By Cathy Crimmins
Cathy Crimmins, a professional writer, used her considerable talents to tell the riveting story of her husband Alan’s recovery from a brain injury acquired in a boating accident. When you finish this book, not only will you have been engrossed by her family’s story—you also will walk away with a greater understanding of brain injuries. Caregivers, who are parents of small children, should consider this book essential reading.
Crimmins writes with emotion, candor, and a sarcastic biting humor that may disturb some readers. But her story is a gritty one. Cathy and Alan struggle to cope with his major personality changes, which include disinhibition, nastiness, daily multiple angry outbursts, and frequent profanity, sometimes directed at their seven-year-old daughter, Kelly.
And here lies one of the tragedies of brain injury—a child forced to live with one parent, who is an abusive survivor, and another parent, who is too distracted to be an attentive mom.
Jessica calls The Mango Princess one of the best books she’s read. But even months after reading it, she still cries at the memory of the harsh treatment Kelly had to endure. From a caregiver perspective, I can feel the anguish Crimmins’ suffered trying to keep her family together.
Alan’s recovery—from outward appearances—could be deemed “successful.” In contrast to many survivors, Alan returned to his profession as a probate attorney. His long-term memory is fine and he retained all he knows about law and banking. But, like most survivors, he is easily fatigued, an impairment that complicated his efforts to return to work.
The Mango Princess provides a good example of how a personal caseworker can help a person living with a brain injury re-enter the workforce. A caseworker accompanied Alan to work and helped him organize his tasks, maintain his focus, and educate his coworkers.
Eventually, however, Alan’s employer becomes dissatisfied with his need to work only part-time, and, possibly, with some of the other sequelae of his brain injury. Alan is shaken badly by his dismissal.
By the end of the story, though, Alan is networking through his many professional and social contacts to locate a new position. He is trying very hard to be a good father to Kelly "sometimes to the point of over-indulging her” to make up for his bad behavior. And, they have achieved a “reasonable facsimile” of their old life.