Anne McTiernan - Cured: A Doctors Journey from Panic to Peace

SPECIAL PRAISE

for

Cured

Doctors are human, but at times studying to become a doctor requires super-human efforts. In her new memoir that reads like an engrossing novel, Dr. Anne McTiernan highlights the challenges of combining medical school with motherhood. Its a page-turner!

Mikhail Doctor Mike Varshavski, DO Family physician, #1 Health/Medicine influencer with 10,000,000+followers

In Cured, Dr. Anne McTiernan peels back the polished veneer of the accomplished physician scientist to reveal an achingly human, wise, and kind woman with whom we can all identify.

Kathryn Schmitz, PhD, MPH Professor of Public Health Sciences, Penn State College of Medicine and past President, American College of Sports Medicine

Cured: A Doctors Journey from Panic to Peace is a book that speaks to all of us whove feared our dreams are out of reach. Dr. McTiernan tells an engaging and powerful story that will surely inspire many to overcome their fears to accomplish their loftiest goals.

Theo Pauline Nestor Author of How to Sleep Alone in a King-Size Bed and Writing Is My Drink

For anyone needing inspiration for overcoming adversity, Cured is the book for you. Dr. Anne McTiernan shares her life experiences with probing honesty, keen insight, and humor. This is ultimately a story of resilience, survivorship, and the power of the human spirit.

JoAnn E. Manson, MD, DrPH, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Chief of Preventive Medicine, Brigham and Womens Hospital Boston, Massachusetts

A fascinating look at the making of a physician. Dr. McTiernans story is full of extraordinary ups, agonizing downs, and remarkable moments of self-discovery. This book is as real as it gets. I couldnt put it down.

Matt McCarthy, MD, Author of Superbugs: The Race to Stop an Epidemic, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Weill-Cornell Medicine

Cured

A Doctors Journey from Panic to Peace

A Memoir

Las Vegas

Central Recovery Press (CRP) is committed to publishing exceptional materials addressing addiction treatment, recovery, and behavioral healthcare topics.

For more information, visit www.centralrecoverypress.com.

2021 by Anne McTiernan.

All rights reserved. Published 2021. Printed in the United States of America.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

Publisher: Central Recovery Press

3321 N. Buffalo Drive

Las Vegas, NV 89129

26 25 24 23 22 211 2 3 4 5

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Title: Cured : a doctors journey from panic to peace : a memoir / Anne McTiernan.

Description: Las Vegas, NV : Central Recovery Press, [2020] | Summary: A trailblazing physician and health researcher shares her journey of resilience and self-awakeningProvided by publisher.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020015984 (print) | LCCN 2020015985 (ebook) | ISBN 9781949481389 (paperback) | ISBN 9781949481396 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: McTiernan, AnneMental health. | PhysiciansUnited StatesDiaries.

Classification: LCC R154.M35 A3 2020 (print) | LCC R154.M35 (ebook) | DDC 610.92 [B]--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020015984

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020015985

Photo of Anne McTiernan by Susie Fitzhugh.

Every attempt has been made to contact copyright holders. If copyright holders have not been properly acknowledged please contact us. Central Recovery Press will be happy to rectify the omission in future printings of this book.

Publishers Note

This book contains general information about mental health, anxiety, panic attacks, and related matters. The information contained herein is not medical advice. This book is not an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other professional healthcare provider.

Our books represent the experiences and opinions of their authors only. Every effort has been made to ensure that events, institutions, and statistics presented in our books as facts are accurate and up-to-date. To protect their privacy, the names of some of the people, places, and institutions in this book may have been changed.

Cover design and interior by Marisa Jackson.

TO MARTIN, CASSANDRA, AND RACHEL

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book exists thanks to many people. Some taught me to be a healer, some helped me heal, and others guided me as I wrote my narrative.

First, I thank my husband Martin, who encouraged me throughout the development of this book. Most importantly, he allowed his story to appear on these pages. The book would not have its emotional depth without his inclusion. He also read several drafts, performed excellent editing, and gave me suggestions on how to improve clarity.

I thank also our two beautiful daughters, Rachel and Cassandra, and their wonderful families for tolerating my life-baring narrative. I thank them for allowing themselves to appear in this book. They really were the adorable children I wrote about. Throughout my medical training, they helped me to ground myself in the present and avoid fretting about the past or fearing the future. Their childrenEsme, Martin, and Isaacnow do the same for their Grandma.

I am grateful to my wise agent, Anne Devlin, for her continued encouragement and support. I give special thanks to Nancy Schenck for shaping and improving the book. Special thanks also to Valerie Killeen and John Davis for believing in the book and continuing to include me in the Central Recovery Press family and to Patrick Hughes for his guidance in helping Cured reach a wide audience.

My first creative writing teacher, Theo Nestor, taught me the art and science of memoir. Her influence shows throughout this book and its predecessor, Starved: A Nutrition Doctors Journey from Empty to Full (Central Recovery Press, 2016). Jennifer D. Munro, my developmental editor and mentor, helped me see the big picture in Cured. She also performed brilliant word surgery as she edited this book.

I thank the many family members, friends, and colleagues who have encouraged me as I wrote this memoir. I am indebted to Deborah, Frank, Jenny, and Marcia for helping me to grow emotionally. Finally, I am eternally grateful to Jack, who helped me out of an anxious abyss and taught me to feel rather than fear.

This book is a memoir; and, as such, reflects my memory of events during my medical training and earlier life. I reconstructed conversations from memory; these may differ from other peoples memories. In some cases, I created dialogue to support the narrative. The names and characteristics of my immediate family are real, but I have changed the names and physical characteristics of many other people in the book to preserve their privacy. The patients I wrote about are based on composites of patients. While I cared for individuals with the diseases I describe, the exact characteristics of the patients I describe do not correspond to my actual patients. I did this to preserve their privacy, and to follow legal and good clinical practice guidelines.