My Beautiful Detour: An Unthinkable Journey From Gutless to Grateful

What happens when an ordinary teenager has to turn into a warrior just to survive? And can the journey through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder really become an “adventure?” Amy had ambitious plans for college and Broadway, until her stomach exploded the week before her senior prom. Months later, she awoke from a coma to learn that she's never eat or drink again. After 28 surgeries and seven years on IV nutrition, her digestive system was miraculously reconstructed and her first bite of food awakened her senses to life's wonder. Yet now, Amy was suddenly faced with memories of being sexually abused by a trusted mentor for months, just before the unexpected rush to the emergency room that fateful Passover night. With determination, imagination, relentless resilience, and an inner “hunger” for life, Amy created a roadmap where none existed. Her journey through life's unthinkable detours is miraculous, but the creative path to healing she forged is accessible to anyone - a celebration of ordinary and extraordinary challenges and miracles. How can you cope for years without even an ice cube to nourish your thirst for knowledge, or a breadcrumb to fuel an insatiable hunger for life? Amy found many ways, and in this book, she shares her many twists and turns, setbacks and triumphs, obstacles, and opportunities. In between, her humorous adventures from graduating high school in the surgical ICU, breaking out of the hospital to go to the mall, and flourishing as a visual artist through the unexpected discovery of a paintbrush during a year-long hospital stay.  In a coming of age story, Amy shares her struggles and discoveries living with both visible and invisible illness, gifts reaped from trauma, lessons which illuminated her path, and we can find unique, yet universal ways to navigate any kind of uncertainty. The audiobook includes Amy's original songs, readings by her family, and a special afterword by Tony Award Winning composer William Finn.