With her knack for seeing the positive, six-year-old Violet anticipates extraordinary results after getting her tonsils removed, such as making a special new friend and turning her everyday voice into an opera voice.
As a psychologist specialising in court assessments, David Roland often saw the toughest, most heartbreaking cases. The emotional trauma had begun to take its toll — and then the global financial crisis hit, leaving his family facing financial ruin. So when he found himself in a local emergency ward with little idea of where he was or how he got there, doctors wondered if he had had a nervous breakdown — if the strain of treating individuals with mental-health problems had become too much. Eventually they discovered the truth: David had suffered a stroke, which had resulted in brain injury. He faced two choices: give up or get his brain working again. Drawing on the principles of neuroplasticity, David set about re-wiring his brain. Embarking on a search that brought him into contact with doctors, neuroscientists, yoga teachers, musicians, and a Buddhist nun, he found the tools to restore his sense of self: psychotherapy, exercise, music, mindfulness, and meditation. How I Rescued My Brain is the story of David’s neurological difficulties and his remarkable cognitive recovery. It is also an account of a journey to emotional health and wellbeing. In the tradition of Marc Lewis’s Memoirs of an Addicted Brain and Jill Bolte Taylor’s My Stroke of Insight, this is an amazing tale of one man’s resilience, and his determination to overcome one of the most frightening situations imaginable — the fear that he had lost his mind, and might not get it back.
When it comes to disease, who beats the odds — and why? When it comes to spontaneous healing, skepticism abounds. Doctors are taught that “miraculous” recoveries are flukes, and as a result they don’t study those cases or take them into account when treating patients. Enter Dr. Jeff Rediger, who has spent over 15 years studying spontaneous healing, pioneering the use of scientific tools to investigate recoveries from incurable illnesses. Dr. Rediger’s research has taken him from America’s top hospitals to healing centers around the world—and along the way he’s uncovered insights into why some people beat the odds. In Cured, Dr. Rediger digs down to the root causes of illness, showing how to create an environment that sets the stage for healing. He reveals the patterns behind healing and lays out the physical and mental principles associated with recovery: first, we need to physically heal our diet and our immune systems. Next, we need to mentally heal our stress response and our identities. Through rigorous research, Dr. Rediger shows that much of our physical reality is created in our minds. Our perception changes our experience, even to the point of changing our physical bodies—and thus the healing of our identity may be our greatest tool to recovery. Ultimately, miracles only contradict what we know of nature at this point in time. Cured leads the way in explaining the science behind these miracles, and provides a first-of-its-kind guidebook to both healing and preventing disease.
Recovery Stories is a collection of first-hand accounts by people in recovery from or affected by drugs or alcohol. Invaluable for those looking to find new, addiction-free ways to live. It contains insights into the lives of real people who hit ‘rock bottom’ but came back again. Of interest across a wide-range of disciplines, including health, education and social services. Addiction is an illness that kills. Accused of lacking a moral compass and blamed for their own self-destruction, addicts are often forced to live on the margins of society. Afforded little sympathy or support, they may end-up involved in criminality, violence, dishonesty and face despair. They may hit rock bottom when day-to-day survival can become a delicate balance between life and death. But addiction—which occurs in every walk of life—need not be a ‘life sentence’. As this book shows, no-one is beyond turning such dire situations around. Recovery Stories is a collection of true stories of triumph over adversity. It tells how the horror of addiction can be overcome, how people can free themselves of their dependency. It is a book of hope and inspiration which will encourage all those seeking ‘new ways to live’ a full, addiction-free and successful life. ‘This book tells the stories that need to be told... Addiction is an illness and has to be seen and tackled as such’: Alastair Campbell, Ambassador for Time to Change and Alcohol Concern. From the Foreword ‘People who are struggling with addiction have got to know that recovery is out there and it is possible... I hope that the stories in this book will help people understand that recovery is a possibility and, if you are struggling with addiction, that it is a possibility for you’: Mitch Winehouse, Founder of the Amy Winehouse Foundation. In association with Addaction.
The history of the Confederate submarine H. L. Hunley is as astonishing as its disappearance. On February 17, 1864, after a legendary encounter with a Union battleship, the iron “fish boat” vanished without a trace somewhere off the coast of South Carolina. For more than a century the fate of the Hunley remained one of the great unsolved mysteries of the Civil War. Then, on August 8, 2000, with thousands of spectators crowding Charleston Harbor, the Hunley was raised from the bottom of the sea and towed ashore. Now, award-winning journalists Brian Hicks and Schuyler Kropf offer new insights into the Hunley’s final hours and recount the amazing true story of its rescue. The brainchild of wealthy New Orleans planter and lawyer Horace Lawson Hunley, the Hunley inspired tremendous hopes of breaking the Union’s naval blockade of Charleston, only to drown two crews on disastrous test runs. But on the night of February 17, 1864, the Hunley finally made good on its promise. Under the command of the heroic Lieutenant George E. Dixon, the sub rammed a spar torpedo into the Union sloop Housatonic and sank the ship within minutes, accomplishing a feat of stealth technology that would not be repeated for half a century. And then, shortly after its stunning success, the Hunley vanished. This book is an extraordinary true story peopled with a fascinating cast of characters, including Horace Hunley himself, the Union officers and crew who went down with the Housatonic, P. T. Barnum, who offered $100,000 for its recovery, and novelist Clive Cussler, who spearheaded the mission that finally succeeded in finding the Hunley. The drama of salvaging the sub is only the prelude to a page-turning account of how scientists unsealed this archaeological treasure chest and discovered the inner-workings of a submarine more technologically advanced than anyone expected, as well as numerous, priceless artifacts. Hicks and Kropf have crafted a spellbinding adventure story that spans over a century of American history. Dramatically told, filled with historical details and contemporary color, illustrated with breathtaking original photographs, Raising the Hunley is one of the most fascinating Civil War books to appear in years.
An Incredible Journey of Recovery James H. Osborne suffered a tragic spinal cord injury from a road cycling accident that rendered him quadriplegic. Though doctors said he would likely never walk again, James has been fighting for nine years to recover his body. Will Your Way Back chronicles his journey, an exercise of will, to walk again and live independently. James has struggled professionally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually to overcome his disability and persevere in pursuit of a new normal. His story is unique and compelling, and if you have ever suffered loss, or have a loved one who is suffering this way, you will draw hope from his inspiring story. Sometimes you must let go and find a new path, a new way to success: Define your terms, take a stand, and choose to win.
Pastor T. C. Ryan narrates the unsettling story of his lifelong struggle with sexual addiction, one that predated and pervaded his pastoral ministry--one that went on for years in secrecy and isolation. In light of his full experience of exile and healing, Ryan calls the church to a ministry of unsettling grace that is the worthy of the gospel.