What I'm reading this week

Happily Ever After

My journey with Guillain-Barré Syndrome and How I Got My Life Back

 

 

Dust jacket reads:

 

At the age of twenty-six, less than three weeks after giving birth to her first child, Holly Gerlach noticed that her fingertips were numb and her legs were weakening. In less than three days, she was paralyzed and could no longer breathe on her own. She was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder that occurs when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks part of the nervous system. She was admitted to the hospital, where she spent two and a half months in the intensive care unit on a ventilator. She couldn't move, she couldn't speak, and worst of all, she couldn't hold her newborn daughter. She felt like her life was over as she couldn't be the mother that she had always wanted to be. As the weeks went on, the paralysis began to wear off. And once she was able to breathe on her own again, she started on her road to recovery. With intense physiotherapy, she learned how to use her muscles again and eventually how to walk again. She was determined, and worked hard, and after a long four months in the hospital, she was able to reach her goal of getting back to her husband and daughter. Holly Gerlach shares her inspirational story, where she faced the most terrifying and challenging experiences of her life. The book follows her entire journey, starting with the beginning symptoms, through the many months she spent in the hospital. The story continues on well past her release from the hospital, where she fought to regain her independence and eventually got her life back.

 

 

I'm going to be quite honest here. 

 

This book just barely meet the "okay" standards.  It is written by Holly herself who is not a writer nor a blogger.  Two sentences back to back will say the exact same thing with very slight variances.   There is a lot of negativity, as I would assume with this disease, and no advice for people currently going through it besides take more medicine.  However, her overall story is inspirational in that we can be dealt a wicked hand and still over come it along with the message of take advantage of your physical abilities because you never know when you can lose them.  I don't necessarily recommend reading her book BUT her story is captured very well in this video and that I do recommend watching.