Page 4 - Boca ViewPointe - May '22

Page 4, Viewpointe May 2022

Book Review

A Healthy Mind In A Healthy the pilgrims of our time, recognizable to my readers familiar
with the genius of Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury
Body Tales, a pastiche of memorable character sketches from
the fourteenth century, like the Knight, the Pardoner, the
Eric Berg. The New Body Type Guide. Get Healthy, Lose Prioress, the Wife of Bath. She visits former patients, people
Weight & Feel Great. Alexandria VA: KP Publishing, 2017. with whom she has corresponded, parents of lost ones,
Suleika Jaouad. Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life thumbnail portraits of the characters who are sharing with
Interrupted. New York: Random House, 2022. her in the healing process; these comprise school teachers,
“I think; therefore I am.” Descartes, 17th Century ranch cooks, an equestrian rider and teacher, a prisoner Lil’
L’homme Machine; man [is] the machine, Julien Offray GQ, and sheer strangers who introduce her to a life living
de la Mettrie, 18th Century out of a yellow, Volkswagen camper, and Native American
activist who shares family history with her own Will.
By Dr. Ronald J. Meyers Like Odysseus coming home from his dangerous
wanderings and reconnecting with his wife Penelope, the
Even as we probe the most severely broken as a woman. Unfortunately, her boyfriend goal of Ms. Jaouad’s journey might also have been is to
remote areas of our galaxy and lover Will, in her account, becomes discouraged and connect or to settle upon her life’s partner. Will she return to
and the profound connectivity seems distant. She terminates the relationship and finds the faithful Will in California who had sustained her during
of our neural system, we solace with a jazz musician named Jon who visits her in her long illness, as her parents wish for her, or to Jon, the
are stymied--as each new hospital and serenades her and replaces Will, though her jazz musician whom she met as a youth in music camp? The
discovery seem to lead to parents disapprove of her new course. conclusion of the book will surprise you particularly when
new, unanswered questions. Without giving away too many secrets, I can at least say Ms. Jaouad reveals the identity, in the Epilogue, of the jazz
The gods have tainted our that the last section of the memoir is, for me, most engaging performer, named Jon—Batiste, Emmy recipient and band
voyages of discovery with and certainly most literary. Which she characterizes as a rite leader for The Tonight Show, whom she recently wed. The
apprehensions and doubts. of passage, an epic journey, a plan of healing and renewal. book offers the inspiration of healing, though apparently
Still we are learning how to energize our immune system With bare driving experience, she undertakes a 14,000 the disease also has returned to confound her once more.
and how to combat unwanted viruses in our cellular biology; mile car tour of the United States from New England to
and demonstrating significant progress in combating California to acknowledge those who have touched and Dr. Ronald J. Meyers, a resident of La Paz, is an
reactionary cell diseases like MS and Alzheimer’s. supported her during her convalescence. These indeed are Emeritus Professor of English. rmeyers@esu.edu. 
Dr. Berg’s book, though presented as a guide to weight
loss, actually reads to me like a conversation with your
internist, apprising you and guiding fundamental facts of
your biology in a manner that can lead to more healthy Board Of Directors
and full life He explains the functioning of our well-
maintained machine, how the brain directs the complex
operations--bacteria in the gut to break down food into its May 2021 – May 2022 Officers/Executive Committee
uses for energy, the liver filtering our blood and releasing
the waste, the ovaries producing hormones responsible for Chairman and President Barry J. Haberman District 5 Howard Weinstein (El Dorado)
controlling menstrual cycles in women, how the thyroid Vice Chair Steve Retzer Esplanada, Caravelle, Palomar, La Corniche,
and El Dorado
and pituitary glands regulate the rate at which fat is Secretary Steve King District 6 Connie Murray (Villa Flora)
Kaplan
Harvey
Treasurer
drawn from our cells for our sustenance and locomotion. Villa Flora, Montego Bay, Villa Del Sol, and Palladium
He emphasizes that the healthiest way to draw upon our District Directors District 7 Alan Markoff (The Plum)
energy needs is from our fat cells, not the quick sugar District 1 Mary Ann Frazier (Palms) The Plum/Cortina, Villa Sonrisa and Pointe 100
fix. Our fat cells are refreshed and reinvigorated when Encantada, Valencia and The Palms District 8 Robert Cornell (Costa Brava)
we are fasting or at rest. Also a takeaway for me is the District 2 Steve King (Imperial Royale) Costa Del Sol and Costa Brava
unnatural role of stress in reducing the efficacy of our Promenade, Imperial Royale, Imperial, Regency District 9 Robin Gliboff (Edgewater)
energy systems. When stressed, our body turns on the and Panaché Edgewater Pointe Estates and Stratford Court
sugar spigot, and we crave sweets. And our t cells act to District 3 Harvey Kaplan (Meridiana)
protect our body from invading viruses, such as we have La Mirada and Meridiana At Large Directors
seen during the current pandemic. He writes, “Health is a District 4 Michael Ehrentreu (El Viento) Through 2022 Through 2023
condition of high energy, excellent sleep, great vitality, no El Viento, La Paz, and Southwinds Chandra Stewart-Keith (Panaché) Barry J. Haberman (Encantada)
cravings, excellent digestion, high tolerance for stress, and Bob Greenstein (Lakes of La Paz) Marvin Lazarowitz (Villa Del Sol)
great memory. Health occurs when all the body’s organs Steve Retzer (La Mirada) Carsten Bethge (Valencia)
and glands are working together, sustaining homeostasis.”
On a practical level, Dr. Berg recommends a daily glass
of vinegar with lemon, and a celery stalk before bed, as
healthful recipes.
Unfortunately when the delicate homeostasis fails, the
brain’s control of the equilibrium of the functioning machine
breaks down, that the body undergoes bitter disruption; then
our cells might undergo uncontrolled growth, as brilliantly
and movingly recounted in the Tunisian-American journalist
Suleika Jaouad’s Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a
Life Interrupted. The disruption into the kingdom of illness
starts with an unbearable itch that uncovers the breakdown of Do you know a family member,
protective mechanisms and unimpeded growth of leukemia
cells. A twenty two year old, just out of university, Suleika friend or a neighbor in need of
works as a journalist in Paris for her first job and enjoys a
romantic attachment to her friend Will. What she thinks will Home Health Care?
be a brief digression from her promising career, she returns
to America to undergo tests that initiate a horrific process
that will devour four years.
Early on in the development of the disease and the
treatment, she is invited to write a blog of her journey Home Health Aides / Certified Nursing Assistants / Registered Nurses to assist you with:
between the two kingdoms of health and sickness for The
New York Times, and she becomes a sought after speaker • Personal Care • Companionship • Respite Care • Alzheimers & Dementia Care
and writer while undergoing the grueling but necessary • Medication Management • Transportation • Meal Preparation
treatment. Living with death at her door, and observing • Light Housekeeping • Grocery Shopping • Post Surgery Care
the many who do not make it, she has the motivation and
brilliance—to say nothing of sheer luck, to survive--though
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