Brain on Fire is a memoir detailing Susannah Cahalan’s descent into madness as a result of a mysterious disease. Susannah, who was a witty and intelligent reporter for the New York Post, began having extreme paranoia, hallucinations, and seizures – all of which were chocked up to the stress of life as a journalist in New York City. After severe mental and physical deterioration, a brain biopsy, and the intervention of world-renowned neuroscientist Dr. Souhel Naijar, she was miraculously diagnosed with anti-NMDA-receptor encephalitis; this disease was so difficult to diagnose because it presents as an inundation of degenerative symptoms which aren’t consistent throughout those who contract the disease. Susannah’s recovery and retelling of her harrowing journey through the depths of her mind helped raise …show more content…
One of the simplest coping methods is resentment or fear because it gives you a reason to condemn or ignore the issue at hand. However, what already happened is out of your control, much in the same way that hypothetical disasters are, and approaching these issues cautiously and with a will to understand them will allow you to grow as a person, not foster fear and resentment. It’s better to make peace with your demons, not create new ones. Ultimately, Susannah’s experiences will remain with her forever, but, as she stated in her memoir, “it does not control me or hinder my resolve” (Cahalan 240). I don’t doubt that the loss of control that ruled her life for that fateful month continues to terrify her, but she hasn’t allowed that fear of what she can’t control continue to dictate her life. Susannah’s story is so powerful because it illuminates how powerless we are–and that it’s possible to live with that
Reading this book has been interesting and heartbreaking experience. A Year of Magical Thinking, a journey through the grieving process. While dealing with the death of her husband, she is confronted with the sickness of her only child. This book touches me, and it makes me think of what would happen if my loved one died. This paper is a reflection of my thoughts and feelings about this woman’s journey that has been explored by book and video. I will also explore the author’s adjustment process, and how she views her changed self.
Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness is a memoir by Susannah Cahalan, intended to narrate her story as she fights for both her sanity and her life. The memoir details her frequent hospital stays and is ripe with personal accounts and memories from those who were there with Cahalan through her agonizing month of insanity.
In 1978, Susan Sheehan took an interest in Sylvia Frumkin, a schizophrenic who spent most of her life in and out of mental hospitals. For more than two years, Sheehan followed Sylvia around, observing when Sylvia talked to herself, sitting in on sessions with Sylvia’s doctors, and at times, sleeping in the same bed as Sylvia during her stay at the psychiatric centers. Through Sheehan’s intensive report on Sylvia’s life, readers are able to obtain useful information on what it’s like to live with this disorder, how impairing it can be for them, and the symptoms and causes to look out for; likewise, readers can get an inside look of how some mental hospitals are run and how a misdiagnosis can negatively impact someone’s life.
Catching Fire: How Coooking Made us Human by Richard Wrangham is a fresh perspective on the evolution of humankind. Wrangham has made a concentrated effort to prove that humans have evolved particular adaptations, like bipedalism, due to the introduction of cooked foods into their diet. In his book, he is legitimately arguing that humans are the way they are because early on in human evolution, early man discovered fire, discovered the joys of cooked foods, and developed all sorts of fascinating traits still being utilized today.
Madness: A History, a film by the Films Media Group, is the final installment of a five part series, Kill or Cure: A History of Medical Treatment. It presents a history of the medical science community and it’s relationship with those who suffer from mental illness. The program uses original manuscripts, photos, testimonials, and video footage from medical archives, detailing the historical progression of doctors and scientists’ understanding and treatment of mental illness. The film compares and contrasts the techniques utilized today, with the methods of the past. The film offers an often grim and disturbing recounting of the road we’ve taken from madness to illness.
Most times, the lasting result becomes increasingly sweet with realization, metamorphosis, and helpful action. As each individual experiences despair, resulting action varies. Yet no matter how minuscule or substantial the problem at large is, the presence of acting accordingly to cease the problem remains perpetual. With collaboration of ideas and seeking guidance from groups, one comes to find assurance and advice that of which unveil the truth and the knowing it takes to remove any problem all together. An immediate chain like response occurs, almost like a wake up call, sounding loudly and abruptly, even after snooze was set, to clearly dictate that action needs to be taken. When proper action is taken, then miraculous life will
Anxiety is a concept that most people experience daily, but severe anxiety is associated with panic attacks and other disorders can debilitate a person’s life. In the 1997 documentary, Secret Fear directed by Sarah Barton, real-life people express their stories and experiences with anxiety. The film uses the stories of people who have recovered and / or continue to cope with their disorder. Furthermore, different types of therapy, medications, and coping methods are described for the viewer to understand the ways in which people are able to overcome anxiety. Since anxiety is not limited solely to panic attacks, the film uses people who have experienced Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), hoarding, depression, or social phobias. The film
The knowledge of mental illness was very small. Doctors did not understand how to diagnosis or treat mental disorders. They did not understand how the brain functioned and what to expect from people in certain situations. Many symptoms of physical illness today were considered mental illness in the eighteenth century. The constant shaking due to Parkinson’s disease was misinterpreted as a mental condition and treated as such4. These patients were placed into...
In her memoir Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness Susannah Cahalan delves into the story of how her life spiraled down in regard to an inflammation of her brain. Cahalan discusses how it began and the rough journey she endured to return back to her old self. Through journals, friends, family, hospital records, and videos she was able to put together the plot of her rare diagnosis.
We are only in charge of ourselves. If we allow our negative emotions to overwhelm us, our loved ones can never help us fully recover if we do not help ourselves. Works Cited stillnessspeaks.com, 2008. Web. 21 January 2014.
Ripley, Amanda. "Your Brain Under Fire. (Cover Story)." Time 181.3 (2013): 34-41. Academic Search Complete. Web. 7 Mar. 2014.
Toseland & Rivas (2009) expressed how the psychodynamic theory focuses primarily on the individual, group members act out in the group unresolved conflicts from early life experiences (p.59). The group focused on past life experiences while exploring the cognitive moral reasoning behind their actions and how to cope positively from the injustices that occurred. As we divulged into heavy topics some group members enforced defense mechanisms that had formed earlier in their lives. Thus, the Social Worker and I had to link group members past behaviors to their current ones to help them solve conflict and hinderances in their behavior and positive way of thinking. Overall, the members of the group progressed tremendously from their negative coping behaviors. The treatment group has increased their self-confidence on their ability to persevere after enduring trauma and substance abuse issues. They have also gained a deeper respect for one another, and created a positive social support group outside of the treatment group
Mental disorders can be accompanied by dangerous and harmful side effects. In Dennis Lehane’s Shutter Island, there are many effects of a mental illness that are damaging to an individual. However, there are three effects that seem more harmful and long-term. First, many people who are sleep deprived tend to develop difficulties with their mental state. Furthermore, a mental illness can often cause an individual to respond to an emotional situation in a violent fashion. Most importantly, when one’s mental state is damaged, flashbacks and distorted memories are common.
Throughout one’s life, he or she will experience many situations where a lesson is learned, or a fear is amassed. One person may be able to deal with such terrors easily, while another will suffer because of the dread and panic that now haunts them. The poem ‘My Fear’ by Lawrence Raab discusses the haunting situation of fear following someone, and the personification, imagery, and tone of the speaker all provide depth to this seemingly innocent poem and allow one to truly appreciate how fear and troubles affect him or her.
It’s three o’clock on a brisk fall afternoon on November 3, 2010. I walk into my kitchen and see my mom on the phone. Her face is pale with terror, as if she had seen a ghost. She drops the phone on the tile floor and says with a panicked face, “Get your sister and go to the car”. I follow her as she grabs a sweater and car keys, frantically asking her what is going on. As we are on the highway, I look to my left, seeing tears streaming down her face as her fragile, shaking hands hold a rosary. She keeps muttering “Please don’t let me lose my father today”.