Paperback ISBN: 978 0 340 98050 7

eBook ISBN: 978 1 848 94292 9

 

Introduction

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The author Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor is a trained neuroanatomist, an expert on the composition and workings of the human brain.  She suffered a stroke at the age of thirty-seven.  It took her eight years to fully recover, although recovery is a relative term and dependent on many factors.  However, her recovery allied to her knowledge of the anatomy of the brain allowed her to write a book which provides a remarkable insight into what a stroke victim goes through, how they can recover, and how the brain works.  This insight is not just of use to medical staff and carers of stroke victims but is also of benefit to everyone as it provides a template as to how we should choose to use our brains in order to achieve inner peace.

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The Stroke

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Dr. Taylor describes the day of the stroke and the few days immediately afterwards in some detail.  She describes what happened externally and, based on her understanding of the brain, what was happening in her brain.  While she was initially overwhelmed at the hospital, and felt that she, or at least the “old” Jill Bolte Taylor had died, she soon became aware that she had no past “baggage”, no bitterness, and no stress.  This was because her left-brain was severely impacted by the stroke.  However, she also realised that she had vast emotions of peace and joy.  She learned to just simply “be” in the moment.  She said that it was great and that she perceived herself as perfect, whole, and beautiful.  She described it as Nirvana.  She felt this because her right-brain was still functioning and without interference from the left-brain.

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Another realisation that she had soon afterwards was that, while she could not communicate in the normal way through language and speech, she had a much more sensitive energy awareness, both within herself and from others.  She was attuned to both positive and negative energy.

 




 

 

 

 

 

The Recovery

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Although the feeling of inner peace was wonderful, Dr. Taylor realised that, in order for her to be able to function again at some level as a human in society, she had to go through surgery and a long recovery process.

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She outlines the stages in her recovery, how she was treated both positively and negatively, and the key milestones achieved over an eight-year period.  It was a remarkable journey of pro-active decision-making and hard work.

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The most fascinating element of her recovery and what we can learn the most from is when it came to her “emotional” recovery that she chose which emotions to bring back into her life, into her Being.  If only we could do the same on an on-going or periodic basis, a sort of self-pruning exercise.

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The Medical Profession and Carers

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This book should be required reading for anyone involved in treating or caring for stroke victims.  Dr. Taylor provides a unique perspective and explains in great detail what she was thinking, how she was feeling, and how the actions, words, and behaviours of those around her, affected her mental and physical recovery, both positively and negatively.  There are many practical examples of what to do and what not to do. 

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However, the book also provides a wonderful insight into how we can all use our right- and left-brains for our own development and growth.

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How the Brain Works – Left and Right-brain

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Dr. Taylor explains how the left- and right-brains work independently, are very different, act differently, but also work in unison so that we can live and interact as humans.

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The right-brain is “creative, spontaneous, carefree, without inhibition or judgement and views pictures of the present moment”.  It has unbridled enthusiasm and not a care in the world.  It does not perceive boundaries and understands that we are all connected to one another in “the intricate fabric of the cosmos”.

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The left-brain “strings moments together in a timeline - past, present, and future, is logical and reasoning, and processes details.  It is the left-brain that “knows” who we are, and makes judgements.”  It is preoccupied with details and judges everything.  It perceives each one of us as an entity separate from the whole.

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Almost every cognitive behaviour and action involves activity in both hemispheres of the brain.

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Lessons for all

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Following on from Dr. Taylor’s experience of Nirvana, the real question for us is how can we use our right-brain to provide us with periods of Nirvana as described by Dr. Taylor or, at least, to enjoy some of the bliss generated by the right-brain.  How can we subdue our left-brain, when appropriate to do so?

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One of the most fascinating, and potentially life-changing, facts in the book is that any emotional response once triggered creates a chemical reaction that lasts in the body for (just) ninety seconds.  She says that what happens after that is determined by us.  It is determined by the choice or choices we make, or do not make, at that point.  If for example we are angry, then we can choose to “let that circuit continue to run” or we can “park it”, become present and move on.  In other words, we can feel anger or bitterness, for example, but we do not have to BE angry, or BE bitter.  We do not have to let the negative emotion define us even for a short period of time, once the “ninety seconds” has elapsed.  This can be difficult to achieve but if we can do so it is life-changing.

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Dr. Taylor has developed a wonderful sense of intuition or gut-feeling.  She now realises that we are “energy” beings and as such if we reflect on how we feel in any situation we will know what is right and what is right for us.  She speaks of the power of prayer, Reiki, Feng Shui, and other similar practices.  She says that these all operate and work at an energy level. 

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Dr. Taylor speaks of the value of gratitude.  She says that the easiest way into a state of peaceful grace is through an act of gratitude, or, I would add, also through expressing and considering gratitude in our lives.

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In summary, her overall message is that we must continuously “tend to the garden of our minds”, we must reflect upon what we are thinking and which part of our brain is in control, and if required, we should have techniques to allow us to pass control back to our right-brain in order to feel and maintain a sense of inner peace.  Dr. Taylor outlines many such techniques in this book.

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Conclusion

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This is a wonderful book which contains many lessons for everyone.  It should be compulsory reading for those working in the medical profession, those dealing with stroke victims, and for carers of stroke victims.  However, there are lessons for everyone in terms of how we can reach and maintain a deep level of inner peace.  Dr. Taylor’s understanding of how the brain works, combined with her experience of the stroke and the recovery process, gives her a unique insight into the workings of the brain, or the two hemispheres of the brain, and how we can all use that insight to achieve a deep level of inner peace.

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It is a fascinating, heart-warming, educational, practical, enjoyable, and a potentially life-changing read.