Elizabeth Tai's Reviews > Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness

I'm really gobsmacked by how good this memoir is. You keep turning the pages because you're wondering what Susannah is suffering from, and how can you not when the suffering is so painful, so deep, so personal? Which is why, if possible, you should not to spoil yourself about WHAT the illness is. I went into the book believing that it's some other ailment, and was astounded to find out what it is. It goes to show how rare this disease is, and how much the world needs to know it exists.

The book is very well written; its structure is like a mystery novel, with the tension rising as Susannah gets worse.

One thing that stands out for me is the author's experience with doctors. It was a frustrating experience for her as so many refused to acknowledge that she was really ill, declaring her "fine" numerous times. It was not until she had a violent seizure in a hospital that they took her seriously (or her parents, as she was pretty out of it by then). Even then the frustration is not over as so many seemed determined to chase their own theories or refused to give up their prejudices to "think out of the box".

I had an experience just like that, though my illness is by no means as grave as Susannah's. I do wonder why some doctors think they are 100% right, and how some refused to entertain alternative treatments....