Interesting medical books from a patient's/family's perspective

[thesundowner]

i love to read true stories about people's experience with disease and injury - i feel the perspective helps me to be a better nurse. these are my favorite books and i am hoping people will share their favorite books as well. i am a neuro/rehab nurse so i am drawn to the neuro stories.

a three dog life by abigail thomas. her husband suffered a severe brain injury and the book talks about his recovery and how she handled the life-altering changes that came with having a brain injured husband.

a stroke of insight by jill bolte taylor, md. this one is really interesting - a young neuro scientist suffers a massive left sided stroke. fascinating to read about the stroke and recovery from the perspective of a neuro scientist. i have actually given this book to my patient's families to read.

the bell and the butterfly: a memoir of life in death. (from amazon) "in 1995, jean-dominique bauby was the editor-in-chief of french elle, the father of two young childen, a 44-year-old man known and loved for his wit, his style, and his impassioned approach to life. by the end of the year he was also the victim of a rare kind of stroke to the brainstem. after 20 days in a coma, bauby awoke into a body which had all but stopped working: only his left eye functioned, allowing him to see and, by blinking it, to make clear that his mind was unimpaired. almost miraculously, he was soon able to express himself in the richest detail: dictating a word at a time, blinking to select each letter as the alphabet was recited to him slowly, over and over again. in the same way, he was able eventually to compose this extraordinary book."

what are your favorite medical/nursing books?

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down - a true story of the clash between Eastern and Western medicine focusing on a family with an epileptic child. A. Fediman author

Ghost Map by S. Johnson - story of the last major cholera epidemic in London. First recorded incident of using scientific methods to track down source of disease.

Demon Under the Microscope by Hager. Search for first "miracle drug". Amazing link to cystitis and common OTC drug

I love medical history but also fact + fiction. Cobra Event andd Hot Zone by R. Preston and Deadly Feasts by R. Rhodes will blow you away. First two were made into movies.

[CompleteUnknown]

i would love to read a stroke of insight - i saw a 20 minute video of jill bolte taylor speaking about what happened the morning of her cva and i've never forgotten it, amazing stuff. i must look for the book.

i have read jean-dominique bauby's book, it's fantastic, very sad but also very inspiring.

[BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN]

The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine -Francis Collins

[sbostonRN]

I've never read it but I'm interested in reading it soon:

"Still Alice" by Lisa Genova.

It's about a woman who suffered early onset Alzheimers and the effect that it had on her and her family. It's fiction but is written by a neuroscientist.

[RNperdiem, RN]

"Where is the Mango Princess: a Journey Back from Brain Injury" was written by the wife of a man who sustained a traumatic brain injury during a boating accident.

The author takes us through the journey from accident to rehab to life with a man who has changed in personality. She struggled to forgive the careless teenager who forever changed their lives by causing the accident, she endures the uncertain prognosis families face when TBI occur.