Carolyn's climb up the recovery mountain required rehabilitation in virtually all areas of life, including mental, emotional, physical, vocational, and social domains. (As current friends can attest, she's still working on this last area.) Her Brain Injury Rewiring books describe the path others can follow to recover from brain injury.

Besides spreading the word about Brain Injury Rewiring, Carolyn works to improve her surfing and triathlon skills. She qualified for the 2009 Team USA in the sprint triathlon and plans to place even higher in 2010. To balance body, mind, and spirit, Carolyn bicycles, runs, swims, weight-trains, practices yoga, competes in various races, sings, and volunteers at numerous athletic and performing arts events.

She doesn't "do" idleness!

Ms Dolen begins the book by detailing her own brain injury and pre-injury life. She uses the metaphor of a mountain climb to describe her recovery. For the most part this metaphor is clear and simple to follow. However, there were some instances in which the metaphor seemed choppy or incomplete. For example, she wrote, 'Exasperated at my halting steps, one of the leaders places an extra sun visor on my head, convinced that the bright sun is slowing my progress. But the hat slips down my sweaty forehead, covers my good eye, and I'd have to drop the lifeline to fix it' (p. 10). She continued to describe how this hindered her advance but it left me questioning what the 'extra visor' represented and how this related to the metaphoric 'lifeline'. Fortunately, this moment of uncertainty was brief and, overall, the mountain climb was an effective metaphor. She goes on to attribute the eventual success of her long and arduous climb to her 'three helping hands; spiritual life, personal values, beliefs, and attitudes, and her support system' (p. II).

The author provides detailed information on basic brain structure, aided nicely with the use of figure drawings. The information is presented in language that is approachable to the layperson. A description of various types of brain injury and subsequent effects is presented along with commonly utilized tests and treatments. Additionally, the author elaborates on the rewiring process and gives specific and useful suggestions and strategies for families in which to engage with their survivor to enhance recovery. This section is informative and written in practical and helpful terms to guide the family. Through this resource the author seeks to better enable family members to act as educated advocates in the care of their loved one.

The remainder of the book focuses on the rewiring process following brain injury. Ms Dolen suggests that rewiring is necessary in multiple domains. I found the chapter on spiritual rewiring to be particularly interesting, as it was well written and focused on recovery through the venue of the arts and spiritual practices. The author begins by discussing the healing power of music and discusses the process of 'charting your heart' (p. 50) as a way of discovering which music and sounds result in the most therapeutic environment for the survivor and family. The relationship between music and its affect on body and brain function is described. The author goes on to advocate the use of prayer and spiritual practices and provides specific examples that followers of various religions might utilize. This chapter reads well even for the non-religious reader. The remainder of the chapter is devoted to encouraging survivors and their loved ones to engage in expressive and/or receptive arts to aid in the healing process. Examples range from painting, creating music, photography, creative writing and acting in the theatre.

Additionally, Ms Dolen provides an insightful view of her own psychological challenges following her injury. She accurately points out that emotional and behaviour problems can often result in the 'most significant and lasting effect of brain injury' (p. 89). She reviews the stages of grief and various dimensions of loss and also details various types of depression and other emotional issues. Importantly, the topics of substance abuse and suicide are also addressed. Specific Do's and Don'ts for family members are provided in an attempt to instill hope during the process. Finally, various treatment options are covered, with an emphasis on the importance of family rewiring.

The author addresses the topic of treatment through medication, psychotherapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and neuropsychological interventions. She makes efforts to summarize empirical support, provides personal examples and gives expected outcomes for varied treatment options. Additionally, non-traditional and controversial treatment options are discussed such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, neurofeedback, therapeutic horseback riding, music therapy, aquatic therapy, recreational therapy and expressive arts therapy. Information is also included regarding various personal therapeutic devices such as the use of light boxes to counter depression, cranial electrical stimulation and nerve stimulation to manage pain. Clinicians would be wise to carefully review this section before recommending it to families as it does discuss a number of controversial therapeutic options, which do not currently have strong empirical support and/or are considered non-evidence-based. Despite this concern, there is an interesting discussion of the mind, body and spirit, which explores a myriad of interventions to compliment traditional medicine. The author shares the background of holistic medicine and launches into a discussion of treatment options including acupuncture, energy healing, massage therapy, homeopathy, chiropracty, relaxation therapies, aromatherapy, imagery techniques, hypnosis, meditation and magnetic therapy. To add interest and relevance, the author provides her personal experience with many of the treatments discussed.

A chapter is also devoted to the need for socialization and community re-entry. The author discusses possible social skill deficits, cognitive impairments and behavioural and emotional issues that can impact the survivor's social interactions. The reader is provided with helpful suggestions including the use of the SAFER method (Stop, Assess, Fix, Evaluate, Retry), which is advocated throughout the book. The author goes on to describe changes that may occur within the marriage, family and friendships following brain injury. Advice is offered for coping with the stress that follows and helpful strategies are provided for families and loved ones. Additionally, she ventures into the topic of dating and physical intimacy following brain injury and the use of social-cognitive techniques, including role-playing, to enhance the survivor's communication skills. The chapter concludes by discussing several programmes and strategies to improve behaviour and social skills, including a list of Do's and Don'ts for families of survivors.

Overall, I felt that Brain Injury Rewiring for Love Ones: A Lifeline to New Connections was a well organized and useful guide for families. One drawback to the book is the way in which various treatment options are presented. While the goal of providing a summary of many treatment modalities is laudable, the clinician may want to carefully review these chapters before offering it to families as a resource. The author does not necessarily differentiate evidence-based from non-evidence-based treatments and, thus, readers could potentially become confused as to the efficacy or indication for these various approaches. Additionally, some clinicians may have concerns about some of the treatment approaches presented and, thus, be hesitant about recommending the book, especially if it clashes with their preferred approach. However, families and patients are often exposed to this type of information and the book might serve as a way in which to discuss the pros and cons of various interventions.

One of the book's strengths is the way in which information is organized. At the beginning of each chapter the author presents the various topics discussed as bulleted items. Each of these topic areas are then presented in bold print throughout the chapter. Additionally, various questions that family members are likely to ask are presented and attempts are made to provide thoughtful and thorough responses. Each chapter ends with a summary of bullet point topics discussed, which makes for easy reading. At the conclusion of the book, the author reviews the key topic areas addressed that she considers 'the most important thoughts, ideas and strategies' (p. 266). This outline serves as a useful and convenient tool to quickly review each chapter. Finally, the author includes a comprehensive resource guide for families. Resources are categorized under various topic areas with a brief description. Web addresses and phone numbers are also provided. In general, the book's overall layout and organization certainly aid in its usefulness as a guide for families. After loved ones have read the book various topics and areas of further interest can later be easily located and reviewed.

To further inspire, the author has included relevant and influential quotations throughout. Additionally, Ms Dolen's experiences add interest and further assist the reader to view circumstances from the survivor's perspective. Finally, the author's personal accounts offer hope and encouragement. Overall, Ms Dolen provides valuable information including helpful tips, useful advice and strategies for loved ones involved in the survivor's recovery process. All of these elements merge to make this book an informative and potentially valuable 'lifeline' to families and loved ones of survivors. This reviewer recommends Brain Injury Rewiring for Love Ones: A Lifeline to New Connections with the above-mentioned cautions.
Jodi Cavanaugh
Brain Function Assessment Center
2700 Robert T. Longway Blvd., Suite I
Flint, MI, USA
Email: jcavanal@hurleymc.com

From Library Lournal
A 1976 auto accident in a Minnesota snowstorm left Dolen with a brain injury and a prognosis of "suicide or the psych ward." She was motivated, however, to prove the health-care team wrong. In part the story of her continuing recovery, in part a manual for survivors and loved ones, these books are readable, practical resources that parallel each other in general content and approach. Dolen explains normal brain anatomy and functions, as well as what happens when the brain is injured. Readers learn that no two patients are alike; injuries range from mild to severe and in the worst cases lead to death. Concentration, attention span, organizational skills, emotion, sleep, and behavior can be affected. Both books offer in-depth explanations of how to get the most from health-care professionals and educate readers about treatment, recovery, postinjury rehabilitation, and adaptation. Chapters focus on a specific aspect of therapy: spiritual, cognitive, emotional, nutritional, physical, social, and vocational. Included is a valuable list of resources, organizations, and web sites arranged in the same order as the chapters. A reference list for each chapter completes the content. VERDICT Survivors is a powerful testament to how courage and spirit can aid in recovery and, like Loved Ones, equips readers with knowledge and understanding to help with the many problems accompanying head injuries. Both titles are highly recommended for their intended audiences.
--Jodith Janes, Cleveland Clinic Fdn. Lib., Library Journal

From ForeWord Magazine
Carolyn Dolen is the accomplished survivor of a 1976 traumatic brain injury (TBI) and a "suicide or psych ward" prognosis. The U.S. Department of Defense has formed a taskforce on TBI, and estimates there are 2 million new cases in the U.S. annually. These two books [BRAIN INJURY REWIRING FOR SURVIVORS and BRAIN INJURY REWIRING FOR LOVED ONES] are filled with direct and practical strategies for TBI recovery, approaching rewiring from multiple aspects, including emotional, spiritual, cognitive, and physical rewiring.