing a feature-length documentary based on his experiences and research titled Compassion Heals and promoting the book.
Says Lee, “My goal is to make providing compassion a priority, a natural habit, rather than something we think of as a chore, or worse, a waste of time. Not only for healthcare professionals in the course of treating patients and dealing with colleagues, but for themselves and everyone.”
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Authors and Artists

Newly Published Author Philip La Croix Balances Creativity and Resilience to Overcome Writer’s Block and Craft Captivating Stories

H Johal

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Newly Published Author Philip La Croix Balances Creativity and Resilience to Overcome Writer’s Block and Craft Captivating Stories

Author Philip La Croix, known for his gripping debut novel “The Best Laid Traps,” shares insights into his writing process, character development, and future aspirations. La Croix’s remarkable ability to overcome writer’s block and his unique experiences have contributed to the creation of captivating narratives that resonate with readers worldwide.

The Best Laid TrapsWhen it comes to finding ideas and developing characters, La Croix’s creative process is driven by random thoughts that pop into his head. Whether it be for a new story or a revelation in an existing one, these musings spark his imagination. La Croix describes the experience as being hypnotized, where he loses track of time, and the events unfold vividly in his mind. He believes that writing is more about observing and documenting these events rather than creating them from scratch. As the story progresses, characters take on a life of their own, and La Croix transitions from being the driver to a passenger on the speeding bullet train of storytelling.

Writer’s block can be a formidable challenge for any author, but La Croix tackles it head-on. He emphasizes the importance of pushing past the block instead of succumbing to the temptation of taking time off. Even if it means employing a temporary fix or going back to fix an area later, he believes it is crucial to keep the story moving forward. La Croix advises fellow writers to avoid waiting for a deus ex machina and to persevere in order to maintain the momentum and bring their stories to fruition.

La Croix’s writing journey is not confined to a specific type of character or book. Although he begins with a particular vision for his characters, he allows them to evolve organically. Sometimes, characters surprise him and deviate from his initial plans, ultimately playing pivotal roles in the narrative. As for the genre of his future works, La Croix demonstrates versatility and a willingness to explore various genres, ranging from action-adventure and dark fantasy to sci-fi and dramas. He even delved into writing a full-length fan-fiction novel based on characters from “The Hunger Games” universe, hoping to garner recognition or permission from Suzanne Collins herself.

Currently, La Croix is immersed in the creation of his latest novel, which reimagines L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz” universe. Set years after the original story’s conclusion, the novel takes a darker turn, with Glinda trapping Dorothy in stasis while she battles a mysterious gloom that engulfs the land of Oz. Dorothy eventually breaks free and embarks on a journey to restore balance. With elements reminiscent of “Shutter Island,” this tale promises numerous unexpected twists and a mind-blowing conclusion.

Philip La Croix’s ability to overcome writer’s block, adapt to evolving characters, and explore diverse genres highlights his resilience and commitment to storytelling. As readers eagerly await his upcoming works, La Croix continues to captivate audiences with his imaginative narratives and the unbridled passion that drives his writing.

 

Stay Tuned for an interview Session with Author here on Studio Carry On Harry

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Authors and Artists

The Evergreen Emotion

Harry J

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The Evergreen Emotion

About You and Your background ?

Srijit Chakraborty The Evergreen EmotionI am a school student who was passionate about writing since childhood until the overwhelming passion turned me to an author from a writer. I also take keen interest in quizzing and martial arts.

 

Title Of Your New Release

The Evergreen Emotion

 

How much does your life reflects in your poetry ?

Well, I won’t insist on saying that all the poetries I write reflects my life but definitely some poems have a essence of my life.

 

What is the central Emotional theme of your poetry book ?

The central theme of my book is itself emotion especially the untold emotions which lie deep within us but we never exhibit in front of the world.

 

Any personal expressions of life behind the book ? Someone/Something that inspired

Yes there are quite a few poems which are totally inspired from my personal life.

 

Have you already started working on next book ? What is on your mind for it ?

Yes currently I am working on a book in my mind. Alike the previous book this book also aims to bring untold stories but in the form of a story and not a poem. The next book will also be embedded with some important values which would definitely add to reader’s interest. Though the story would be a fictional one but it would end up teaching some lesson and values like a non fictional book does. So I personally prefer calling my a fictionalized nonfiction.

 

Some Bits from book chapter you would like to share as curtain raiser for reader to know about what they are going to get from it ?

 

The Evergreen Emotion speaks about a diversity of topics from love to loss or being it family relations or socially important topics. Most importantly it gives you a new view point to look on life. There are poems such as ‘The flow’ which supports my statement.

 

How did you hear about CarryOnHarry ? Any message for Studio ?

I heard about CarryOnHarry from Google search.

 

Amazon / Book Purchase Link

 

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