Epilepsy Books

Stacey Chillemi is 32 years old, a mother of three, a wife and writer. Her journey and reason for being is defined each day by the happiness in her children's eyes and the people with epilepsy she has helped through her writing.
By Jenna Martin, Senior Editor
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My name is Donna, and I just want you to know that I bought your book a few years ago and it was very encouraging to me, really did get a lot out of it.
I'd recommend it to anyone else who has E, and their family members who'd want to understand what it's like to live with this condition. It surely does help to know we're not alone in this.

I just finished your book Epilepsy; You're not Alone and thought I'd tell you how much I appreciated it. The positive attitude was very refreshing and a welcome change from the "Why me?" stories that I read so often.

"Life deals us many hard blows that we often don't expect. I admire the fact that someone like Stacey Chillemi was thrown a curve ball that may have knocked many of us down to the point where many of us may not have wanted to get back up, but she did. It wasn't easy but she possesses a determined spirit that won't let her give up. For that reason Stacey will go far and achieve whatever dreams she sets her mind to accomplish."Della Crews
Reporter

Epilepsy is a very hard disorder to live with emotionally, physically and mentally. Epilepsy Your Not Alone, shows you how to cope with the disorder, look at life positively and gives you the inspiration you need to get on with your life. I reccommend it to people who have the disorder,family members and friends.

This book has helped me to understand epilepsy so I am not feeling as anxious or hopeless about my daughter's seizures. I highly recommend it for anyone who has seizures or knows/loves someone that does.

My son was diagnosed with seizures. Other than talking to his neurologist my only other source of information was the internet. I wanted unbiased factual information to educate myself and this book is the answer. I felt more empowered reading this and I would highly recommend it for other parents or even teachers with students that have seizures and epilepsy.

I personally benefited tremendously from this very positive book. My little boy has seizure disorder and i was desperate for any knowledgeable information that could guide me and help me through this terrible horrifying experience for any parent.
This is definitely a book i would recommend.

I did read a lot of books about epilepsy, but this one is the best!
You get all the informations you need to have a good picture about this illness. It is very well written, very easy to understand and covers all the basics and also the more deeper informations about for example side effects etc..
I can recommend this book as a standard book you should have.

This book is full of straight-forward information about epilepsy and its effects on the brain. It addresses initial medical evaluations and diagnoses, and discusses various treatments--traditional and complementary therapies--in depth. The authors handle these potentially complicated topics with simplicity of language and great compassion.

In fact, the best part of this book is the authors' ability to recognize and allay parental fears by dispelling myths surrounding the illness. A substantial section of the book offers suggestions to help a family (not just the patient) cope with epilepsy--at home, school, in extended family settings, and so on.

This is a well-researched and documented book. I highly recommend it for any parent facing a dignosis of epilepsy for the first time.

My children have been enjoying "Mommy, I Feel Funny" since we got it, and they do not have epilepsy. Nel's story is told with such honest curiousity about what it all means that it clearly appeals to any child. I wish there were a whole series of these books for all types of conditions and disorders! This is the beginning of children learning about people...leading to acceptance and encouragement for those around them. Yay!!!

I just received my copy of Mommy, I Feel Funny. It is so beautiful It is very sensitive and wonderful. There are not enough words to describe my feelings when I read it. I have two children who have Crohns disease and I only wish that there had been a book for them that could have helped them, as Danielle is doing for the children and their families that are dealing with Epilepsy.

I know this book will be a huge success.

This book is testimony to dealing with what life gives you and coming out on the other side. But more than that is the help it will give so many children, their parents and siblings, and their friends. Danielle Rocheford has created a book that will help many people go through this uncharted and sometimes terrifying journey of dealing with the "monster" with understanding and a lot less fear. The book is powerful yet simple and child-friendly. The illustrations by Chris Herrick are delightful and engaging and contribute to the book's overall appeal.

When parents are faced with the diagnosis of epilepsy for
their child, the task assigned to them is often way beyond their ability
and they feel totally helpless to fulfill it. A book such as "Mommy, I
Feel Funny!" steps in and takes over, making the topic easy to comprehend
and share. Parents, doctors, nurses, teachers, counselors and anyone
working with children with epilepsy should commend Ms. Rocheford on
giving them a most important resource to add to their skill set...a joy
to read, a treasure to own, a necessary part of anyone's library
collection.

Children take in only the information they need when the subject is
difficult or unfamiliar. Ms. Rocheford has presented readers of all ages
clear and honest facts about this serious concern. She does so in a
manner that is palatable for children and their parents, both who are
equally as vulnerable when they are faced with something of this
magnitude that will ultimately change their lives. Her work is honest,
child friendly and hopeful...and everyone needs hope to keep moving ever
onward. The illustrations, in their colorful and delightful way, allow
the reader to fully engage in the moments shared by the author. "Mommy, I Feel Funny!" is a joyful and much needed resource on a very important and challenging topic. We wish we had this to read when our child was going through this many years ago.

Geraldine A. Faivre
Head of School, Westbury Friends School

We bought this book to do our research since our family suffers from headachs, stomch proplems and what desicovered was the MSG that is embedded in our foods is what is making us sick. Once we eliminated it our proplems have gone. MSG IS A TOXIN!! There thousand of out here who have suffered for no reason. The food giants and the MSG distributors are together on this hidden poison. They PAY for reaserch to say its safe and give grants to those who follow in thier quest to scam the consumer. We have bought other books on MSG ( from those who actually suffer from MSG POISONING) and they all the same thing. It's killing us and we don't know it. [...] and REALLY find out what they are up too. It's really scarey. The FDA, research doctors and others are paid informest by the food industry
I hope Hernandaz got and F for her paper, or hope she did alot more research other than on so called medical pages. This book is not propaganda, it's what really happening, from someone who has the guts to stand up and say something!

After reading this book I have become VERY careful about not consuming any foods or drinks that contain MSG. This book shows how the food enhancing additive MSG (Monosodium Glutamate)can cause migraines, depression, asthma, epilepsy, heart irregularities, rage reactions, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other health problems. The book explains how these foods contain Glutamate and that this amino acid can be used by the neurons in the brain to transmit signals to each other. If we increase these in our blood stream to a large enough amount they will cross the blood brain barrier in most people and burn out neurons. Long term over dose can lead to burning out sections of the brain that can cause seizures and alzheimers.It is an easy to read book that explains the foods MSG is found in and the dangers very simply. For a more advanced understanding read "Excitotoxins:The taste that kills" by Dr. Blaylock. This book however will give you all the information you need to make your diet safer.

For years, my husband suffered from anxiety attacks that hit without warning and were quite debilitating. He sought drug therapy, but as time passed, the attacks became more frequent and severe until one day he went into Bells palsy and anaphylactic shock and found himself in the emergency room surrounded by physicians with no answers.

When he received the older version of this book in 1990, it was a revelation. My husband had been becoming increasingly sensitive to MSG while at the same time unknowingly adding it to his diet. In clear, easy-to read language, the book helped identify sources of MSG. It became clear that it was in virtually everything he was consuming--from breakfast cereals to canned tuna to Coca Cola. We altered his diet drastically, choosing mostly unprocessed whole foods, and the results were incredible. His personality changed as he was no longer on edge. His concentration and memory improved dramatically. He no longer needed drug therapy, and stopped doubting himself as an anxiety-prone person. As an added bonus, he lost weight, increased muscle mass and became generally healthier.

As his allergy continued to be quite severe, we turned to the book frequently to avoid more ER visits, and have been largely successful for the past twelve years. It is hard to imagine how life would have been had we not had this book at our disposal. My husband would have continued to suffer his 'mysterious ailment' until, quite possibly, it took his life.

I cannot recommend this book heartily enough. It should be *required* reading for anyone who even suspects they have "Chinese restaurant syndrome" and recommended reading for just about everyone else. It is incredible that such a small book can make such a big difference.

This is such an important and easy to read book about the dangers of certain food additives that the FDA allows into food without a consumer notice or warning. The long term coverup the FDA has been involved in to favor the giant food manufacturers over vulnerable consumers children, the elderly, etc. is staggering and well detailed. And these additives are in so many prepared foods we wouldn't think to question. Dr. Schwartz's seminal book, in this case the revised edition, needs to be reprinted ASAP!

The rise in ADD, Migraines, Seizures, Neurolinguistic processing issues, Autism, Parkinson's, Alzheimers, Breast Cancer, and ALS is linked to food additives that break down into free amino acids that can pass through the blood brain barrier and in some instances promote neuron death. See also Dr. Russel Blaylock's book Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, with a forward by Dr. Schwartz. Both of these physicians are of the highest caliber and their works, precise and beyond important.

George Schwartz, M.D. wrote the first edition of In Bad Taste more than ten years ago. Since then "the use of MSG and MSG-containing substances has more than doubled." While some people can use MSG with no adverse effects, many others have severe reactions to it, some of them life-threatening.

Kombu, a seaweed, was first used in Japan as a flavor enhancer. A Japanese doctor isolated the main ingredient--MSG, or monosodium glutamate--and started what has become a million-dollar industry. "MSG is used in processed food, in fast-foods and in Chinese food." It's also found in nearly all canned and frozen foods. It's the "most widely used flavor enhancer in the world."

MSG has been linked to asthma, headaches, and heart irregularities. "Behavioral and physical problems of children, such as incontinence and seizures, as well as attention deficit disorder (ADD), have been diagnosed and successfully treated as MSG disorders."

Those wishing to eliminate MSG from their diets are faced with an almost impossible task. Food preparers are often unaware that they're even using MSG. Labels can be misleading. A label that says "No MSG added" doesn't mean that the food is free of MSG, it simply means that the manufacturer didn't put in additional MSG. MSG goes under many aliases, one of the most common being "hydrolyzed vegetable protein," an additive used to increase the protein content of a wide variety of foods.

Manufacturers also hide MSG as part of "natural flavorings," because it is a natural product. As Dr. Schwartz points out, arsenic is also a natural product--being natural is not the same as being harmless.

Dr. Schwartz describes how MSG works in the body, and lists the symptoms it causes.

He provides several other lists, including the names used to hide MSG, general food sources of MSG, and specific brand names of items known to contain MSG. He also includes a selection of basic recipes to help people reduce their MSG consumption.

Dr. Schwartz says his book will help people learn to identify MSG reactions, and then how to avoid eating it. He adds, "knowing how to avoid this flavor enhancer can dramatically change lives." Readers wishing to understand MSG reactions and avoid using it will find In Bad Taste an invaluable resource.

Sandra I. Smith Reviewer

I was a great lover of the first three Pagan books, and so I was overjoyed when I got my hands on this fourth one. It was all that I hoped for and more. This story takes place twenty years after "Pagan's Vows" and in it Pagan is the Archdeacon. Also, this book is told from the point of view of Isidore, a suspicious and bitter youth who is also deeply religious. As usual, the author manages to incorporate many themes including heresy, war.
The only bad thing about his story is that most of Pagan's wit and funnny, clever remarks are lost. The author attempts to recreate this intelligence in Isidore, but the effect just isn't the same,

This book is a real tearjerker, and I was up half the night after I finished reading just thinking about what I had just read. This story packs so many themes in one novel that the reader needs some time to digest all the information. I also particularly like the epilogue at the end. I'm still not sure that this story is true, but the epilogue certainly suggests it.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Middle Ages, especially the Crusades. It makes much more sense if you have already read the three others. You cacn still read it without this knowledge but it is muchh more confusing, since many characters and themes are resurrected from Book Two. I recommend the series to anyone who likees to read, though there is some strong languages and a few themes that might not be appropriate for younger readers.

Catherine Jinks has once again managed to turn out a magnificent piece of work. Although Pagan's Scribe is different from the previous three in its narration, it is still just as witty and intense as the rest of the Pagan Chronicles. In this book we see Pagan adopt a young boy and give him confidence and a positive role model, in the same way that Roland had with him. Although Isadore isn't quite as hilarious as Pagan, he manages to produce a very good story, and I look forward to seeing what Jinks will do in the next installment of the Chronicles.

This is only the last book in an amazing series that everyone should read!

The enemy. When will they come? What will they do? What does an army look like, encamped around a city? I've read so much, but I just can't imagine it.

This final novel in the Pagan series is told by bookish and rather delicate Isadore, who leaves his home village, where books are so hard to come by, to become scribe to Pagan, now Archdeacon of Carcassone. Isadore can hardly believe so irreverent a man could attain such a high position in the Church. But he soon learns Pagan's worth, not to mention how dangerous the world outside his little village is, for this is 1209, the year in which Papal forces from the north begin their bloody crusade against the Cathar heretics, and the battle line quickly moves closer to Carcassone.

From the quote with which I start this review, it can be seen that Catherine Jinks doesn't abandon the spare writing style she used for Pagan's voice in the rest of the series. However, readers are left in no doubt that the narrator's character and personality are nothing like those of Pagan. While Isadore has many endearing qualities, most readers will find him less appealing than Pagan. I personally missed Pagan's sarcastic and humorous comments but still found this book as fast-paced and engrossing as the previous three.

"Pagan's Scribe" marks a departure from the other three Pagan books. The story is told this time from the perspective of Isadore, a bookworm scribe who is assigned to the company of Pagan, now an Archbishop. The action takes place many years after the events in "Pagan's Vows", and enables us to stand back and watch Pagan, Roland and the other characters from previous books with the critical eyes of Isadore who has no idea what they have been through. This is quite effective; we can appreciate the strength of Pagan and Roland's friendship objectively, which makes the *developments* (I will say no more!) all the more poignant for Isadore's unknowing. Though he has many endearing qualities, Isadore never wins the total support of the reader as a fully-fledged character, his often comical fear and prejudice less appealing than Pagan's smart-alec reluctance of his youth. The description and imagery of medieval life and fighting is as vivid as always, and the tone retains most of its element of humour, even if we are bereft of Pagan's sarcastic comments. The ending is abrupt but expected, and is dealt with delicately and simply as possible (which didn't stop this reveiwer from shedding a few tears!). This is the last installment of the series; it is hard to see Jinks carry on with Isadore, now that the Pagan-Roland theme is no longer possible. Those who have been with Pagan for all his adventures will enjoy the maturity he has achieved, and lament the ending that was inevitable.

Great book!!! would recomend it to any high school wrestler brings back lots of memerories.

I am a teacher with Epilepsy and I discovered this book this year. I am presently reading it aloud to my eighth grade class and they love it! Both the boys and the girls can relate to Jake and how he wants to hide any differences that he may have from others. They are all more open to differences and have taken the perspective of the "differnt" person and tell me that they will really work to be more open-minded of all people and their differences. I feel that it is a great springboard for both my students and their families to learn more about Epilepsy and accept that I am a person with Epilepsy. Several of my students really like his brother, Chopper. A wonderful book and I plan to purchase Benjamin's other books to have available for my studetns.

This is a terrific, fast-paced book about Jake Chapman, who thinks the worst thing he's going to have to face his senior year in high school will be the struggle for the state wrestling championship. Then he begins having seizures and is diagnosed with epilepsy, and his life does a fast 180. He loses his scholarship, driving privileges, and girlfriend, and he's terrified the coach will kick him off the wrestling team if he finds out. He's also terrified he'll have a seizure IN FRONT of somebody. In the end, the discipline and adapability that have made him a top athlete also help him adjust to his new way of life. Once I picked this up, I couldn't stop reading. The wrestling is absolutely realistic; the epilepsy, too. Even Bruce Baumgartner -- the world's most famous international wrestler -- wrote a nice blurb for the back of the book. I loved it!

A book that is big within the amateur wrestling cycle, "Takedown" is a story about life lessons rather than wrestling. Read as Jake Chapman, hit with an unexpected dose of the unfairness of life, learns to survive and cope with fear while everthing that he values is slipping away. This book will hook you from page one. I read the whole thing in one night. I reccommend this novel to everyone, not just wrestling fans.

This novel was a great educational tool! My high school special education class and I read this book together. My boys and girls equally liked the book. We would only read one chapter a day and they were truly disappointed when I wouldn't continue to the next chapter the same day. It opened up the door to alot of discussions on disabilities and perceptions. My students felt like the main character of the book knew how they were feeling most of the time. In teaching self advocacy, this novel helped my students reflect on their own disability after seeing how the main character dealt with his disability and how others perceived it. It was easy to read and understand for my students with all different disabilities. I highly recommend this novel to other teachers.

As a 34 year old adult woman with epielpsy, I found this book to be a godsend. I was given this book by Dr. Schachter this year. In reading this book, I found that other women share my trials and triumphs with epilepsy. I recommend this book as well as the other "Brainstorms" books. This book should be read by all women with epilespy.

This is a wonderful book. It is a series of different women's narrations of experiences with their epilepsy. The women range in age and interest, as well as to the severety with which their epilepsy has affected their lives. It felt great to put my own difficulties with this illness into context through hearing of other epileptic women.
This is a great book to read if you are an epileptic woman, or the husband/ partner/ boyfriend/ girlfriend friend or relative of one.
So far my father has read it, and I think it has given him a better starting off point with which to talk about my epilepsy with me. (I already have a line of friends and family waiting to read this book.)
The book's author Dr. Krishnamurthy, also heads a comprehensive epilepsy center through Boston's Beth Isreal Hospital. More information about the center is in the book and it is definatly worth investigating.

As a 50 year old woman recently diagnosed with Complex Partial Seizures, this book has been a godsend. I actually thought I was losing my mind; but reading this has helped me to understand that I am not alone. I will now pass this book on to my children and family to read along with my friends so they will also understand just what I am going through. At last, I can have some peace of mind knowing that others have felt the same as I have..... Great book, very easy to read. All women diagnosed with epilepsy should read this book.

This is the first book I've found that shares experiences of adults with epilepsy. It's filled with a variety true stories of adults living with epilepsy. It's very engaging, and makes the reality of epilepsy not so painful and shameful. I found myself on many of the pages and I learned so much.

I went through the same type of brain surgery as did Amy went though so I was definitely interested in hearing her story about life with epilepsy and the brain surgery.

It was an excellent book!!!

Amy Crane's moving account of her lifelong battle with epilepsy and its successful cure by 1994 brain surgery is a tremendously moving account. One of the most fascinating aspects of it is the staggering amount of autobiographical detail she was able to recall from her childhood and young adulthood ... detail which greatly augments and enriches the book. An inspirational book for anyone who has to deal with a medical crisis, or knows anyone who does.

Rejoice In The Light: A Woman's Journey Out Of The Mystery Of Epilepsy is Amy E. Crane's candid and compelling autobiography of her experiences living with a condition of epilepsy from children, through her young adult years, and eventual brain surgery. Highly recommended for personal and community library collections, Rejoice In The Light also offers the reader a wealth of "reader friendly" and detailed information on important medical, emotional, and social aspects of epilepsy, including the side effects of seizure medications, and the numerous ways to help a friend, loved one, colleague with an epileptic condition.

Ms. Crane shares so vividly all aspects of her journey out of epilepsy; physical, emotional and spiritual. This book delves into the very soul of an epileptic in an effort to help the rest of us understand the disease. It's intimate nature will make you feel the author's fear, pain, and joy. Also, this book could be an invaluable resource for those living with epilepsy with it's extensive list of treatment centers and many significant insights from the author. Truly a story that champions the strength of the human spirit and the grace of God!

As the world continues to march to information on the Internet, the issue of accessibility for Web sites has continued to grow in importance. Especially as glitz and flashy programming grow ever more popular in Web design, the chance of leaving those with special needs behind increases. What accessibility means also can be a murky area, though as lawsuits against Target and other stores over Web accessibility shows, this is still important. Sydik helps cut through the often vague standards to show the reader step-by-step things that are important for accessibility, but often are not major changes. He explains what accessibility entails, and looks at different solutions, and the pitfalls that some can produce making things worse for accessibility when it is trying to improve it. His chapters are grouped into thematic sections, but each chapter focuses on one item, keeping the information short and relevant to the topic. At the conclusion he walks through the current and proposed accessibility standards and gives practical advice and translation of what the sections mean, and what you can do about it (citing chapters that addressed the topic). This book is very readable, practical and sits on my desk for quick reference and advice. It is an excellent starting point for acquainting yourself with the issue of accessibility for Web sites and what you can do to help design them properly.

Jeremy's Design Accessible Web Sites provides practical advice alongside with the theoretical underpinnigs in upbeat style. This books covers actionable steps to take in fixing many common accessibility problems but it also does something more important. It gives the reader a theoretical framework for considering and solving accessibility issues for tricky scenarios.

Some other books are better on regulatory issues and others on multimedia items like Flash since the focus here is web site design. That said, it's a great read for web site design and web standards work. For that it's first rate, with modern techniques and consideration of the future of accessibility issues (AJAX, WCAG 2), and with a breadth and richness of subject matter.

DESIGN ACCESSIBLE WEB SITES is an excellent guide to making your web site(s) usable by anyone, regardless of their access needs. It is also not the dry and unfriendly tome that others have put out in regards to this subject...that is to say, it is very readable, even fun in some places! There are plenty of code examples as well as lists of specific tools and references that can be used to make your site accessible to everyone.
It concentrates mainly on the U.S. accessibility requirements, but it also covers what you need around the world.
Most importantly, Jeremy stresses that making your web sites accessible makes them easier for EVERYONE to navigate, not just those individuals with special access needs, and that is a bonus for everyone!

I am really enjoyed with this DVD. It is useful for electrodiagnostic technologist and who is going to appear for board exam. This DVD has given visual information as well as audio question and answer for abnormal,normal and normal variants pattern. I strongly recommend for any one who is interested in this field.

R.venkatesan
Electrodiagnostic technologist

This DVD is excellent. It is very easy to use, and has top quality tracings. The format is that the user is presented with an EEG, then on a separate screen an explanation of the pertinent findings is given. I would strongly recommend this for neurophysiology or epilepsy fellow, or neurology resident with an interest in these subspecialties.

I have used the eeg primer,Hopkins atlas and this book ;and by far,this is the better of the 3.The CD was an excellent source to learn.what makes it so flexible is the various formats u can use:either indices,or case wise.plus its interactive too.highly recommend this one for starters like me.