Bobby Jones Chiari & Syringomyelia Foundation

Patients are often asked to explain years of symptoms, diagnoses, and lived experience in just a few minutes. But most people are never taught how to:

• make sense of their story
• communicate it clearly
• or decide what they want to do with it

In collaboration with Bobby Jones CSF, patient advocate and author Christie Cox introduces:

Crafting Healing Narratives — a free, on-demand course designed to help patients reflect on their journey, organize their story, and choose how they want to share it.

This six-module course (each ~30 minutes) guides you through:

1. Understanding Your Story
   Reflect on your journey, identify key moments, and recognize your resilience.
2. Foundations of Writing
   Learn simple storytelling techniques and define what you want your story to do.
3. Writing as Healing
   Use writing as a tool to process experiences, build resilience, and integrate your story—not just relive it.
4. Communicating to Different Audiences
   Learn how to tell the same story in different ways—to doctors, family, or the public—so you are actually understood.
5. Finalizing & Sharing Your Story
   Explore real options for sharing, from private reflection to blogs, nonprofits, or even publishing.
6. Reflection & Next Steps
   Walk away with stronger communication skills, a sense of closure, and the confidence to use your voice however you choose.

Research shows that writing and reflecting on personal experiences can improve both emotional and physical well-being, while helping patients feel more in control of their care.

But beyond that – this course helps you understand something many patients never realize:

Your story is not just something you went through. It’s something you can use to heal.