Different Strokes... Everything You Never Wanted to Need to Know

About the Book

Stroke. More than 500,000 Americans will suffer its silent attack this year. The number has epidemic proportions, but add to it the newly estimated 11 million victims each year whose strokes go undetected and America shakes its collective head and wonders, am I next? One third of those detected will die in a short period of time, over 160,000 fatalities, making stroke the number three killer in the US behind only heart disease and cancer. It leaves another 200,000 victims with permanent disability.

In spite of the numbers, brain attack strikes intimately and personally. Its shadow of death spreads quickly over living tissue in the brain, violating personality and disrupting life. This graphic contrast, huge numbers of victims versus the unique intimacy of each stroke, draws into focus the one common by-product of all attacks, fear - fear of the unknown, fear of death or livelihood lost.

The perception is evil incarnate, destroying the sanctity of one's life and home. I know, stroke left me blinded, with short-term memory wiped clean and sensory input distorted and disorienting. Only the divine touch could bring the light of hope into this darkness.

The good news - much can be done to fan this hope into a fire of restoration. The better news - remarkable advancements available today include "miracle" clot busters, surgical procedures that listen to the differences in sounds made by healthy cells and dead ones, probes that travel through the body to apply medicines directly on affected areas of the brain,, and the vision for tomorrow that moves microscopic nanotechnology out of science fiction directly into the brain to both repair and replace damaged brain cells.

Different Strokes... unwraps the fear of stroke, revealing possibilities for healing and hope - hope birthed by the insight of experience and supported by research collected from leading edge resources.

About the Author

Richard Douglas Bouslough suffered his stroke at the relatively young age of 37. Previously an honors student, athlete, speaker and teacher, he was active in church, home, and outdoor activities. Apparent excellent health hid a secret forewarned only by migraine. He looked like an up-and comer ready to grab the world by the tail and give it a fling. Health issues were furthest from his mind. He was more concerned with getting in a few more miles on his road bike, finding a fulfilling new career ministry having just graduated from seminary, and providing a good home for his wife and prospective family. Stroke struck a blow and it all seemed to come crashing down.

Now a recovered fifty-something, Richard is the Director of Information Systems for Forest Home Ministries headquartered in the San Bernardino mountains of Southern California. His amazing journey from not being able to walk unaided, from not seeing, tasting, or touching with feeling, and not remembering the details of his past or the details of his present, to his current position of respect and challenge in today's ever-changing technology industry, flows from a grateful heart with recognition of Jesus' miraculous work in his life. His story speaks of love under fire, of perseverance in unending repetitions of retraining, of an uncanny analytical consciousness in the functioning part of his brain even from the early moments of his stroke, and untimately of the assurance of hope in the Creator's good purposes for life.

Richard's account, founded squarely in a rich faith , will not only bring understanding of stroke but also empathetic tears of joy, and give cause for real hope among all survivors of stroke and their loved ones.

Richard now resides in Yucaipa, California, with his wife of 25 years, Claudia, and their two dogs, Kenna, aka "Sweet Beast," and Pierre, aka "Little Barky Boy".