Summary: Brain On Fire

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In the memoir, Brain on Fire, Susannah Cahalan was a victim of a rare disease that not many people know about. She went to many different doctors and no one knew what was going on with her. The doctors mislabeled her illness because her disease was rare and the disease caused her to go through different symptoms. The disease she has is anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis, since she was going through different symptoms the doctors weren’t able to diagnose her with a correct mental illness. Most people who have it weren’t aware they have a disease called anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis so they are left untreated or die. Not many people knew about the disease, Susannah could have easily become another death statistics but she …show more content…
If she didn’t have the money to pay for the medical expenses she wouldn’t have been able to afford having visits to different doctors. Since she did have money she was able to find new doctors or even top doctors who would be able to find out what was wrong with her. Those who didn’t have the money for top doctors weren’t so lucky.“Many of the adults ultimately diagnosed with anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis first receive the diagnosis of schizophrenia (or other related mental disorders, such as schizoaffective disorder, in my case). Statistically there must be some people who receive a diagnosis of psychosis or schizophrenia and never get the proper help” (Cahalan, 224). Susannah’s disease was rare and most common doctors did not know what anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis was, they were often misdiagnosing patients for something else because of the symptoms. This shows that Susannah could have been in the same situation as the rest who were being misdiagnosed if she didn’t have money. She was able to witness this herself, before she met Dr. Najjar, a top doctor at NYU, she was often being treated for different mental disorders such as schizoaffective disorder. For Susannah to have a team of doctors be on her side, she needed to have the money for it. “It had cost $1 million to treat me, a number that boggles the mind. Luckily, at the time I was a full-time employee at the Post, and my insurance covered …show more content…
Going through the symptoms of anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis can be scary. She could have problems with her speech one day and another she could be looking like she was possessed. It’s hard battling a disease but having her family by her side everything more comforting. ““She’s still in there,” Stephen said. “I can see her. She’s still there. I know it.” “I agree. And that’s who we’re fighting for. None of the doctors and nurses see it, but we do,” my dad said. “And we have to remain strong for her””(Susannah, 120). This is what motivates Susannah to keep on fighting. The presence of her father and her boyfriend during the hard times, they believe that the old her is still in there somewhere and they just had to stay strong for her. It’s crazy how someone’s presence can affect you. When a loved one is around you, you feel safe around them. “My dad stayed with me until I fell asleep. Then he went home and slid into bed, prayed, and fell into a restless slumber” (Cahalan, 142). Her family visits her everyday and stays with her until she falls asleep. If her mom couldn’t visit her, her dad will be there. Susannah continues fighting the disease knowing that her family is staying by her side. If her family didn’t visit her, she wouldn’t have been able to fight this far. If it wasn’t for her family’s presence, she would have felt weak or could have given up but she didn’t. Her family continued to visit her
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