“Hope Is The First Dose” by W. Lee Warren

Posted September 27, 2023 by Prairie Wife - 3 comments

“Hope Is The First Dose” is the second of W. Lee Warren’s books that I have read…and I found it no less powerful and impactful than the first.

You can find a full review of “I’ve Seen the End of You” here, but I wanted to share one of my favorite quotes from the book.

“Faith allows us to see that it’s okay to have doubt…It allows us to hold on and even grow into better people during and despite the troubles of this life.”

Dr. Warren’s newest book is about facing trauma (from the past or present), and it’s written from the voice of experience.

Not only is Dr. Warren a former combat surgeon from Iraq, but he and his family have also experienced their own personal tragedy.

Dr. Warren touches on this tragedy in “I’ve Seen the End of You” but not in the depth that he does in “Hope is the First Dose”.

Right now, I am giving you a Kleenex warning because I care about you.

Even though I knew about the death of his son Mitch, I was not prepared at all for the brutally honest way that Dr. Warren lays his pain, anger, fear, and raw grief out there for the rest of us to see.

Maybe it’s because I know Dr. Warren personally, maybe it’s because my own son is nearing the age of Mitch when he was killed…all I know is that I was a sobbing wreck as I attacked the first few chapters of this book.

But thankfully, Dr. Warren doesn’t leave the reader alone and in pain after breaking our hearts while sharing his family’s own heartbreak.

He calmly and honestly leads us through his journey of healing…dropping off wise words, practical tools, and hope as he goes.

I appreciated that throughout this book, Dr. Warren shares how others helped him along the way.

He doesn’t pretend that he found the answers all on his own.

He doesn’t give all the credit to divine inspiration, prayer, and God’s word.

Instead, he shares short, impactful stories of conversations with his beloved wife Lisa or his children or other family members that kept him moving towards the next hour, the next day.

He shares how a phone call at the right time from a past patient or an experience or conversation with a colleague forced him to have a new perspective.

A new thought.

A new mantra.

A new hope…

I think, for me, this was the best part of the book.

While reading, I realized that whenever the people around him were willing to share their pain, it helped lead Dr. Warren to hope and the strength to live again.

I’ve experienced my own losses and trauma.

Frankly, I don’t know any adult who hasn’t.

To hear the message that my past pain can be used to heal others, that sharing my stories out loud can offer the hope that someone else desperately needs…

It was powerful.

In “Hope is the First Dose,” Dr. Warren gives his readers practical tools to work through their trauma, charts to help more visual learners, bold quotes to emphasize essential points, and poignant and perfectly placed Bible verses.

“Rather than be a sufferer who succumbs to tragedy, choose to be a survivor who recovers with hope. It will take some soul surgery. It will hurt. It will leave a scar. But you won’t take this journey alone. There is a treatment plan to heal your heart…and the first dose is hope.”

Categories: Book Reviews, Reviews

Tags: , Book Review, dr warren, healing from trauma, hope, hope is the first dose, motivation, self help, trauma, w. lee warren