Don't Forget to Wash Your Hands

Non-Fiction, Memoir

“Don't forget to wash your hands.”

Six words. No concern. No questions. No care. And somehow, that was the most honest thing she’d ever said to me.

This is what “no contact” looks like before you call it that.

This is a memoir about two things happening at once:

• A body failing in slow motion while the world shuts down.

• A lifetime of learning to stay quiet, be compliant, and accept scraps, until you can’t anymore.

It’s about hospitals, waiting rooms, “elective” pain, and what it does to your nervous system when you already grew up in threat. It’s about the moment you stop calling a pattern “miscommunication,” and start calling it what it is... narcissistic abuse.

Born to an abusive mother who shouldn’t have had children, it wasn’t until I met the love of my life that I finally understood my self-worth. While awaiting surgery during the pandemic, I finally had the epiphany of a lifetime.

This book is for you if:

• You have a parent who only shows up when they want something.

• You learned to be “easy,” “quiet,” “reasonable,” and “grateful,” even when you were suffering.

• You’ve had medical experiences where you felt minimized, delayed, or treated like your pain was negotiable.

• You’ve ever realized that the relationship isn’t falling apart… it’s operating exactly as designed.

• You’re craving a story that doesn’t preach, doesn’t perform healing, and doesn’t wrap everything in a bow.

What You’ll Get on the Waitlist

• First announcement when the book is available

• Cover reveal + launch date delivered straight to your inbox

• Behind the scenes excerpts from the manuscript as it moves toward publication

Dana Skalin writes about survival that doesn’t look dramatic, healing that doesn’t look pretty, and the quiet decisions that change everything. If this resonates with you, join the waitlist now!