Will I love My Stroke of Insight?

This account of a stroke took me from seeing thinking as one complex mystery to seeing two styles of thinking in me. This was life-changing. Taylor’s stroke left her stuck in one mode or the other, and as a neuroscientist, she had the language to describe each mode. How rare is that! 

She first cared deeply about the present moment and wholeness. Feeling connected to her body and the energy in everything around her, she was flooded with feelings of curiosity and love. Then, perception shifted, and Taylor focused on finding details to categorize and organize, with a focus on… show more.

What if the worst possible thing that happened to you was the best possible thing? After a cataclysmic injury to her brain, author Bolte Taylor walks us through what she learned about being human because of this event. ‘Everything is energy’ is the message I walked away from this book with, and I remember that message weekly.

Somehow, this neuroscientist is able to discuss our spiritual nature by explaining what happened to her when her ‘brain went offline.’ It is a beautiful and affecting book that, as I say, has stuck with me for years.

Jill Bolte Taylor’s book has been an inspiring guide in understanding the brain’s incredible capacity for recovery and transformation. As a brain scientist who experienced a severe stroke, Taylor’s firsthand account of her journey through brain injury and recovery is both riveting and educational.

This book is personally significant because it highlights the resilience of the human spirit alongside the brain and body’s ability to heal–highlighting the power and opportunity of neuroplasticity. Taylor’s vivid descriptions and insights into neuroplasticity align with my dedication to advancing trauma-informed, neuroscience-based care. Her narrative, blending scientific understanding with personal experience, provides a model for… show more.

This is an enlightening memoir recounting the story and journey of experiencing and recovering from a stroke. I love this book because it uniquely combines perspectives of the author being a researcher (neuroscientist), patient (experiencing the stroke), and just a common person with a normal life - which was turned upside down by the stroke. The author walks you through the arduous physical and emotional roller coaster of recovery, a few neurons at a time. The human brain candidly expressing what happened to itself, is a marvelously fascinating concept that you get to learn by reading this book.

This is the true story of a neuroanatomist’s own stroke at the age of 37. Reading this book helped me to understand the power of the brain and neuroplasticity (the idea that we can change our own brains). Bolte Taylor’s story demonstrates the power of mindfulness to help us change our mind for the better, whether it’s a stroke we’re dealing with, or a mental health problem such as depression or anxiety.