Hope you're doing well? Please find below information about The Silly Thing: Shaping the story of life and death by psychotherapist and academic, Dr Esther Ramsay-Jones, due for release by Free Association Books in October 2020. Esther is the author of a book we represented last year called Holding Time: Human need and relationships in dementia care.
This new book is a personal account of a woman's acceptance of, and struggle with, living and dying with an aggressive cancer of the brain. It is told from the perspective of her daughter - Dr Esther. The book discusses the fears that people might have about dying and specifically about brain cancer: for the author's mother, the tumour affected her speech and, as an English teacher, whose life had so intimately been tied up with language the fear of language loss was at times unbearable.
Though the main focus in this book is her mother's experience, vignettes from the lived experience of practising palliative psychotherapy are woven into the narrative to highlight the value of talking and sharing fears, anger, confusion, loves and gratitude with those who are dying.
Thanks,
Helen Lewis
ADVANCE INFORMATION MEDIA SHEET
The Silly Thing
Shaping the Story of Life & Death
By Dr Esther Ramsay-Jones
The Silly Thing is an account of a woman's acceptance of and struggle with living and dying with a grade 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive cancer of the brain. It is told from the perspective of her daughter, Esther Ramsay-Jones, a psychotherapist and academic.
The book discusses the fears that people might have about dying andspecifically about brain cancer: for the author's mother, the tumour affected her speech and, as an English teacher, whose life had so intimately been tied up with language the fear of language loss was at times unbearable.
From a psychotherapeutic point of view, the book explores what it means to be given a terminal diagnosis and what kinds of psychological responses the ‘patient' and family members might have. It touches on notions of family systems theory, and the roles people might then take up as reaction to the news. The author also looks at ‘difficult conversations' in palliative care - what might help/what might hinder - and the value of listening skills, capacity for attunement and containment, in staff teams and in the medical profession at large.
Though the main focus in this book is her mother's experience, vignettes from the lived experience of practising palliative psychotherapy are woven into the narrative to highlight the value of talking and sharing fears, anger, confusion, loves and gratitude with those who are dying.
About the author
Dr Esther Ramsay-Jones lectures on ‘Death, Dying and Bereavement' at the Open University. Her book Holding Time: Human Need and Relationships in Dementia Care was published in 2019. She has presented her work at various locations around the world and her papers have been published in academic journals and anthologies. Esther practises as a specialist psychotherapist in palliative care, working with people with long-term conditions, and their families. Esther also works in a counselling service for older adults presenting with a range of difficulties and is a counselling tutor in London.
She has worked at the coal-face of frontline care for older people, and those with dementia, and has direct experience of the impact of dementia and terminal illness.
Beyond her work and home life, Esther loves to travel, to write, to swim, run, do yoga and enjoy time with family and good friends. She is the mother to two young children and lives in Buckinghamshire, UK.
ESSENTIAL DETAILS
Title:The Silly Thing
Subtitle:Shaping the Story of Life & Death
Author:Dr Esther Ramsay-Jones
Genre:Psychology, Bereavement, Cancer, Terminal Illness, Death, Dying, Family
Publisher:Free Association Books
Publication:October 31 2020
Availability:Paperback & eBook
ISBN:9781911383444
Price:£11.99
Twitter:twitter.com/EstherWRJ
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/therapyandtomorrows/
Press folder:bit.ly/DrERJ_Press
Online profile:www.literallypr.com/public_relations/file/The-Silly-Thing-by-Dr-Esther-Ramsay-Jones-.php
MEDIA ENQUIRIES:HelenLewis@LiterallyPR.com
+44 (0) 7904801669