Body Punishment - by Maggie Lamond Simone (Paperback)

About the Book

A profoundly heartbreaking yet inspiring story of a professionally successful woman and her struggle with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and addiction.

Book Synopsis

Humor columnist Maggie Lamond Simone's painful journey provides insight for the thousands of others who similarly cut, starve, pick, drink, pluck, purge, and otherwise hurt themselves in private in order to survive in public. She explores the issues of substance abuse, anxiety, and depression that commonly occur with OCD, all in an effort to further the dialog around mental illness and eliminate the shame, because "the shame . . . the shame is a killer."

Maggie Lamond Simone is an award-winning columnist and author. Her first column anthology, From Beer to Maternity, was released in November 2009. She has a black belt in Kenpo karate and a master's degree from the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

Review Quotes

"Sarcastic, witty, insightful! Maggie Lamond Simone writes with a sincerity that is endearing and frank, giving a voice to the internal conversations that lead to silent suffering for many. Body Punishment is an insight into the life and mind of an innocent being conditioned by OCD. The book drifts back and forth through various stages of her life painting a kaleidoscopic vision through her eyes--highly colorful, dramatic, passionate, sharp, and disruptive at times, though beautiful when seeing it as a whole. It is easy for a reader to find his or her own voice somewhere in the pages of this meaningful work!" -- Kaushal B. Nanavati MD, FAAFP, ABIHM, Director, Integrative Medicine, Upstate Cancer Center, Asst. Prof., Dept. of Family Medicine, Upstate Medical University

"In Body Punishment, Maggie Simone provides a deeply personal account of her experiences with OCD and addiction. She shows how one can overcome significant psychiatric challenges while leading a productive, fulfilling life." -- Kevin P. Hill, M.D., M.H.S., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School

"Maggie Lamond Simone weaves a true-to-life story about addiction, eating disorder, and obsessive anxiety in a way that reflects what many patients go through. The message to patients and clinicians alike is to realize that improvement often comes in stages." -- Thomas L. Schwartz, MD, Professor, Psychiatry Department, SUNY Upstate Medical University

"Ms. Simone's style of writing has an inviting and comforting way of discussing a misunderstood and isolating illness. Reading the book was like sitting in an overstuffed couch talking to a best friend. Her willingness to share her struggles gives hope to those suffering with OCD but also those with loved ones with OCD that they can't 'understand.' Wonderful read. I did not put it down until I read it cover to cover!" -- Lisa I. Carroll, Supervising U.S. Probation Officer, Middle District of Louisiana

About the Author

Maggie Lamond Simone is a national award-winning columnist and author. Her humor and observational essays appear in multiple newspapers nationally as well as Family Times, an award-winning monthly parenting magazine in Central New York, and online in the Huffington Post.

Her first column anthology, From Beer to Maternity, was released in November 2009. Her essays are included in three Chicken Soup for the Soul editions and alongside Jacquelyn Mitchard in P.S. What I Didn't Say (Seal Press, 2009). Her columns also appeared for several years in the Sunday edition of the Syracuse Herald American.

She has a black belt in Kenpo karate and a master's degree from the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. She lives in Central New York with her husband and two children.