When Judith Harrow's husband was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer, the couple was suddenly thrust into the chaotic and frightening world of catastrophic illness. Notes From the Catastrophic Realm, a true story in diary form, began as the author's attempt to respond to her own overwhelming grief and anxiety. Keeping this diary gave her a way to clarify feelings and maintain a modicum of control over her worst fears. Through the act of naming and owning her feelings, then spelling them out on a blank page, she found a welcome measure of comfort. Yet along the way, something unanticipated happened: the author discovered that she was learning as much about living as dying, and more than she could have imagined about the encompassing power of love.