The Ghost in My Brain: How a Concussion Stole My Life And How The New Science of Brain Plasticity Helped Me Get It Back by Clark Elliott Ph.D.: is an incredible story about a brilliant college professor who gets into a “minor” car accident that changes his whole life.
Pairs With: the darkest and most pure chocolate you can find. Ideally 85% cocoa or more.
Overview
The Ghost in My Brain: How a Concussion Stole My Life And How The New Science of Brain Plasticity Helped Me Get It Back by Clark Elliott is an incredible story about a brilliant college professor who gets into a “minor” car accident that changes his whole life. Elliott recalls his horrendous experience with a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and takes readers along on the journey of what it’s like to try to function with a damaged brain. He explains in great detail how difficult day-to-day life is for someone with brain damage and how little the mainstream medical community knows about how to heal the brain.
TBI Trigger Warning
This book had me sobbing.
I felt awful Elliott didn’t have someone to look out for him and help him. I wish I could’ve been there for him. My heart broke thinking about him trying to figure out his new world all alone and how terrifying it all must’ve been.
And I felt awful for myself because I related so much to what Elliott shared.
A TBI changes you at the core. You lose a massive part of yourself.
You feel, broken, vulnerable, lost, disabled, and slow.
The old you is gone and the new version is incapable. Yet, you look the same and most people continue to expect the same from you.
If you’ve ever had Post Concussion Syndrome (PCA) or a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), this book will help you feel seen and will have you feeling emotions you didn’t know you needed to feel.
Relatable
If you’ve ever been unfortunate enough to experience a TBI, you will find his story relatable.
Although some of my symptoms were different than Elliott’s, the feelings we both experienced were similar.
We both approached our brain injury with curiosity and wonderment. And we also both experienced a feeling of no longer being human. We both can recall the day our lives changed forever and how difficult it became for us to keep up with the rest of the world. We both experienced feelings of extreme vulnerability and worry about being taken advantage of.
I also couldn’t walk down the stairs without thinking really hard about how. I also had trouble processing what my eyes were seeing. (Unfortunately, I didn’t have the right words for what was happening and I would tell doctors that I felt like I couldn’t see. They would want to prescribe me glasses but I could see just fine. My brain just wasn’t processing.) I also was a high-functioning person before my TBI and related to what Elliott shared about now only being able to slowly do one thing at a time.
It feels like overnight, you become a shell of who you once were.
Conclusion
Although this book was published in 2015, I can attest to the following quote still being true in 2021/2022: “I am certain that there are thousands of people in the United States alone still needlessly going through exactly the same misadventures that I did.” This book will help you avoid some of the misadventures Elliott and I both experienced in our journey to heal our brains.
As always, I don’t recommend trying to read this one if you currently have a TBI. (Unless someone can lovingly and slowly read it to you. But even then it might be too much to stomach and #toosoon.)
However, this is a great book to read if you know and love someone with a TBI. It is also a great read if you would like to learn more about a Traumatic Brain Injury experience or would like to prepare yourself better in case something happens. This book will give you an idea of what to expect and what may help.
Finding them isn’t always the easiest but there are amazing people out there who know how to help and who are coming up with great ways that heal the brain.
If you are experiencing a concussion/TBI/PCS please remember – you won’t be stuck like this. The brain will heal and you will get your life back. It might take more time than healing a broken bone but it will heal. There is hope.
If you would like any additional resources or would like to know more about how I healed my brain feel free to email me at helenejo@nonfictionchocolate.com. Us brain damage buddies gotta stick together. xoxo
P.S. If you liked this one you may also enjoy BrainSAVE! by Dr. Titus Chiu. BrainSAVE! by Dr. Titus Chiu is an incredible resource for anyone who is suffering, or caring for someone suffering, from a concussion or brain injury. Dr. Chiu provides concrete action steps in his six-week plan to help your brain get back to normal.
