Title: My Brain is Out of Control: Memoirs of a Doctor as a Patient
Author: Dr. Patrick Mbaya
Publisher: AuthorHouseUK
ISBN: 978-1-5246-3664-7
Pages: 76
Genre: Non-Fiction, Memoir
Reviewed by: Beth Adams
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Pacific Book Review
My Brain is Out of Control, by Dr. Patrick Mbaya, is exactly what its subtitle describes, Memoirs of a Doctor as a Patient. Having noticing symptoms of a brain disorder causing speech, facial and coordination issues, Dr. Mbaya began his journey through the diagnostic process – leading into the operating room – and back from recovery from a life threatening brain disorder. Throughout this entire process, he was aware of what was happening although at times he was “trapped” within his body without the ability to speak nor write. A frightening level of submission to the nurses and doctors handling his prognosis and treatment, and a testament to the strength of love within his family. As God didn’t leave him off with just a brain issue, the heavy doses of antibiotics needed during his recovery caused a reduced white blood cell count, and he also contracted hepatitis. A “triple whammy” as he refers to it.
In a predetermined way, the readers understanding the author wrote his autobiographical experiences two years after these events took place, thus having a clear foreshadowing of knowing of a happy – or at least a healthy ending to these episodes of life threatening surgeries and treatments. The extent of the scores of diagnostic tests, logical pathways of medical determinations, as well as the descriptive risk analysis of the various decisions one needs to make throughout the process, is handled with a vernacular of medical terms used by doctors; bringing an understanding of the minutia of the processes of the medical profession to the readers’ awareness. At various times, I was so absorbed in the fascinating details and descriptions of the brain, I felt as if it became a “Fantastic Voyage” into the workings of the chemistry and systems of the human brain. In a way My Brain is Out of Control reminded me of a TED Talk series when a brain researcher, Jill Bolte Taylor, told an audience of her first-hand experience undergoing a stroke – from the point of view within her brain. In this book, the aspects of chemical imbalances which are the root cause of depression are so well articulated readers are brought to a heightened sense of awareness realizing we are not exactly in control of our emotions, thoughts and understanding. Our thoughts themselves are all dependent on the healthy amount of dopamine, serotonin and an entire “soup” of chemicals.
Dr. Mbaya quotes the phrase. “A doctor makes for a lousy patient,” citing his sometimes comical answers to questions throughout his recovery, teasing the nursing staff. However in this case, “A doctor makes for a fascinating author,” especially when writing about his own sequence of events from within his brain being out of his own control. This book is highly recommended to anyone who is going through such a crisis with someone close to them, as well as those wishing to live vicariously through life threatening events of another person, from the safety and comfort of their favorite reading chair.
