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What makes this book especially interesting is that the author is a brain researcher and describes and explains the way our brains work so anyone can understand.We clearly have far more control over our daily experience than we imagine. A mind-blowing account of the author's experience before, during, and after a major hemorrhagic stroke due to an AVM. Read this book to find out how and why. This book leads to the question, "who am I" or, "who is this 'I' I take myself to be.". Very thought-provoking for those with an open mind. With much insight, this book fascinates and, ultimately, inspires us to tend the gardens of our minds. Highly recommended.
I loved how she explained how the hemispheres of the brain work together. This was a facinating book to read. I had heard her interviewed on NPR and immediatly ordered it. It was written in laymans terms, easy to understand. I did not give it a 5 star rating because near the end of the book she got a little spacey and seemed to get into new age type thinking.
Taylor tells a compelling story of love and support from her mother and a story of unfolding beauty. My violin teacher sent me a link to a YouTube video of Dr. How many of us would have such a steadfast partner in recovery, or find the beauty in the experience and aftermath. Taylor. I pretty much had to get the book to learn the end to end story.Weaving immediate perception of stroke, academic knowledge of the physical event, personal perception of a lengthy recovery and appreciation of losses and gains, Dr. All in a very accessible read. Bravo.
The book is not really 'touchy-feely' at all. She also did a fantastic job helping the reader understand the importance of appreciating everyday, how to speak and act toward stroke victims, and recognize good and bad energy in others.
I can honestly say I felt the 1 star people completely misunderstood the truly important messages the author provides us in this book. Before writing this review, I read both the 5 star and 1 star reviews already submitted on this book.
Secondly, she helps the reader understand how "our inner voice" (the left brain area) can be turned off, so negative thoughts can be controlled. She gives people hope who struggle with neurocognitive or brain-based medical problems.
She highlights in perfect detail the eagerness of the brain to repair itself. These are just a few things I got from these teriffic book.
It's the celebration of a person who, through very hard work, got her life back, and more.
When the right side of her brain was forced to take over, she fell under its peaceful seduction and allowed the hemorrhage to get much worse.After beginning the next chapter, I noticed an inconsistency in Taylor's writing. It was like an intermission in a long play. Her entire life changed, however, when she had a stroke. The first chapter really just seemed dedicated to bragging about how smart the author is.
I found myself reading faster and faster as she desperately tried to make a phone call. The way it is written, it is as if the she is actually speaking to me. Even when she was able to dial, I felt a stab of despair when she could no longer communicate her situation to her would-be rescuer. It really delivered that sense of urgency that she must have felt at the time. Given, she uses it to show us the difference between her pre- and post-stroke life, but it comes off a little shy of modest nonetheless.Although the first chapter served a purpose, the next two were fairly dull and seemed out of place with the entire story. This was very effective in keeping my attention.
Not only did she have to re-learn how to do everything, from walking to writing, but she had to do it with half of a functional brain.Taylor took a very interesting approach to writing her book. She taught medical students about the brain, and even worked at the Brain Bank, an organization that would accept brain donations in order to further the understanding of the human brain. I am not sure how well I could have handled the situation, nor am I interested in finding out. Before her stroke, she was an accomplished Neuroanatomist. It was almost as if I were reading an action novel.
It also helped Taylor convey her message better. It started like a biography on the author's life, turned into a textbook about the human brain, than became a fast-paced action story, and the next couple of chapters were like a hazy dream. Therefore, re-reading chapters two and three, I found them to be very redundant. My Stroke of Insight is Jill Taylor's remarkable tale about her recovery from a terrible brain hemorrhage. I remember a wave of relief washing over me when her co-worker arrived at the door to take her to the hospital.I was still very shaken up by the helplessness that Taylor experienced. Being helpless and completely dependent on others is one of my biggest fears. The most amazing part was that with all of her vast knowledge, she was unable to recognize what was wrong until the stroke really hit her.
It seemed like she did suspect something was wrong, but she was in denial at first. With any other book it would be a nuisance, but in My Stroke of Insight it does an excellent job of showing how everything is in constant disarray when the brain suffers from a stroke. She completely lost touch with the left hemisphere of her brain. I'm not sure if that is what Taylor was aiming for when she wrote her book, but I found it to be very poetic. Though the facts presented in the chapters may be interesting to a select few, Taylor effectively details what she can and cannot do throughout the book and specifically mentions what part of the brain is responsible for it. Luckily, in chapter four, the book finally starts to become interesting, albeit Taylor still tries to impress her readers with her vast knowledge of the brain.The fifth chapter was the most exciting out of the entire book. Each chapter was as if it were from a different book.
She did an excellent job in writing the book, and I am very pleased that I had the opportunity to read it.
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