Smiling Again: Coming Back to Life and Faith After Brain Surgery

by Sally Stap

“When I woke up. . .I quickly became aware that gliding through brain surgery recovery was not the big plan. Pain, paralysis, and single-sided deafness loomed ahead.”
Sally Stap was in the midst of a busy and successful 25-year career in Information Technology, juggling the usual concerns about job, daughters, and life, when the unthinkable she was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, a benign but large brain tumor.
Written with a poignant blend of honesty, dry humor, faith, and inquisitiveness, Smiling Again is a story of the persistence of life and beauty in spite of pain. Sally recounts the shock of diagnosis, a long and painful recovery from invasive brain surgery, her eventual retirement due to disability, and ultimately contentment and acceptance of a new life journey.
For caregivers and survivors, Sally shares practical lessons and tips that will help you find your own signposts of faith along a treacherous but ultimately exhilarating journey,
- Be optimistic, but don’t discount possible outcomes just because they don’t sound fun.
- Allow yourself to grieve because there is a new you.  
- A sense of humor will give you a better temperament than frustration.
Whether you are a brain tumor survivor or are facing another experience that has brought you to the end of yourself, Sally’s experience shows that even when the worst happens, God is present and visible in sometimes unexpected ways. The future you may not be the same as the old you, but it can lead you in new and rewarding directions.

Genres: Memoir

200 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2013

About the author

I'm a writer living in Sturgis, Michigan. I've always dabbled in writing, but found that writing after brain surgery gave me an outlet to capture my experience. After my broken brain brought an Information Technology career to a halt and I struggled with head pain, facial paralysis, and single-sided deafness, I found that writing helped me express what I was feeling both physically and emotionally.

My right brain, subservient to my left brain throughout my career, now regularly finds a voice through writing as I strive to interpret emotions and experiences through words. I'm a member of the Kalamazoo Christian Writer's critique group, Wordweavers, and Faithwriters.com.

Reviews

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about the author’s personal journey though being diagnosed, surgery, and recovery of an acoustic neuroma brain tumor. I enjoyed reading this book; it read part like a diary and part like a conversation with a good friend about what’s going on in her life. I liked that she balanced both the good and bad parts of her journey. The book never came off as too winy or too happy go lucky about having a brain tumor. What I did find distracting though was she spliced in her original blog postings with her book, sometimes repeating whole pages of information that she just covered only to read about it in a blog posting. I felt like the book itself could have done without the blog posts and comments from the blog. Besides that this is a good read, and I would recommend it for anyone who likes to read personal memoirs, is or had a family member go through a life changing medical procedure, or anyone who is or had a family member diagnosed with acoustic neuroma brain tumor.

I received a free copy of this book through the Goodreads First Reads program.

[Chris Gardinier · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an inspiring book!! Going through the ups & downs of Sally's life after her brain surgery touched me so. She is a woman of strength and courage pushing herself beyond the norm and she continues to do so today. We all can learn a few lessons from her such as "Never Give Up, Just Keep on Fighting". But most importantly, she never gave up her faith and belief that God was walking beside her then and now.

[Michelle Welch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would have been great to read BEFORE my surgery and not 6 months post op. Sally's symptoms were a bit different than mine but other than that this was a great read!

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!! To go through a huge operation as that and with a very supportive family share the ups and downs of the healing process. I agree faith is very important in anything we do. Great story!!

[Lorraine Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was several times as I read Sally's book that I stopped and took a deep breath. It was so powerful and inspiring. Whilst the subject is about recovering from brain surgery I think the wider impact of faith in aiding recovery applies to so many other aspects of life. Sometimes as Sally was, we are thrown a curve ball which totally changes our lives. Part of life is how we deal with them and who we turn to in our time of greatest need. Sally has not only shared her experiences but provided many others with hope.

[Bri · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started reading this book, but couldn't finish it. The author did a good job in the beginning, but soon enough it seemed like she got caught up in a cycle. The story began detailing what had occurred to her each hour of the day. I wanted to keep reading it, but the story was not advancing. I know it's a true story, but as a reader I don't want to know each detail. I like to use my imagination when I read.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sally Strap's book is an engaging testimony of life right-before, during and after brain surgery. Her story is a no holes barred one. You get the bad days with the good. But that's what keeps you turning the pages.

The fact that Sally is bold enough to interweave her struggles with faith makes Smiling Again even more powerful a story.

It also makes Strap's tale a testimony to her own determination and God's grace.

I highly recommend this book!

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smiling Again: Coming Back to Life and Faith After Brain Surgery by Sally Stap is a wonderful book. It follows the real life journey of Stap through diagnosis, treatment, and recovery from brain surgery. It is a renewal of faith and a life changer for her, but it also helped me in ways. Lesson Learned: Never ignore the symptoms. This book is a real tear jerker, so have your tissues handy.

[Marlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a life journey for the author who was diagnosed, in the midst of her career, with an acoustic neuroma, a benign but large brain tumor. It is her story of persistence and faith in spite of her painful recovery and forced retirement due to disability and ultimately contentment and acceptance of her new life journey.

[Jack Fernard · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Everyone was relieved I was alive, not expecting me to survive surgery. I wasn't sure I had."

This book wasn't written by a doctor from a spectator or teacher's point of view. This book was written by someone who actually HAD a brain tumor. If you want a real world understanding of what that is like, then this book is an ABSOLUTE READ!

My highest recommendations for this book!