Identity Theft: Rediscovering Ourselves After Stroke

Identity Theft, Second Edition is an update to the award-winning book that follows Stanford professor Debra Meyerson’s journey to recover from a severe stroke that initially left her physically incapacitated and unable to speak. In addition to providing realistic expectations for the hard work needed to regain everyday capabilities, Meyerson and Zuckerman focus on the less frequently documented – but equally critical – emotional journey as she and her family rebuild identity in recovery. The second edition adds perspective from an additional five years of continued recovery and rebuilding their lives, including insights from the work of the nonprofit they co-founded – Stroke Onward. Virtually every stroke survivor is haunted by questions like “Who am I now?” and “How do I rebuild a meaningful and rewarding life?” after losing so much of what they had before—capabilities, careers and jobs, relationships, and more. The first edition centered on Debra’s experience: her stroke in 2010, her extraordinary efforts to recover, and her journey to redefine herself. But she also draws on her skills as a social scientist, sharing stories from several dozen fellow survivors, family members, friends, colleagues, therapists, and doctors she met and interviewed. By sharing this diversity of experiences, Debra highlighted how every stroke is different and every recovery is different. The new content in this second edition was written by Debra and her spouse, Steve Zuckerman. They co-founded the nonprofit Stroke Onward to build an organization that can catalyze change in the healthcare system to better integrate the emotional journey of rebuilding identity into a lifelong recovery process. They’ve added new insights about the long-term recovery process and how we can change the stroke system of care to better support all survivors and their families.