| View Larger Image | If I only Had a Brain Injury | Paperbackby Laura Bruno (Author)
| List Price: | $19.98 | | Price: | $17.09 | | You Save: | $2.89 (14%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | Paperback | | Publisher: | Xlibris Corporation | | Edition: | Firstth Edition | | Page Count: | 196 Pages | | Publication Date: | March 28, 2008 | | Sales Rank: | 602,604nd |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
"If I Only Had a Brain Injury is a page-turner and a must-read. It is a testimony of the power of believing in oneself, a true survival story." --Alina Oswald "The 'Oz' analogy is something I had never thought of and it is perfect. ... The book will be a great resource. ... I especially like that you offer ways to deal with the emotional impact on survivors, friends and family members. Your book will be of great help to families. I see it all the time, people with TBI are looking for anything that will help, and conventional medicine can only do so much." -----Karen Ruppert--Nurse Manager, trauma rehabilitation unit at Harborview Medical Center Unlike other books on healing from so-called "Medical Mysteries," If I Only Had a Brain Injury encourages readers to chart their own inspirational journeys. The book's structure follows The Wizard of Oz storyline (Dorothy's journey begins with a concussion), guiding readers to a "yellow brick road through recovery." A collection of personal examples, alternative treatments and spiritual growth exercises, this book also offers wisdom from thirteen contributors, including Robin Cohn (Vice President of New York State Brain Injury Association), Dr. William Padula (Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association), Dana Reeve, and Kay Strom. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 15 reviews)
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A wealth of research and information, and an enjoyable read by M. Jamison (Reno, NV)  5 Stars
November 06, 2009
There's a lot of good information in this book, even for healthy people, some good insights and motivation, common sense and many useful and diverse resources. Well written, with skillful analogies to the Wizard of Oz. I think it has the potential to help a lot of people. If I was injured, I wouldn't hesitate to pass it on to everyone who knew me.
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A great blessing! by Paula Thorwart (Ridgway, PA United States) 5 Stars
April 26, 2009
This book, I gave to a family member as a GIFT. I did skim through parts of it,and found it to be heaven sent. Thank You!!!!
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A Great Resource for Traumatic Brain Injuries by Sandy Rakowitz (Charlottesville, VA) 5 Stars
September 23, 2008
If I Only Had a Brain Injury is a delightful, powerful and highly informative book. Beautifully written, Laura Bruno draws upon her experiences with her own Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) from a car accident. Her descriptions are vivid, deeply and personal. The book is very supportive and is an excellent resource for those dealing with Traumatic Brain Injuries and their caregivers. The book is also vitally important for those dealing with challenging and mysterious health issues like Chronic Fatigue, Lyme Disease and Migraines.
Bruno tells her own story while expertly weaving her insights within the context of the Wizard of Oz. I loved the humor, playfulness and utter seriousness in the book in the chapter titles and content. In the chapter, Somewhere Over the Rainbow Bruno states that her aim is, "...to inspire you and to guide you to resources that will empower you to take control over your own health and wellbeing."
Gradually after Bruno's own accident she began to realize that she had entered into a new land, and needed to learn anew. She recounts these realizations in the chapter, We're not in Kansas Anymore. Bruno says, " Like Dorothy, I knew I could not return the way I arrived. Like Dorothy, I eventually found my way "back home," but I took the Technicolor journey with me. I wrote this book to help others to do so, to."
And, like Dorothy following the yellow brick road to find her way back home to Kansas, the book emphasizes actions you can take in your recovery from the symptoms of these various illnesses that are so mysterious to the medical community. Bruno says in the chapter titled "Glinda," that "This chapter suggests ways to find the Glinda's along your journey...Even in the Wizard of Oz, Glinda prefers to help Dorothy help herself." She includes an excellent listing of resources to contact. For instance, she notes that you might want to contact a Behavioral optometrist that specializes in connections in mind, body and vision because "...a majority of people with neurological issues suffer from visual impairment. If you have any of the flowing symptoms, you may benefit from visual therapy or prism lenses: Concentration problems; Double vision; Headaches; Difficulty reading; Balance disorders; Clumsiness; Eyestrain; Intolerance of flickering lights; Intolerance to varied backgrounds; Panic Attacks; Easily becoming overwhelmed; Vertigo.
If I Only Had a Brain Injury is like a breath of fresh air as it offers hope where typically there is none. As Bruno notes, so many head injuries and their effects are not detected, diagnosed or treated. Many people are told that they do not show any medical evidence of a medical injury even though they are experiencing severe difficulties in daily functioning since the time of their accident or since the onset of their illness. And, even when a brain injury and trauma is recognized, there have been very limited resources to assist in continued rehabilitation.
My level of awareness about the nature of head injuries and its effects has risen dramatically from reading this book. This includes helping me to understand some of my own experiences from knocking my head with numerous falls off of horses, minor car accidents and some of my own hard to diagnose symptoms. I now keep this book by my bedside for personal quick reference and I also have a copy available in my office for those clients who have had head injuries.
If I only Had a Brain Injury is an excellent resource that I very highly recommend for anyone who has experienced a Traumatic Brain Injury as well as their family members, caregivers, medical professional and therapists. For anyone whose life has been touched in some manner with a Traumatic Brain Injury or by any illness that has been a medical mystery, this book will be of great value.
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Lyme Disease help here too! by Inger Anderton 5 Stars
July 08, 2008
I got this book yesterday afternoon and I have been gobbling it up! Right from the start I identified with the writing. I, too, had a feeling that my evening at the outdoor amphitheater that July 26th night in 2005 could change my life. I didn't know how and so I ignored my irrational feelings. I went to the ballet and although we were sitting inside I must have picked up the tick as we walked across the lawn to the amphitheater. 10 days later, almost to the hour, I was very, very sick. The Lyme crossed the blood brain barrier and I have had neurological and emotional problems. My stupid neurologist says I am "in the normal range" even when I have vertigo and was falling back on my head walking down the street, have huge memory gaps, sometimes make no sense, etc. I told him it wasn't normal for me, but ended up getting nowhere and leaving his office in tears.
My boyfriend of 12 years (with whom I attended the ballet that night) became very frustrated and angry. I am no longer the same woman he signed up for. We separated in the Fall of 2007. He felt I was not "trying hard enough" to get better.
My family thinks I am mentally ill. In fact over the last 9 months I have been misdiagnosed with either depression or Bipolar II disorder and mis-medicated, which DID make me pretty crazy. I am now convinced I ought not to be on any medications but treat myself holistically. I have been medication free for one month and that has made a huge difference for me.
So, I am so thankful for the book! I am finding out that I need to listen to myself and not depend on doctors to be able to fix me or even diagnose me correctly. I have been changing my diet and using it as my medicine. I have been making sure to get outside and walk or recently I can bicycle again! Soak in some sun. Surround myself with positive people--no angry boyfriend--as much as possible. I am painting again.
I think I was already headed in this direction -- after 11 months of putting my hope and trust in, then floundering in, medical offices, hitting my head against (figurative) wall after wall. Laura Bruno's book gives me such strength and hope for this journey.
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A Clear, Heart-Felt Guide And Support For All Life Challenges by Tania Marie (Reno, NV) 5 Stars
June 22, 2008
If I Only Had a Brain Injury is a beautifully conveyed book that is not only practical, simplistic, and full of easy to apply tips and tremendously helpful, thorough resources, but is also an artistic expression of genuine experience and compassion that takes one on a journey through Oz. Utilizing Dorothy and her friends' experiences to illustrate our own unfolding life processes creates a tangible and easily understood analogy, and coupled with Laura's own personal experiences, truly hits home and creates a relateability that transcends all boundaries. This is not only helpful for those with TBI and medical challenges as listed, but truly is a guideline and means of support for any and all challenges in life that can be simply applied. Finding myself challenged in overly mental focusing and truly not having the desire to do so either, I found Laura's book wonderfully supportive to this. It was easy, quick, and very clear, with nothing to have to read between the lines or mentally figure out. One can open the book to any page and find something valuable easily without it feeling out of context. This works well for people like myself who either don't have time to read, don't have much desire to read, or little focus to do so. You can pick up and leave off at any point and never feel lost and get exactly what you need at every turn. Laura is a beautiful example and expression for us all and one can only look forward to more wonderful books to come from her.
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| Over My Head: A Doctor's Own Story of Head Injury from the Inside Looking Out
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Locked inside a brain-injured head looking out at a challenging world is the premise of this extraordinary autobiography. Over My Head is an inspiring story of how one woman comes to terms with the loss of her identity and the courageous steps (and hilarious missteps) she takes while learning to rebuild her life. The author, a 45-year-old doctor and clinical professor of medicine, describes the aftermath of a brain injury eleven years ago which stripped her of her beloved profession. For years...
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