The Room on the Right: A Memoir of Despair, Hope, and Reckoning in the Face of Abuse, Trauma, and PTSD

The abuse began when I was four years old and continued for decades. Yet, somehow, I survived on my path to becoming a physician. A life-and-death encounter with my mentally ill older brother after college added to my trauma. Then came the estrangement from another brother, my closest friend, due to mental illness. Walk with me as I crossed the threshold into counseling and fought my demons by opening the doors to the past, pushed away the darkness, and stepped into the light.

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  • “What makes this memoir so compelling is Mieczkowski’s ability to bring readers into his world with vivid storytelling and emotional depth. His journey—from a young boy enduring neglect and abuse to a successful physician grappling with internal turmoil—highlights the complexity of trauma and the courage it takes to confront it. His descriptions of therapy sessions, flashbacks, and breakthroughs offer a powerful insight into the process of healing, making this book not just a personal story but also a beacon of hope for others who have faced similar struggles.”

    —Mehrdad Khatib, Goodreads reviewer

  • “What makes this memoir so compelling is Mieczkowski’s ability to bring readers into his world with vivid storytelling and emotional depth. His journey—from a young boy enduring neglect and abuse to a successful physician grappling with internal turmoil—highlights the complexity of trauma and the courage it takes to confront it. His descriptions of therapy sessions, flashbacks, and breakthroughs offer a powerful insight into the process of healing, making this book not just a personal story but also a beacon of hope for others who have faced similar struggles.”

    —Mehrdad Khatib, Goodreads reviewer

Headshot of author Lawrence Mieczkowski standing in front of a tree in the fall

About the Author

Lawrence Mieczkowski, MD, is an award-winning physician, speaker, and author. After graduating from Carnegie Mellon University, he completed medical school at the University of Cincinnati and an internal medicine residency at UPMC Mercy. Since retirement, he has been an advocate for ending the silence of mental illness and dysfunctional medical care. His articles have been published on HuffPost, Doximity, and the CPTSD Foundation website. He is a volunteer speaker for the local chapter of NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

He lives with his wife in Ohio.