Sucks About Your Brain Tumor with Shannon Taylor

In September of 2020, while on vacation, Shannon Taylor had a seizure. She was diagnosed with a large non-cancerous brain tumor on her brain stem that night. She spent the next two months awaiting a particularly invasive craniotomy. The tumor was rare, the surgical approach was rare, and the complications were rare. After losing her voice and the ability to speak, Shannon authored a book titled "Sucks About Your Brain Tumor". In today's episode, Shannon tells her story and details what she learned during her two-year recovery, such as the love of community, how free bottles of water can magically show up at your house, how unprepared she was for the recovery process, and how - in the face of experts telling her otherwise - she was determined to get her voice back. Please keep in mind that neither Shannon nor Kristen are neurologists, and this conversation does not attempt to give medical advice in any way; however, it is a compelling conversation on the value of sharing experiences, finding hope in community even in the face of medical crisis and chronic illness (for patients and for caretakers), and how we learn to integrate what happens to us until it becomes a part of our story, but not the whole plot. If you or someone you love is going through a crisis, we hope this conversation helps you to connect, and ultimately feel less alone. To contact Shannon, please reach out at [email protected].