★★★★★ 5
I Am My Brother's Keeper.
Format: Paperback
I Am My Brother's Keeper. I had met Gary Rhule , a Jamaican American, because we are both Connecticut authors and belong to CAPA , Connecticut Author's and Publishers Association. I had offered to read and review his book about essential survival skills for recovery from mental illness , because like Dr. Rhule, I also work in a hospital with patients who have neurological and or psychiatric brain disorders. However , I found the book to cover more than just that. It deals with the stigma of mental illness, the choices a sibling and care giver have to choose, and the decision to care for a brother who has mental illness.
The book also juxtaposes Gary Rhule's work as an emergency room physician with the work of being a caregiver for a sibling , saving lives and enabling people in both situations. But , unlike the gloomy feeling one might expect from a book dealing with mental illness, this book is exciting , full of interesting stories, and loaded with life's lessons that may be learned from an ER doctor. From the moment I read the first paragraph I was captivated and knew this was a well written book. You can't make this stuff up.
With script like " We are glad you came." She said again. " Sometimes when we call families , they do not come . You know , they have lives too".
You can say Gary has found his "calling" when he decided to take up the challenge of caring for his sibling. However , the above sentence could apply to anyone caring for a family member , for instance a child with a developmental disorder or a parent who has developed dementia.
From the perspective of working in an emergency room , the action competes with anything I have seen on TV. " All the bones and tissues of the ankle and foot were displayed for the entire world to see. Frank Netter , the medical illustrator, could have drawn the ankles anatomy from this wide open view. Surprisingly , there was little blood despite the magnitude of the injury..... I shook my head in disbelief as I imagined his falling , and hearing the snap and loud crack as he fell off the ladder." How do you deal with pain , both physical and emotional ? Read the book and find out. Dr Rhule hopes that by reading his story , others will band together and take up the responsibility of understanding how to cope and deal with mental illness in a family member. Jason is author of Being In Control : Natural Solutions for ADHD, Dyslexia and Test Anxiety".
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Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2014

