Book | Arlene Faulk

At 22, Arlene Faulk, a young professional, loses all feeling from her waist down in one afternoon. Although her mobility returns slowly over time, because she’s given no diagnosis, uncertainty and fear persist for years. She ascends the corporate ladder while keeping her health struggles secret, but during a stressful day at work when Arlene is 43, her body collapses. After a myriad of tests she finally gets a diagnosis: Multiple Sclerosis.

Growing up with a father who was an M.D., she relies on her doctors for a way forward. Nothing seems to help and one day her neurologist says, “There’s nothing more I can do for you.” With her health and career stagnated, Arlene spends two years on her couch experiencing debilitating fatigue. A friend urges her to visit an Eastern medicine practitioner. Arlene is skeptical and does nothing until one day she received a note from her friend that just says “A Gentle Reminder” with a business card attached. Immediately, she makes a phone call and enters the world of integrative medicine and Tai Chi. Step by step she creates a life of health she couldn’t dream was possible.

Walking on Pins and Needles: A Memoir of Chronic Resilience in the Face of Multiple Sclerosis

by Arlene Faulk

Published by River Grove Books.
Available in print or e-book.
Use the links below to order or ask your bookseller to order your copy.

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TESTIMONIALS FOR WALKING ON PINS AND NEEDLES

“Arlene vividly shows how perseverance, changes in lifestyle, and daily commitment to healthy exercises can lead to health. She lives out what I’ve learned through my years of clinical research. Be inspired and get ready to begin your healing journey, a step at a time!”

"Arlene Faulk’s memoir of self-healing shows two decades of ignoring symptoms, burying suffering and refusing to quit. Her succinct, unadorned chapters read like eating popcorn. No woo-woo, no religious visions, but powerful, simple 'steps' that change her illness to life energy."

"In Walking on Pins and Needles, Arlene Faulk delivers a gripping memoir of her exciting professional trajectory, first interrupted, then ultimately flattened, by chronic neurological disease. Hitting a dead end with Western Medicine, she explores other healing modalities, including the ancient, low-impact movements of Tai Chi. Slowly, steadily, her health returns. A powerfully inspirational story, exquisitely written."

"I have known Arlene since I started my integrative medicine and neurology practice at the Heartwood Center in 2013. I know firsthand the healing effects of Arlene’s Tai Chi classes through the experiences of our mutual patients and clients. After reading her memoir, I am honored to know such a truly exceptional individual. Her book documents her journey as she navigates the highs and the lows of life with multiple sclerosis. More importantly, it’s an inspirational account of the power of self-healing. I highly recommend this book to anyone going through their own personal health and healing journey."

"Walking on Pins and Needles is an amazing story of resilience. Arlene finds a way to reinvent herself, obstacle after obstacle. Along the way she finds the healing powers of Tai Chi, and as typical for her, uses this to help heal others. This book is a living example of the impact exercise and positive attitude have on health. It is also a reminder for those of us in the medical field to be persistent in finding positive solutions for our patients and acting as their partners in health. Excellent book to read and share with others who need inspiration!"

"With a quiescent calm and intimacy, Arlene takes us on her journey from getting off the couch to teaching Tai Chi in response to debilitating disease. When Western medicine offered no or unsatisfying answers to what she later learned to be Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Arlene listens to her body and embarks on the world of Eastern medicine and changes her life. This is an inspiring read for Acupuncture and Tai chi students and practitioners and for those with chronic illness who are bold enough to look outside of the box."

"This riveting book tells the astonishing true story of Arlene Faulk's reshaping of her life as she reclaimed it from multiple sclerosis. From her start as one of few women climbing the corporate ladder, she movingly takes us, step by step (literally), through her wrenching descent into a nearly immobile existence—and then her miraculous rise into an active, happy life grounded in the practice and teachings of Tai Chi. Like its author, the book conveys deep truths with deceptive simplicity, straight from the heart. Along with her many other students, I've found inspiration and healing in Arlene's approach to teaching Tai Chi, a gentle way of re-orienting those of us with physical challenges whose echoes resound through this compelling narrative."

"I want to inspire readers to think anew about possibilities and muster courage to face their fears about the unknown." ~ Arlene Faulk