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        My Stroke of InsightA Brain Scientist's Personal Journey.

        Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D.

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        Summary

        My Stroke of Insight

        By: Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D.

        Narrarated by: Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D.

        On the morning of December 10, 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 could not walk, talk, read, write, or recall any of her life, all within the space of four brief hours. As the damaged left side of her brain — the rational, grounded, detail and time-oriented side — swung in and out of function, Taylor alternated between two distinct and opposite realties: the euphoric nirvana of the intuitive and kinesthetic right brain, in which she felt a sense of complete well-being and peace; and the logical, sequential left brain, which recognized Jill was having a stroke, and enabled her to seek help before she was lost completely.

        In My Stroke of Insight, Taylor shares her unique perspective on the brain and its capacity for recovery, and the sense of omniscient understanding she gained from this unusual and inspiring voyage out of the abyss of a wounded brain. It would take eight years for Taylor to heal completely. Because of her knowledge of how the brain works, her respect for the cells composing her human form, and most of all an amazing mother, Taylor completely repaired her mind and recalibrated her understanding of the world according to the insights gained from her right brain that morning of December 10th.

        Today Taylor is convinced that the stroke was the best thing that could have happened to her. It has taught her that the feeling of nirvana is never more than a mere thought away. By stepping to the right of our left brains, we can all uncover the feelings of well-being and peace that are so often sidelined by our own brain chatter. A fascinating journey into the mechanics of the human mind, My Stroke of Insight is both a valuable recovery guide for anyone touched by a brain injury, and an emotionally stirring testimony that deep internal peace truly is accessible to anyone, at any time.

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        New York Times Best Seller

        Total File Size: 161 MB (5 files) Total Length: 5 Hours, 52 Minutes

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        Jess Sauer

        eMusic Contributor

        06.02.08
        Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D., My Stroke of Insight
        2008 | Label: Penguin Audio

        A fascinating memoir for anyone with a brain
        When she realized that she was experiencing a stroke, neuroanatomist Jill Bolte-Taylor reports thinking, “Wow, I’m having a stroke. This is so cool!” Though it’s an uncommonly cheery response, few can deny the positive consequences of Bolte-Taylor’s medical misfortune. Losing the majority of her left-brain function allowed her to experience firsthand the distinct personalities of her cerebral hemispheres. Her left mind silenced, Bolte-Taylor experienced her right-brain activity as a “euphoric stupor,” in which she was unconscious of the past, future, or emotional baggage. Instead, she felt liquid, contiguous with her surroundings and part of a greater whole. Choosing to recover her left brain’s practical functions, such as the ability to speak and read, meant abandoning this newfound nirvana and reengaging with the left hemisphere’s more unattractive features: worry, anger, egotism, and ceaseless “brain chatter.” In reactivating these mental programs, Bolte-Taylor learned that she had more control over her emotional life than she’d ever realized. This memoir’s impact and importance can’t be overstated, and anyone with a brain, healthy or otherwise, can learn from Bolte-Taylor’s experience.

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        A view from "within"

        TheCustomizedPapaFrog

        I am a friend of Jill's and can tell you that she has the goods here. If you wanna know what an ages-old scourge looks like first-hand from one of its detectives, then this is a wild ride. Taylor is a neuro-anatomist (doctor who studies the brain) and in her youth, not at a geriatric age, she was smote with one of the very things she had studied...a stroke! Here is an, um, cerebral, inspiring and courageous account of her physical & spiritual journey from the abyss to a life re-realized. Oh and her wit lobe was untouched by the stroke. Be prepared to smirk and guffaw. But mostly, be ready to be in awe and be alerted to how much a threat to the Gen Pop stroke is. It isn't your grandfather's old disease anymore. Rex, Fishers, IN

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