A duet memoir of blindness, trauma, resilience, and daring to change their community.
Book Summary
What We Can’t See—The Heart Can Imagine is the intertwined story of a blind physician and a psychologist shaped by early trauma, each navigating the invisible terrains of loss, resilience, and hope and determination. Told in alternating chapters, our memoir explores how two very different lives converged, unfolded in unexpected ways, and how love amplified our persistence in transforming adversity into innovation. Confronting stereotypes about disability and stigma about addiction we combined forces to build an addiction treatment clinic that challenged the status quo. Our story can be yours. Hard work prevailed; science and data combined with compassion got results. Applying the art of instigating and managing change can prevail. This is our story about the stubborn ways the heart keeps imagining its way forward.
What You Can't See: the Heart Can Imagine: A Memoir about Possibility in Addiction Treatment, Mental Health and Resilience beyond Blindness and Trauma
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Who We Are
Cheri Walker Hartman, PhD, is a psychologist, writer, educator, and community advocate. She was named the 2021 City of Roanoke Citizen of the Year.
David W. Hartman, MD, is a blind physician and the first person to graduate from medical school without sight in modern medicine. His life and work have been defined by resilience, innovation, and service. His awards include Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.
Together, we bring two perspectives, two histories, and one shared commitment to providing the best possible care to vulnerable people in our communities. We both serve on the faculty of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and give presentations on disability inclusion, addiction, and motivational lessons from the pursuit of purpose in life.
