The Rest of the Iceberg

Among the criticisms leveled at me recently, the most amusing was the implication that my practice style and politics can be immediately grasped by reviewing the Childbirth Practices Reading List I have posted on this blog:  "Her sidebar reading list tells the whole story. Rural Doc is clearly trying to split the difference between sound practice and crunchy dogma."

The unwavering certainty of this statement astonishes me. If the commenter had bothered to consider other interpretations of the list of books I chose to include on this blog, she might have arrived at the real reason for my interest in reading about home birth, birthing chairs, and birth practices in non-Western cultures and religious groups:  to widen my perspective on childbirth in order to meet my patients' needs better. 

In medical school and residency I learned almost everything about standard medical obstetrics. I have read Williams' Obstetrics cover to cover and, during my chief resident year, I could recite chapter and verse of ACOG's Compendium on management of practically anything pregnancy-related. Yet I learned nothing about alternative childbirth practices, the types of issues my patients brought to my attention when I arrived in Rural. So, like any good student, I did some research and found the books referenced on the sidebar, most of which I haven't read yet because they are proper academic studies with footnotes and other sleep-inducing features, best ingested sparingly and over time.

Truth be told, I haven't been reading any books relating to medicine or childbirth or anything else of interest to a medical weblog. People who know me know I have a wide range of interests and I read voraciously on any subject occupying my mind. My house is filled with books, and so is my garage, and if I shared with you everything I'm reading, have read, or plan to read, the resulting list would fill a couple thousand home pages. Here's a selection of what I've been dipping into lately:

I just finished Chrisopher Mason's book on the Sotheby's-Christie's price-fixing scandal of the early 2000s. I love art and the art world, and although clearly I don't buy anything at these high-priced auction houses, I still enjoy the scandal and backstabbing of a rattling good white-collar crime.

Currently in progress on the Kindle is a fluffy book of profiles by Simon Doonan. He sought out nutty women, real eccentrics and independent thinkers, and compiled them under one banner of Wacky Chicks. This is who I want to be when I grow up.

I'm developing an interest in all things Chinese lately--well, make that most things Chinese--including Chinese export ceramics. This is a vintage reference book on the subject.

I come from a family of collectors and I'm hopelessly afflicted with the collecting bug myself. I'm interested in other people's collections and find auction catalogs devoted to the sale of individual collector's things provides insight into this eccentric practice. This is an auction catalog of items from the author Truman Capote's many collections. It is wonderfully illustrated and the commentary is illustrative of the man's mind. For example: "Lot 1140: A miscellaneous group of eight glass table articles....Capote had a well-known collection of paperweights, but he also collected glass door knobs and finials because they reminded him of paperweights." Why do I find this explanation of the man's collecting impulses so touching? I don't know, but I do.

When not struggling with the intricacies of being a rural doctor, I can be found hard at work redecorating my house. I'm motivated to do so because of my partner's recent diagnosis of melanoma, which led to a great desire to create a restful, fun, secure home for us to be in while we slug through the uncertainty of this illness. Jonathan Adler is a designer and potter who promotes fun interiors as a path to good mental health. As a doctor, I'm skeptical. As a woman, I think he's right on.

Another inspiring design book is House of Belief, in which Kelee Katillac details the homes of people who have gone outside the box to create truly individual environments. She includes stories of cancer survivors who paint wall murals in the bathroom and mixed-media mosaics in the kitchen--awesome, life-affirming, and fab.

As you can see, the serious and "crunchy" titles listed on my sidebar represent only a sliver of my reading interests. I think we fall victim to the American mania for sound bites and bumper-sticker politics when we extrapolate a person's character and politics from a single list of books. If you must generalize from my reading interests, I would prefer to be known as a wacky chick, upbeat decorator, or nutty collector than someone who splits the difference between sound medical practice and crunchy dogma. Whatever that means.

Comments

[Andrew]

Remember the Sotheby's / Christie's price fixing scandal a few years back?

John J. Greene, the U.S. Justice Department prosecutor who had been pursuing a variety of art frauds for 11 years, got a tip that Sotheby's and Christie's had agreed to price fixing.

Since that whole blowout, it has been a huge mystery just who that anonymous tipster really was.

The answer? Brooke Knapp. (Sotheby's Realtor in southern California.)

That's right, Brooke Knapp was having an affair with Christie's CEO. He broke it off, and the rest is the result of a woman scorned.

Hell hath no fury.

[Rachel]

You know, this is one of the very reasons many people (including many librarians like myself) objected to USA PATRIOT ACT provisions regarding library records - because what you *think* you know about a person by examining what s/he is reading can be very, very wrong.

[Kitt]

It's a good think you're not a Vlogger. Youtube commentors are the worst!

Teh internetz are full of haters.

I, for one, have never read any of your critics. I wouldn't even know about them if you didn't mention them yourself. I'm not particularly interested in what they have to say about you, because, frankly, they're not as interesting as you.

We may not be as vocal as the haters, wierdos and whackjobs, but you have fans and we like you. We "get" you. See, we know that on the inside you're not made up of organs and bones and others stuff like that. You are made entirely of awesome.

[Jane]

I think you rock, Theresa! If you stop responding to what the angry, little bloggers and posters say about you, they will probably give up and leave you alone. I do understand the instinct of wanting to respond to criticism, though.

This situation reminds me of your college professor who told you you couldn't do the oral history project - looking back now, you realized you shouldn't have let her meanness and rejection bother you.

[dragonfly]

Well, congratulations on being a significant enough member of the blogerati to attract some malcontents (jk). Personally, I love your blog, and though I may not know you personally or be able to extrapolate everything about you based on a blog posted several times a week, I would be thrilled to have you as a doctor, colleague or friend.
Hope all is well with you and your partner.

[Bardiac]

I must admit, seeing David Cressy's book on your sidebar fascinates me, but I don't think it's going to help much with your patients. (Except maybe in the "don't do that!" sort of way. Or in the way that will make you really happy for modern medicine and hygiene.)

It's a really cool book if you're into early modern English culture, though!

[Mike]

No need to justify your reading choices to that lot.

Did you happen to notice that the person that originally posted your link unsubscribed. She says you don't seem like you know what you're doing as a doctor and that makes her uncomfortable.

I guess you shattered someone's mindset by showing them that doctors are human. It makes someone uncomfortable that you don't claim to have all of the answers all of the time. Do note she's a part of "Dr. Amy's" community.

My wife and I love your writing.

[rlbates]

There's so much more to most of us, isn't there?