To guide, inspire , encourage and help !
A stroke is not an easy disease to live with. There are many questions, and many of those have no clear answers. Even for the medical fraternity ! Physical, Mental, Emotional, Social and even Financial aspects so far not even considered start coming to the fore.
Fortunately, now we have Internet. Which does put the world at your “fingertips” literally. There are many blogs, articles, support groups ( such as this one ! ) , videos and books to help both the affected as well as the caregivers face the unknown along with people who have had similar experiences to deal with. And have many times come out the better even. Stories and experiences of other ” Stroke Warriors” serve guide, inspire, encourage and help. And there are many kind stroke management professionals also who have written books easier for the layman to understand.
Here is a compilation of such books, most of which are available on Amazon.
1. “Different Strokes” by Steven Boorstein – At age fifty-two, the author suffered a stroke suffered a stroke after a hit on the ski slopes of Vail. Part-memoir, part-how-to, Steven Boorstein’s book will help you to recover from a stroke, whether you were the victim of one or had to watch a loved one suffer. The book as three distinct sections. First focuses on his own personal experiences , the second on that of others and the third has many helpful resources for the affected and their family.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3zyDAMH
2. “My Stroke of Insight” by Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor – At 37, and in December 1996 Jill Bolte Taylor, a thirty-seven-year-old Harvard-trained brain scientist experienced a massive stroke when a blood vessel exploded in the left side of her brain.A neuroanatomist by profession, she observed her own mind completely deteriorate to the point that she lost the ability to walk, talk, read, write, or recall any of her life, all within the space of four hours. In My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey, Taylor brings to light a new perspective on the brain and its capacity for recovery that she gained through the intimate experience of awakening her own injured mind. The journey to recovery took eight years for Jill to feel completely healed. Using her knowledge of how the brain works, her respect for the cells composing her human form, and an amazing mother, Taylor completely repaired her mind and recalibrated her understanding of the world according to the insight gained from her right brain that December morning.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/335Avr6
3. “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” by Jean-Dominique Bauby – The diary of Jean-Dominique Bauby who, with his left eyelid (the only surviving muscle after a massive stroke) dictated a remarkable book about his experiences locked inside his body. A masterpiece and a bestseller in France. He suffered a massive stroke in December 1995- at age 44 -and only muscle left functioning was in his left eyelid although his mind remained as active and alert as it had ever been. He spent most of 1996 writing this book, letter by letter, blinking as an alphabet was repeatedly read out to him. The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly was published in France on Thursday 6th March 1997. It was immediately hailed as a masterpiece. And then, three days later, he died.The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly, which records Bauby’s lonely existence, is probably the most remarkable book about the triumph of the human spirit, the ability to invent a life for oneself in the most appalling of circumstances.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/32NAkkF
4. “A Mind of My Own: Memoir of Recovery From Aphasia” by Harrianne Mills – A professor is in a motorcycle accident and sustains a TBI. The one thing that defines her, her ability to speak, is altered and she has to learn how to find it again. Facing far more than broken bones and physical impairments, this classical antiquity professor had lost what was most important to her: her ability to successfully use language. This insightful and moving memoir begins with her awakening from a coma and not recognizing family members and follows her journey of recovery. Using journal entries, medical records, letters, and more, she tells her story from multiple perspectives. In a process reminiscent of the literary ascent in Flowers for Algernon, her journal entries illustrate her remarkable journey and provide an intimate narrative of what it takes to become a whole person again after severe brain damage. Her successful step-by-step struggle to return to a normal life is a reminder of what the human spirit is capable.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/32NAkkF
5. “Coping With Stroke: 50 Answers to Everyday Caregiver Challenges” by Monica Vest Wheeler – The main theme in this book is that not only did the stroke survivor go through the stroke, but the caregiver/family did too. Full of everyday tips to remind you that your stroke survivor needs to be watched after, the caregiver does too.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3HCxAoZ
6. “A Piece of Her Mind: A Mother-Daughter Journey Through Stroke and Recovery” by Mona Gupton and Stacy Gupton – An interesting perspective as a 21-year-old college student has a stroke and her mom helps her through rehab and her return home.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3qOJEN7
7. Take Brave Steps for Stroke Survivors and Families: A Message of Motivation and Hope” by Ron Gardner – After his stroke, he became a motivational speaker and tries to help people see the positive side of stroke. The book leads survivors and loved ones through the mental, emotional and social maze of stroke recovery. Ron Gardner, a survivor of a devastating stroke, guides readers how to navigate through the fears, adversities and challenges that often go unspoken and unanswered, until now.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/34dpSTO
8. “I’ll Carry the Fork! Recovering a Life After Brain Injury” by Kara Swanson – She shares her Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)/stroke story by talking about the struggles of both the survivor and the caregiver. Long an industry standard, “I’ll Carry the Fork!” has helped countless survivors, loved ones and professionals in the traumatic brain injury community. Her honesty and willingness to share her struggles and triumphs has been changing the lives of survivors and their loved ones for more than fifteen years. This book has been named a suggested and must-read resource for survivors, professionals in every rehab and neurological field, and even in college TBI-related studies. It has been translated into Japanese and her accompanying speeches and blog have circled the globe. This book enlightens with vital information from TBI professionals.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/31rLZVH
9. “The Calm Before the Storm: A Stroke Survivor’s Story” by Delanie Stephenson – At the age of thirty-three, Delanie Stephenson was enjoying life with her husband, two kids, and a teaching job she loved. Blessings abounded, and Delanie thanked God for each one. But it only took a single instant to change it all. Delanie had a stroke—similar to the stroke that Delanie’s twenty-nine-year-old sister had suffered a year before. In her memoir, Delanie describes that summer of 2012 in detail, from those first harried days in the ICU to the tedious physical therapy as she slowly began to crawl her way back to recovery. Not only did Delanie walk and talk again; she emerged from her ordeal even stronger and decided that she would never again take life for granted.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3qWaljc
10. “Stronger After Stroke” by Peter Levine – Stronger After Stroke puts the power of recovery in the reader’s hands by providing simple-to-follow instructions for reaching the highest possible level of recovery. The book’s neuroplastic recovery model stresses repetition of task-specific practice, proper scheduling of practice, setting goals, and measuring progress to achieve optimal results. Researcher Peter G Levine breaks down the science and gives survivors evidence-based tools to retrain the brain and take charge of recovery.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3mZCZyG
11. “Healing and Happiness After Stroke” by Kari Dahlgren – When results of rehab start to slow down or you start to feel stuck, then you may have overlooked an equally important part of recovery: Happiness. By harnessing the power of positive psychology, you can boost self-esteem, overcome depression, break through plateaus, and find the motivation to achieve an amazing recovery. This inspiring self-help guide, complete with practical exercises and essential habits, provides a much needed pep-talk for every stroke survivor on their road to recovery. Based on scientific evidence, stories from stroke survivors, and years of self-help research, Healing and Happiness after Stroke has everything you need to get back on your feet and become a stronger version of yourself.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3sZlORl
12. “The Brain that Changes Itself” by Norman Doidge – Focusing on neuroplasticity, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D., provides an introduction to both the brilliant scientists championing neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they’ve transformed. From stroke patients learning to speak again to the remarkable case of a woman born with half a brain that rewires itself to work as a whole, The Brain That Changes Itself will permanently alter the way we look at our brains, human nature, and human potential.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3JLifUQ
13. “Hope After Stroke” by Tsgoyna Tanzman – For more than 25 years, Tsgoyna Tanzman has helped 1000’s of stroke survivors and their families answer those questions, recover communication skills and find meaning in their lives after stroke. Hope After Stroke reads and feels like a personal therapist is with you simplifying medical language, guiding and empowering you each step of the way. You’ll discover simple practical tools and strategies you can use in the hospital, upon homecoming, and re-entering the community and workplace. Hope After Stroke will help you find the hope, certainty and resolve needed for recovery.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/32Iitf7
14. “Healing the Broken Brain” by Dr. Mike and David Dow – If you’re holding this book, it likely means you or someone you love has had a stroke. Dealing with the onslaught of information about stroke can be confusing and overwhelming. And if you happen to be a stroke survivor with newly impaired language skills, it can be especially hard to comprehend everything your doctors, nurses, and specialists are telling you. This book consists of the top 100 questions that survivors and their families ask, with answers from the top physicians and therapists in the country.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3HD0yFm
15. “Identity Theft: Rediscovering Ourselves After Stroke” by Debra Meyerson – Winner of the 2019 Silver Nautilus Book Award, Identity Theft centers on Debra’s experience: her stroke, her extraordinary efforts to recover, and her journey to redefine herself. But she also draws on her skills as a social scientist, sharing stories from several dozen fellow survivors, family members, friends, colleagues, therapists, and doctors she has met and interviewed. By sharing this diversity of experiences, Debra highlights how every person is different, every stroke is different, and every recovery is different. She provides a valuable look at the broad possibilities for successfully navigating the challenging physical recovery—and the equally difficult emotional journey toward rebuilding one’s identity and a rewarding life after a trauma like stroke.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3njkyFp
16. “Tell Me Everything You Don’t Remember” by Christine Lee – This book is a memoir of the author’s journey after a stroke which changed her life. This memoir encompasses collective accounts, chronologies and perspectives of her pain and struggle towards reinventing herself.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3FYTh1Z
17. To Roots & To Rise – To Root & To Rise is a powerful resource for anyone living with a traumatic brain injury, post-concussion syndrome, stroke, brain tumor or other brain trauma, for family caregivers and friends of brain injury survivors, for brain injury support groups and for medical and neuro-rehabilitation professionals.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3sZTO0g
18. A Stroke of Faith: A Stroke Survivor’s Story of a Second Chance of Living a Life of Significance – Mark Moore always believed he was in charge of his life. All that changed on a beautiful Saturday morning in May 2007. Suddenly he was no longer in control of anything. Though his life will never return to his pre-stroke normality, through this crisis, he has gained a deeper understanding of the centrality of God’s role in his life and in all of our lives. A STROKE OF FAITH tells the story of moving from acceptance to surrender and from hope to faith. It reveals God’s work in Mark’s life as He transformed him from thinking he had everything under control to knowing God has had control all along.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3zufqCR
19. After a Stroke: 500 Tips for Living Well – Updated and expanded new edition of the popular resource written by a stroke survivor who has spent 24 years helping other survivors live life to the fullest potential. After a Stroke: 500 Tips for Living Well is filled with practical tips and support to help you cope with the lifestyle changes that come in the wake of a stroke.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3zufqCR
20.A Stroke of Luck: A Girl’s Second Chance at Life by Juli K. Dixon, Jessica Dixon – Alex was a normal, bright, and healthy little girl, when acute pain and spasms began to take over her life. Medications and therapy did not help. During brain surgery as an attempt to resolve, she suffered a stroke. This book is a remarkable story of a close knot family that meets all such challenges with resilience, hope, and love.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/332IFRc
21. The Stroke of An Artist: The Journey of a Fitness Trainer and a Stroke Survivor by Tracy L. Markley – Tracy is a personal fitness trainer and Gary her stroke affected client. Through this book, both strive to bring hope, encouragement and helpful inputs to all affected and their families. Many anatomy illustrations help make the understanding of rehabilitation process easier.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3pTzUlo
22. STROKE THROUGH A MOTHER’S EYES: THE FIRST YEAR by Felicia Zera Kalapos – Just a fall out of bed for a healthy, 32-year-old wife, mother, runner, and attorney who had recently given birth to her third child. But it changed not only her life but all connected to her. Written in a journal manner by the mother of the affected, this book recounts the struggles through her eyes- for life initially, and then for recovery from paralysis, paraxia and aphasia that the the stroke left the daughter with. The stroke survivor’s road to recovery while attending to the needs of her young family, is one aspect of her inspiring real-life story. The trials and tribulations, and learning of the whole family and all connected is another.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3FWo3IN
23. One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing by Diane Ackerman – Paul, Ackerman’s husband, was a gifted author and intellectual. But then , he suffered a stroke and was afflicted with Aphasia – ‘ when the brain holds the words hostage ‘ . He could utter only one syllable – ‘mem’ . And therapies seemed slow and frustrating. Diane found that, using their deep knowledge and understanding of one another and scientific understanding of language and brain she could help. This book elaborates upon these struggles and recoveries, written in a humane and intimate manner – almost like a love story. The book was a 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist in General Non Fiction category.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3pTcEnJ
24. Navigating the Complexities of Stroke by Louis R. Caplan – While stroke afflicts thousand the world over and like a snowflake each stroke is different, the fundamental aspects remain same. Written in an easy to understand manner by a leading expert on the subject, this book provides a practical guide for the lay public and medical professionals. The anatomy of the brain, functions of its different regions , different types of strokes and their complexities, risks, symptoms , tests, complications, disabilities and rehabilitation aspects are elaborated upon. Real-life cases provide insights on recoveries and as well the impact stroke may have not only on the affected but also on the family caregivers. And how to alleviate such adverse effects.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3pTcEnJ
25. One Fine Day : Overcoming Adversity and Embracing the New Normal with Grace and Gratitude – Sameer Bhide : Life is change. Sometimes good and sometimes bad. We will face this ” new normal”many times in our lives. The day may well be very fine for others when someone faces a personal upset, loss , accident or tragedy. One such fine day, Sameer Bhide suffered a serious stroke. Followed by loss of work and a divorce. One Fine Day recounts, in a candid, easy to read and optimistic manner his struggles and recoveries using various means. Including alternative Indian therapies. The book is sprinkled with anecdotes, quotes and ” Sameerisms” -his key takeaways.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3pUBNhO
26. I Survived 12+ Years After a Stroke and You Can Too: Stroke Recovery Through Rehabilitation – Gopi Tejwani : Dr. Tejwani is an Associate Professor Emeritus and the ex-Vice Chair in the Department of Biochemistry and Pharmacology, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University (OSU), with extensive experience in biochemistry, enzymology, neuro-pharmacology, and medical education. He suffered a serious hemorrhagic stroke at age 62, in 2008. Yet with determination, God’s grace and support of family and friends has recovered well. On a mission now now to share his insights with stroke affected and caregivers to help them as much as possible. Almost all stroke affected many times wonder ” Why Me ” ? They are not alone. Gopi writes this book to give them inspiration and hope, recounting his own experiences and discoveries. It is his fervent hope that this book serves a valuable tool to many stroke patients and also their families, and friends, and brings back the joy in their life.
Amazon Short Link : https://amzn.to/3zoGhjW
Hope you find some of use from above. If there is any book that has helped you in your stroke journey, please do let us know and we will put it here . All the best !
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