Brain Disease

Iris Grace is a beautiful little girl who, from a very young age, barely communicated, avoided social interaction with other people, and rarely smiled. Both before her diagnosis of autism and after, she seemed trapped in her own world, unable to connect with those around her. One day, her mother brought home a Maine Coon kitten for Iris. Thula immediately bonded with Iris, knowing right away how to assuage Iris when she became overstimulated.

Did you now that the largest of our 12 cranial nerves is the vagus nerve? Did you also know that this autonomic-nervous-system related nerve, if stimulated in the right way, can reduce our body pain stress, inflammation, trauma, depression and abdominal plains? If you never heard about vagus nerves, which are usually referred to in the singular, they are the longest and maybe the most important autonomic nerves in human body. Approximately 80 percent of its nerve fibers drive information from the body to the brain.

For many years a panelist on The McLaughlin Group, Morton Kondracke recounts his passionate and volatile marriage to Millicent Martinez, the Mexican-American daughter of a radical labor organizer. In 1987, after 20 years of marriage, Milly learned the shattering news that she had Parkinson's disease. Despite the devastating physical and emotional effects of the disease, for which a cure has not yet been found, the marriage grew stronger and deeper.

Trauma, anxiety, chronic illness, and mental stress plague countless individuals, hindering their well-being and quality of life. The root causes of these challenges lie within the intricate workings of our vagus nerve. It’s time to shed some light on how you can harness its power and say goodbye to mental stressors forever!Through a blend of scientific explanations and practical applications, The Polyvagal Theory equips listeners with a deep understanding of the foundations that shape our interactions with others, the way we perceive and respond to emotions, and how we regulate what we feel.

“Strokes are the third-leading cause of death in America, and for the ‘lucky’ stroke victims who don’t die, about half will spend the rest of their lives trying to recover.” Roughly 700,000 American suffer a stroke each year and around 140,000 of them are fatal. Different Strokes is an in-depth look at what surviving, or not surviving, a stroke can mean.

Following her stroke, she felt unsupported by the systems in place to care for post-stroke victims. She knew there were resources available but with an inability to hold a thought or comprehend written words, Julianne became frustrated with her search for information. Aside from her family doctor, she seemed to be alone in her struggle to find information about therapies, services, and policies.

I suffered from severe and frequent migraines that disrupted my life and made me miserable. Throughout years of herbal and nutritional training, wildcrafting and making herbal recipes, all the while dealing with migraine headaches, I learned effective ways to not only treat migraines, but to prevent them as well. I wrote this book to share with migraine sufferers who may be looking for relief with gentle, holistic treatments that work to eliminate the problem, not just the symptoms.

After a full-throttle brain bleed at the age of 25, Ashok Rajamani, a first-generationIndian American, had to relearn everything: how to eat, how to walk and speak, even things as basic as his sexual orientation. With humor and insight, he describes the events of that day - his brain exploded just before his brother's wedding - as well as the long, difficult recovery period. In the process, he introduces listeners to his family - his principal support group, as well as a constant source of frustration and amazement.

In 2008, Simon Fitzmaurice was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease. He was given four years to live. In 2010, in a state of lung-function collapse, Simon knew with crystal clarity that now was not his time to die. Against all prevailing medical opinion, he chose life. Despite the loss of almost all motor function, thanks to miraculous technology he has continued to work, help raise his children, and write this astonishing, life-affirming memoir.

In researching his acclaimed true-crime books, Philip Carlo interviewed some of the most infamous criminals and killers of our times in prisons and on death rows throughout the country. He was able to forge trusting relationships with his subjects, enabling him to extract the facts behind their monstrous acts and identify what motivated them to commit their horrific crimes.

“Dr. Barlow’s book, Code Breaker, is the embodiment of brilliance in our profession, a true visionary masterpiece with the potential to revolutionize healthcare as we know it. His innate ability to unravel the intricate code of health and disease and produce innovative solutions is a testament to his genius.”—DR. MARIANNE ABATE, DC, CACCP

You survived a stroke, but now you’re dealing with the painful uncertainty, anxiety, and depression left in its wake. You’re ready to take control and take back your mental health—you just need a little help. You never had this level of anxiety or depression before, but your stroke changed everything. That was my story, too. Until I reached my breaking point and had to get help.

Imagine life with death as a constant companion. It quietly sits next to you, coloring thoughts, feelings and words, utterly transforming your outlook on life. When Bruce H. Kramer was diagnosed with ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, an always fatal neurological disease, the doctor who broke the devastating news thought he was giving Kramer a death sentence. It turned out to be a life sentence.

Eloquent. Philosophical. Introspective. These are not the words usually associated with an autistic child. But in a remarkable display of courage and creativity, a boy named Tito has shattered stereotypes, and in The Mind Tree makes us question all of our previous assumptions about autism. For Tito is severely autistic and nearly nonverbal, and this is his story.

When Jenny Lexhed and her husband have their first child Lucas, they are living the dream. They're happily married, they've just bought a house, the company they built together from the ground up is starting to blossom. But with the arrival of their son, a feeling of anxiety slips into their life. What starts as a feeling becomes a conviction.

Written with a poignant blend of honesty, dry humor, faith, and inquisitiveness, Smiling Again is a story of the persistence of life and beauty in spite of pain. Sally recounts the shock of diagnosis, a long and painful recovery from invasive brain surgery, her eventual retirement due to disability, and ultimately contentment and acceptance of a new life journey.

Former fighter and Ivy League football player Mark Tullius wanted to support his friends with traumatic brain injuries and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. But when presented with a scan of his own gray matter, his life changed forever. After years of lying to himself and insisting he felt fine, Mark had to face the fact that his time on the field and in the cage had caused potentially irreparable damage inside his skull. Tired of throwing in the towel when things get difficult, Mark committed to make his recovery an adventure in health, happiness, and self-discovery.

Struggling to connect with your autistic partner, child, or loved one? Do you feel like you’re speaking a different language, even when you’re giving it your all? You’re not alone. Now, you can listen to the answers you need anytime, anywhere. Navigating Adult Life with Autism transforms challenges into opportunities for connection, understanding, and growth. Whether you’re a parent, caregiver, or adult with autism, this audiobook delivers practical tools to help you thrive in relationships and in life.

Diagnosed as severely autistic at the age of three, Tito, nearly nonverbal, was brought up by his loving mother Soma, who taught him to read English and challenged him to write his own stories. The initial result was The Mind Tree, published in 2003, which Tito wrote between the ages of eight and 11. The Gold of the Sunbeams is an equally impressive, beautiful collection of stories, each prefaced by a charming note from Tito explaining how the story came into being.

Crucible of the Incurable concerns how people face life with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Anthony Stavrianakis spent a year in clinics and with people living with the illness in the United States. He examines the multiple meanings of care in a context of a chronic, degenerative, one-hundred percent fatal, neuromuscular illness, whose most common duration is between two and five years. How do people diagnosed with ALS continue to "live as well as possible, for as long as possible" in accordance with the normative work at the heart of outpatient ALS care?