The Mango Princess

In this book, the Cathy described an incident that surround the TBI or brain damage of her husband in June 1996. Cathy with her husband had a scheduled visit to the lakeside basin, which they had won through a raffle in their child’s school who was aged seven. Although the trip was less relaxing and harder, they were excited than expected. The couples were required to fetch water over a distance to a given cabin where a local man made an effort to rip them using a rental boat.  Many friends came to the cabin including old and new where some were their colleagues in graduate school. Although it was raining, they enjoyed swimming and sharing ghost stories. When the vocation was ended, Alan loaded garbage and dirty laundry on the boat to return to the mainland. Alan suffered as an accident that injured his brains. He was taken to hospital for medical attention.

On the fifth day on the hospital bed, Allan was able to open his eyes and uttered words although they were slurred. He recognized his people and called them by name. The injuries left Alan with serious physical injuries and had to use a wheelchair. Cathy was disturbed by the disability but appreciated later when she saw other disabled people in hospital. Kelly suffered psychological stress and feared that her mother, Cathy, may suffer from something bad.

By the second week in hospital, Alan could walk with the help of a cane. He left the hospital after three weeks because he was denied his benefits. Cathy complained to the HMO for not supporting patients with cognitive impairment. At home, Cathy realized that there was a difference between women and men’s reaction to the Alan’s condition. Women were interested with feelings as well as whether he was comfortable. However, men were interested in knowing his ability to return to work and have sex.

Cathy compared the case of her husband with of a foreman by the name Phineas Gage who suffered extensive brain damage following a gun shot. Although Gage recovered, his employer later fired him because his personality was altered. After one year, Allan acquired another driving license and returned to his work as a bank trust officer. He was competent in his old skills but faced little challenges with systems that were introduced in his absence. Unfortunately, after some time the bank required his to work longer than his capacity.