Schwartz, who serves on the Board of Directors of the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor, ( http://aath.org )explains his approach to the book. “It is psychologically impossible for humor and stress to co-exist. When you can find the lighter side of any situation --even a cancer diagnosis-- you can approach it and manage it better. My book takes a serious subject and overlays humor to remove the stress while hitting home with important messages about prevention, diagnosis, and the positive expectation of living beyond the prostate-related diseases.”
Because of the way the mind and body are interrelated, the patient's attitude has a strong influence on the outcome of treatment. "Fear, Panic, anger and depression can impede medical therapies," he says, "But optimism, love, support, and yes, humor and laughter, are therapeutic allies."
Schwartz’s knowledge of the value of a witty perspective has been on his mental health radar screen for a long time, "But it came into full focus recently when I faced this serious diagnosis myself. I was determined to use every weapon at my disposal, especially the one I could self-administer:
Speaking in the voice of the prostate itself, and using cartoon graphic images, he cuts this troubling subject down to a manageable size. Comedy film master Charlie Chaplin said that life is a tragedy in close-up, but a comedy in the long shot, because humor provides much-needed psychological distance and perspective.
Schwartz eases the inherent stresses of the prostate cancer conversation while educating the reader with the facts and opening the door to a more effective conversation with a primary care physician, urologist, radiation oncologist, medical oncologist, and even a know-it-all next-door neighbor.
To Pee or Not to Pee ( http://www.buybooksontheweb.com/
DR. JOEL L. SCHWARTZ - An award-winning and board-
