Back to Bed

I was having one of those days when I just wanted to crawl back into bed and go back to sleep. So I did.



Next blog--I get my Blackbelt!

Pacifica Book Signing

I'm having a book signing event tomorrow (Saturday, 10/16) at Florey's Bookstore in Pacifica. Jean Bartlett, of the Pacifica Tribune wrote a fantastic article about me, my book, and this event. I wish I could hire her to do all my PR!

The article begins like this:

Why didn't the brain want to take a bath? It didn't want to be brainwashed. What kind of fish performs brain surgery? A neurosturgeon.

While long-time Pacifican Shari Bookstaff knows from personal experience that "brain surgery" is no laughing matter, she also knows that humor can be found even after a life altering brain tumor.

She writes on her YouTube PowerPoint presentation "The 10 best things about having a brain tumor include I get to say, 'It's not like it's brain surgery,' and mean it!" The Bookstaff PowerPoint (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5yijl0mwCw) is highlighted by the chipper vocals of Alvin and the Chipmunks singing "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter.

Bookstaff's journey down this unplanned road began quietly enough. It was in April of 2006 when the marine biologist and Skyline College biology professor (since 1990) and single mother of Abby and Andy, began feeling dizzy and nauseous.

"I continued to go to work every day, but my nausea kept getting worse, to the point that I was throwing up daily," Bookstaff said, adding that the closest analogy is morning sickness or seasickness.

In April of 2006, Bookstaff was told "it" was just vertigo. Keeping to her schedule but feeling worse each day, Bookstaff was given the same diagnosis in May and in June. Reluctantly on July 1, 2006, the professor went to an Ears Nose and Throat Specialist (ENT). Among other things, she learned she had some hearing loss on her left side.

"I hadn't noticed," Bookstaff said. "I mean, I preferred to use my right ear on the phone, but who doesn't have a preferred 'phone ear'?"

Read the entire article here...

Power!

The other day during chair exercises of my APE class, Chip directed one of his "regular" students to do what I could only describe as a "superman" push-up. The next day, during my work out, I inadvertently mentioned to Chip that I could do push-ups on the floor.

"Come with me."

Chip led me into the gym and told me to put my feet up on a bench, with my hands on the floor, in push-up position.

"What?!"

"Put your feet on the bench and your hands on the floor, in push-up position."

At first I thought Chip had gone crazy, or had something weird for lunch, but the look in his eye told me he was serious. So, I did it. Once I was in that position, with my hands supporting my weight on the floor, and my feet on the bench, I thought my arms would collapse and my face would slam into the floor. It didn't. Chip didn't make me do a push-up. He made me lift one leg at a time, bend my leg, and twist it under my body.

There is no one else in the world who could have made me get in that very compromising position. While part of me was thinking, "He's crazy!  I can't do this!," another part of me was thinking, "Well, if Chip thinks I can do this, I guess I can do this."

That's POWER!

Blogosphere

Beginning today, I am embarking on a book tour that will take me across the country, and, perhaps, all around the world. Virtually. I’m going on a “virtual book tour” through a company called Pump Up Your Book.  You can follow along as I post guest blogs and am interviewed throughout the blogosphere (yes, of course that’s a real word!)

In preparation for this tour, I have answered the question, “What made you want to write a book?”

At some point during my nine-month hospital stay, I decided to write a book about my experience. I had toyed with the idea of writing a novel a few years earlier: a murder mystery set at my alma mater, the University of Wisconsin. It was going to incorporate a lot of scientific evidence, presented in a way that was fun, and even a bit chilling.

In the hospital, with nothing but my mind for company, I thought about how I would write a book. The rehabilitation center I was at specialized in brain injuries, and it was suggested to me that I write stories about the twelve patients staying there with me. My speech and physical writing skills were coming along very slowly at the time, so I wasn't up for conducting interviews.

I came home at the end of March 2007. I wasn't walking, driving, or working. Going to outpatient therapy kept me busy during the day. My kids kept me busy at night.

Writing the book started with long emails that I wrote to friends in the middle of the night. I had always been able to express my feelings better through writing than through talking--and express them I did!

By January 2009, I had read the entire Harry Potter series twice and I was ready to go back to work. I started going to an Adaptive Physical Education class at my college, helping in labs, and giving guest lectures. The busier I got, the more I did! I realized my experiences may be valuable enough to share. Those emails I wrote to friends in the middle of the night were a start. I divided my thoughts into "chapters" and got started. Once I had enough, I looked for a publisher. Publish America called me to tell me they accepted my story for publication at the beginning of 2009. Once I had a publisher (and a deadline), I set daily writing goals for myself. I went through my medical records (a two-foot high stack) and legal records for dates and names of medical procedures. I also interviewed friends to get parts of my story that I wasn't "there" for.

I finished the book in June of 2009, and it was published in October 2009.

Disney Cruise

Not to make everything about me, but Terra Nova High School's Back to School night was the hardest two hours of my life! That was my thought after the first hour. That has got to be one of the most inaccessible school campuses in the world. One way to have someone with limited mobility really feel disabled is to force them to cross a high school campus, including a trip in the dark over uneven pavement, in the time allotted for healthy teens to make the same journey. We gave up for period 4; Abby went with her dad and I sat on a wet bench, alone, and talked to you!

I don't know what the answer is, but trying to fit in with normal, healthy people isn't it. I made it to the rest of her classes, going home completely exhausted at the end of the night. 

Someone told me recently that if I'm upset and can't get out of a funky mood, I should "change the channel." I call it a change of "internal scenery." 

Here goes:

Walt Disney said, "If you can dream it, you can do it."

I've been thinking about going to Disneyland a lot lately. On our last trip, about six months before my surgery, the three of us splurged with a stay at the Grand California Hotel, which has a private entrance into California Adventure theme park. We had a great time on that trip, and given the drastic change in my health that shortly followed, I was glad we had our adventure at the "happiest place on Earth." 

I would LOVE to go to Disneyland again! The cool part would be that I would get a "get out of jail free" pass; a handicapped pass that I could use to get out if waiting in lines. If you've been to Disneyland in the past 10 years, it's like having an unlimited fast pass. Zooming through lines at Disneyland is very efficient. 

I'm also becoming obsessed with the idea of going on a Disney cruise. I was the Naturalist on an Alaskan Cruise the summer before my surgery. I loved giving presentations in the theatre with my PowerPoint slides towering behind me. I loved walking around the ship, talking to people about the whales we were seeing. 

When I picture myself on a cruise now, it's a very different image. I'd have to go as a regular, paying guest. I'd have to bring a wheelchair to make walking around the towns possible. On the other hand, the wheelchair-accessible staterooms look REALLY nice!

Lottery Winner?

I logged on to the SuperLotto Plus website to check my lottery ticket numbers, knowing I would lose. As I pulled the ticket out of my wallet, I knew that none (or maybe one) of the numbers would match up. I knew I would lose. Even as that negative, "I know I'm going to lose" thought went through my head, in the very back of my mind was the thought that if I DID win, I'd be able to say in interviews how I thought I'd lose for sure.

While we were dreaming about winning, we, of course, talked about what we would do with millions of dollars. Trips to New York on a private jet to see Wicked on Broadway topped the kid's list, while a cruise to Alaska topped mine. Make that a Disney cruise to Alaska and everyone's happy!

Then we got altruistic and talked about how we would help others with the money. Scholarships for kids to go on school-sponsored trips topped that list. As a middle-income family, we do not qualify for many financial programs that are available. If we won the lottery, I'd like to help families like ours achieve their goals.

Now, in the wake of the San Bruno explosion, I would also help families to rebuild their dreams. For those of you who don't know, a community in San Bruno, less than a mile from Skyline College, was engulfed in a gas-fueled fire last week. The scene looked like a blow torch was coming out of the sidewalk. Several people died and many more were injured. Homes were lost, and stories of people literally running for their lives abounded. One of my students lost a close friend; others lost their homes, or hosted friends who lost homes. They started contacting me within hours of the tragedy, explaining why they couldn't come to class or turn in a pending assignment. Taking the time to contact your teacher in the midst of a crisis? That's dedication!

I wish I had some words of wisdom for these people, but in truth they don't need words--they need action. On my end, I will do everything possible to protect their education. Winning the lottery would help, but in the meantime I can offer compassion, understanding, and time.

Wisdom

Raindrops on roses and whispers on kittens. Don't you just love Mary Poppins? I know, I know--that song is from The Sound of Music, but those two movies are inextricably connected.

My daughter's having her wisdom teeth pulled right now, and I was going to sing that song to her, but I didn't want to punish her. It's going to be a long day, but maybe with a spoonful of sugar, we'll make it!

I had mine out just before my sophomore year at college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. We had a week before classes started when we had to be on campus to register. We had to walk around to different buildings to register; we didn't know if the class we wanted was available until we read the posted sign. Anyway, I went to Madison for Reg Week, with swollen cheeks and a painful mouth. Since Reg Week in Madison was really "Party" Week, I used wine as well as Advil to dull the pain!

Abby made it through the first 24 hours without too many incidents. I'll never drink a chocolate shake again after watching what she did to hers, but that's about it. We also discovered that she does NOT like vicadin, but thankfully Advil did the job. After seeing her friends for a little while this afternoon, she had a milkshake for dinner and called it a night. 

The most touching moment on this little adventure came last night. Abby was planning to sleep downstairs on the couch because the doctor told her it would be better for her to sit up a bit. I don't move up and down stairs quickly, so Abby knew she'd be pretty much alone after I went to bed. Andy offered to sleep downstairs with her. Abby looked at him like he gave her the greatest gift in the world! Before YOU get all teary-eyed, Andy said he would sleep downstairs IF they watched what he wanted to watch on TV! It was a sweet moment while it lasted. They both ended up getting something--Abby had company and Andy got a free pass to sleep downstairs and watch TV. I'm sure they both thought of their favorite things!

Mirror, Mirror

Mirror, mirror on the wall: who’s the fairest one of all? Not me! And probably not you! Ok, maybe YOU!

I started a new research project this week to further explore exercises that are beneficial to brain-injured people. In this study, participants put their weaker hand into a box that has a mirror on the side. They then do various hand exercises, observing their “good” hand in the mirror as they move their fingers. This tricks their brain into thinking that their weak hand is adequately performing the tasks. This activity, as well as other exercises we do in the Adaptive Physical Education class, is designed to reprogram our brains.

Reprogram our brains? That sounds weird. We are not being brainwashed. The human brain is capable of reorganizing neural pathways based on new experiences. This is called brain plasticity.

Mirror, Mirror is being done alongside Wii-hab, which is entering its second semester. Biology students are running both projects. Although brain rehab strategies is quickly becoming my area of expertise, I’m still a marine biologist and try to “keep my feet wet” when possible.

For example, the Pacifica Chamber of Commerce asked me to help plan their new window display showcasing the local marine environment. While I’m not really in the market for more volunteer work, I couldn’t possibly say no to this opportunity to be creative while thinking about fish! The current display includes a fully-articulated sea lion skeleton. This skeleton,on loan from another organization, is being moved, hence the need for a makeover.

I’m still figuring out how to get students involved in the project. It’s a fantastic opportunity for an aspiring marine biologist!