My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey

I am a Neuro-therapist and find this book important for any one working with stroke patients and family members of stroke patients. It definetly explains the situation from the patients outlook and gives one the insight into some of the "strange" behavior from the patients and has the family / clinician take a closer look at what "they" are expect from the patient and what the patient really wants. Very good reading

As a neuroanatomist, Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor understands the brain in ways that the majority of people will never understand. Thus, as she experiences a stroke first hand, she is able to give valuable insight to the scientific community as to exactly what took place during that critical time. She writes her thoughts in her book, My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey. Just as valuable, is the fact that she is able to chronicle her steps to recovery, including both the helpful and unhelpful rehabilitation methods. Most importantly, she is able to connect science with emotion in explaining what was occurring in her brain through this difficult journey. In this review, I seek to explain my thoughts and opinions about Dr. Taylor's writing of her experience.

Overall, I feel that this book can offer valuable information to the neuroscience community. It is very rare that a person experiences something like this and knows enough about the brain to be able to correlate clinical symptoms and a scientific explanation. However, I did not agree with the almost spiritual tone Dr. Taylor takes in order to help explain the new way she now lives her life. The book begins by Dr. Taylor explaining about her life before the stroke and then moves into a general overview of the brain and strokes. She identifies various areas of the brain and what they do and also examines the different ways a stroke can occur. The next portion of the book deals with the stoke itself. She details what happened that morning, including what she felt and the thoughts that were going through her mind. She writes about how she was able to call for help and how much thought and effort that took while in the midst of the stroke. What is so interesting is that the entire time this is going on, Dr. Taylor still seems to be able to think clearly and remember what she was thinking. The problem for her was making her thoughts into actions. The rest of the book (and the majority) is spent detailing Dr. Taylor's recovery. She covers everything from basic exercises to help regain function to the more emotional and spiritual side of regaining her life. Interspersed throughout are her thoughts on how best to deal with family, friends, and patients who have suffered from a stroke and are trying to recover. She emphasizes that many of the standard treatment options really do not work and many who care for stroke victims are not properly trained. Dr. Taylor concludes her book by looking back over her experience and reflecting on how much she has learned about herself and how to better help those who have experienced a stroke.

I really enjoyed the beginning of the book. I thought it was interesting to see a glimpse of the Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor before the stroke in order to better contrast her life afterwards. It was easy to read and entertaining. I also thought her introduction to the brain was well written. For those who have some idea about neuroscience, the text may seem somewhat elementary, but it is important to remember that this book was written for the general public, most of whom will have very little knowledge of the basic anatomy and functions of the brain. The way she explained the science behind the brain's functioning made sense and I thought her explanation of the various forms of stroke were easy to understand and a very necessary portion of this book. As I finished the beginning section of this book, I was excited to see how Dr. Taylor's tale would continue to unfold.

The next portion of the book, the part where Dr. Taylor actually experiences the stroke, was the most interesting to me. Having the knowledge that she does, she is able to scientifically think about what she was experiencing as it was going on. This provides a very unique point of view that gives the book its appeal. As she is experiencing the stroke she writes, "In that moment I knew. Oh my gosh, I'm having a stroke! I'm having a stroke! And in the next instant, the thought flashed through my mind, Wow, this is so cool!" She is alarmed and fascinated at the same time, which is very interesting to see as a reader.

I did not enjoy the next portion of the book, Dr. Taylor's recovery, as much as the earlier portions. The section takes up the majority of the book and I felt it could be shorter. She makes very good points about a firsthand perspective of rehabilitation offered by therapists and how she feels family and friends can play a big role in helping stoke victims regain their former selves. She also delves into the intensely personal side of her recovery, discussing what she was feeling during all of this time. She writes, "I was, by anyone's standard, no longer normal. In my own unique way, I had become severely mentally ill. And I must say, there was both freedom and challenge for me in recognizing that our perception of the external world, and our relationship to it, is a product of our neurologic circuitry. For all those years of my life, I really had been a figment of my own imagination!" These types of thoughts were somewhat interesting to me, as I feel that her knowledge is valuable in understanding stroke victims around me, but the majority of me felt these types of discussions were hard to read because it was difficult for me to relate to them due to the fact that I do not think in the same way as Dr. Taylor.

My least favorite portion of the book was the end due to the fact that she delves into the spiritual side of her journey. I do not agree with her view and therefore did not particularly enjoy reading this part of her story. She and I have a different opinion on the reason for our existence and why we were put on this earth. Overall, though, I would say this book is a good read for anyone interested in this type of medical nonfiction. Dr. Taylor offers wonderful insight into the workings of the brain and has very valuable advice to offer those who are helping stroke victims recover. This book can be found in bookstores everywhere and I encourage curious readers to pick it up and learn a little bit about how what the brain experiences during and after a stroke.

I'm not sure if Taylor's editor had her dumb down her writing, if she chose to do so, or if, forgive me, her recovery was not as complete as she believes. Having had significant brain injury myself, I don't mean to ridicule her about that possibility, but either way, her writing is still simple. Yes, the content was compelling. Many books can say the same, but without good prose, no such book is worth reading. After all, once we were told what a neuroanatomist is, the "brain scientist" thing was insulting. There are many better recovery books. Here the concept was good; the execution was not.

The author, a neuroanatomist affiliated with the Indiana University School of Medicine, narrates her own autobiography which tells how a 37-year-old brain scientist experienced a massive stroke from an aneurysm, observed her own extensive deterioration and recovery process, and came to understand the brain from more than a researcher's viewpoint. Her audio provides help and hope to any who would understand stroke sufferers and is a top pick for both medical and general lending collections.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This book gives great insight into the working of the brain. It is well worth reading whether or not you have had a stroke. It is a fascinating read and I highly reccommend it