A Wonderful Stroke of Luck

When an occupational therapist suffers a massive stroke while attending a wedding in her native England, she can't believe it. Janet R. Douglas emerges from a coma weeks later at a Chicago hospital where she once worked. Her left side is totally paralyzed, her eyesight impaired, her memory and identity lost. Trapped in the present, she finds herself talking in German even though she has seldom spoken the language since high school. With no understanding of the severity of her problems, she resists therapy, thinking she doesn't need it. Despite all odds, she returns to her high-powered job only to find herself cast adrift by a corporate reorganization. With time on her hands, she carries out her own research to find out how damage to one specific part of the brain affects behavior. From the perspective of both therapist and patient, Douglas explains the impact of stroke, how it makes the simplest tasks difficult, and how the visible disabilities it causes are just the tip of the iceberg. Join Douglas on a decade-long quest to recapture her identity so she can once again enjoy family, work, and travel in A Wonderful Stroke of Luck.