A WALKING DISASTER

Is there a meaning to our suffering? Is hope realistic when tragedy befalls us? Is a return to normalcy possible after our life is uprooted by catastrophe? These are the questions that disaster psychologist Dr. Jamie Aten wrestled with when he was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer. In this gripping memoir, Aten shares the life-affirming and faith-renewing insights that he discovered during his tumultuous struggle against the disease.

Aten’s journey began in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina struck his community. After witnessing the devastation wrought by the storm, he dedicated his career to investigating how people respond to and recover from all manner of disasters. He studied disaster zones around the globe and founded the Humanitarian Disaster Institute at Wheaton College. His expertise, however, was little comfort when a fateful visit with his oncologist revealed advanced and aggressive cancer. “You’re in for your own personal disaster” was his doctor’s prognosis.

Thrust into a battle for his life, with cancer cells and chemotherapy ravaging his body, Aten found his professional interest taking on new meaning. His ordeal taught him firsthand how we can sustain ourselves when burdened with seemingly unbearable suffering. Some of his counterintuitive insights include: to find hope, be cautious of optimism; when you want help the least is when you need it most; and spiritual surrender, rather than a passive act, is instead an act of profound courage.

This last point speaks to the element of grace in Dr. Aten’s story. As he struggled to understand the significance of his suffering, he found himself examining his Christian faith down to its bedrock and learned to experience the redeeming presence of God in his life. Dr. Aten has a natural exuberance that shines through his writing. Infused with his compassionate voice and humanitarian concern, A Walking Disaster is ultimately an inspirational story about the power of the human spirit to endure trauma with courage.

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ENDORSEMENTS

Philip Yancey

author of Where Is God When It Hurts?

“What a script: The head of a disaster institute, who trains others on emergency response, discovers he has Stage 4 cancer, putting to the test everything he has taught. Jaime Aten blends together what he has learned from disasters, both large and small, and offers practical suggestions that can equip all of us to prepare for our personal trials.”

Margaret Feinberg

author of Fight Back With Joy

“Sooner or later we’re all smacked by the great storms of life. Whether hurricanes or illness or divorce or death, it’s hard to know what to do and how to respond. Drawing on rich research and personal storytelling, Dr. Jamie Aten provides an inspiring and practical resource to get you through. Don’t miss this gem of a book.“

Ed Stetzer

Billy Graham Distinguished Chair, Wheaton College

“Jamie’s vulnerability in sharing the raw reality of his ‘personal disaster’—being diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer at age 35, a young father of three girls—will be a balm to any- one who has experienced a disaster of their own. There are no empty promises or inspirational clichés here. Through his personal story and his expertise gathered through years of disaster research, he finds meaning in the struggle and continually comes back to the powerful, enduring promise of God’s faithfulness to redeem our suffering.”

Shayne Moore

author & director of operations at One Million Thumbprints, NFP

“This beautiful book perfectly marries vulnerable personal narrative with professional expertise. The result is a work that leaves a lasting impression and one you will go back to over and over for reference. Aten pulls us in and carries us along as he paves a clear path for all who need to maneuver through our own personal disasters.”

Aubrey Sampson

church planter, speaker, and author of The Louder Song: Listening for Hope in the Midst of Lament

“Dr. Jamie Aten has crafted something special here. Through the lens of his own local suffering, Aten simultaneously takes readers on a global journey—reminding us all that though we are irrecoverably marked by our pain, we are also united by it. Where there is suffering, there is authentic resilience. And where there is resilience, there is hope. Reader, dive in and allow A Walking Disaster to gift you with its hard-won, authentic hope.”

Jo Anne Lyon

general superintendent emerita and ambassador of the Wesleyan Church

“A Walking Disaster is a compelling personal story, woven with psychological and sociological research, and at the same time instructive in healthy responses to both natural and personal disasters. This book is timeless, written in the tone of humility, and deserves a long shelf life."

Harold G. Koenig, MD

professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Duke University, and codirector of Duke’s Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health

“Dr. Aten has written a moving, honest, and inspirational memoir that will give hope to anyone seeking to recover physically, psychologically, and spiritually from a personal disaster. As a scientist and a Christian, rooted in his family and his community, Aten delivers a fully human account of enduring a period of immense suffering and emerging on the other side, fragile but intact, with a new conception of his life, his work, and his faith. Highly recommended.”

M. Elizabeth Lewis Hall, PhD

professor, Rosemead School of Psychology and associate editor, Psychology of Religion and Spirituality

“Jamie tells his story with vulnerability and humor, weaving in relevant research with gems of insight from the faith. I couldn’t put this book down. This book is a powerful model of the redemptive meaning the Christian faith brings to even the worst of disasters.”

Les Parrott, PhD

#1 New York Times bestselling author of You’re Stronger Than You Think

“This is a book for everyone. Why? Because nobody is immune to the jolts of life. And that’s why I urge you to read this compelling book by Jamie Aten. It’s grounded, practical and powerful. Every page will inspire you. Don’t miss out on this powerful message.”

Belinda Bauman

executive director, One Million Thumbprints

“Jamie Aten has written a beautifully human book, endowed with the superhuman strength of hope. Fiercely honest, he makes navigating impossible circumstances possible, breathing courage into not only those of us working to mitigate conflict, disaster and human suffering, but also into those of us who are experiencing our own painful life disasters. I walked away from this book changed, and profoundly grateful.”

Kevin King

executive director, Mennonite Disaster Service

“Dr. Aten writes with a holy charge, telling his survival story with cancer in a gripping manner. What is unique about this account is the comparison of his personal disaster with mass disasters that are happening worldwide. This book is a must read for disaster response practitioners who want to ‘get’er’ done’, alerting us to the emotional and spiritual toll disaster survivors go through.”

Ken Wytsma

author of Pursuing Justice and The Myth of Equality

“Many people feel compassion for and respond to disasters. Few study them. And even fewer commit themselves to teaching others how best to care for men, women, and children during and in the aftermath of unexpected trauma. Dr. Jamie Aten is one of those few. His insights, both from working in disaster zones and from an unexpected encounter with early-life cancer, are deep, nuanced, and profoundly spiritual. If you are looking for wisdom on how to engage disasters—both personal and communal—there may be no finer book. I can’t recommend A Walking Disaster highly enough.”

Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, PhD, FAPA,

Editor-in-Chief, Psychological Trauma

“A Walking Disaster is Jamie Aten's memoir of his personal experience with Stage IV colon cancer and his professional experience of working as a disaster psychologist. Aten is a natural storyteller and seamlessly weaves together these two facets of his life. It is a story of what happens to people when life circumstances knock them sideways--and finding God even in the darkest times. For those walking through their own disaster, this book will be a balm. There are no quick fixes or glib answers. Instead, there is deep empathy from someone who has been there, done that. For helpers, this book gives suggestions on what really helps and what can actually harm. I highly recommend this engaging book.”