Reinvention: Life After Traumatic Change

Out of the blue, one January morning in 2017, Beth Cottone, research scientist, marathoner, and mother of three, had a massive stroke. In its aftermath, she has had to relearn how to balance, walk, speak, swallow, and even breathe independently. With an academic background in the science of learning, she understood what was at stake in her recovery. In this, her second book, the author examines the emotional and practical struggles involved in returning to a functioning life - and even the possibility of happiness - after such devastating loss.

Cottone's book delivers an empathetic understanding of the challenges faced not only by stroke survivors and others with neurodivergences but also by parents, former athletes and performers, and those who have lost a "gateway skill" like vision, hearing, speech, or language. With quotations from other stroke survivors, a parent of special needs children, a former athlete, and a person with aphasia, the author illuminates the slow, painful work faced by those who lives require reinvention after traumatic change.

The author explains, "Identity foreclosure (when you can no longer meet your expectations of competence in an area that formed a principal part of your identity) is the great equalizer. It cuts across all socioeconomic levels. ... Happiness may only be found with acceptance, when we give our past self a friendly nod and move on."

If you love down-to-earth inspiration from an author with a compelling and relatable story, you'll love Elizabeth Cottone's hard-won wisdom. Buy REINVENTION: New Life After Traumatic Change and begin taking steps toward happiness today.



Following a massive cerebellar hemorrhagic stroke in 2017, Elizabeth Cottone, PhD founded and now manages a brain insult support group. She has secured part-time work as a stroke survivor advocate, and has written two books, all while committing fully to PT, OT, speech therapy, and rehabilitation.Elizabeth works hard to reinvent herself, doing new things like horseback riding, singing, and unloading the dishwasher. She is also relearning a lot of basic skills like walking, typing, brushing teeth and hair, and swallowing, to name only a few. For an achievement-oriented woman in her fifties, these adjustments continue to be as difficult as they can be rewarding.Prior to the stroke, she was a research scientist (Assistant Research Professor) for 11 years at The Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL), part of the University of Virginia's School of Education and Human Development.She is fascinated with the process by which people survive and thrive after traumatic change. Her research interests include dyslexia, stroke, investigating pathways from economic disadvantage to poor outcomes for children, and understanding families in poverty through a resilience lens.Her FUN-R (Foundation Underlying New Reading) method incorporates her broad experience as a research scientist and as a tutor for students with dyslexia and other learning disabilities.Elizabeth Cottone has discovered similarities among stroke survivors like herself and people with dyslexia and ADHD. She works to support recovery, advocacy, and education for all people who have undergone trauma.Her book, Dyslexia: A Universe of Possibilities (4 Peas Press, 2021) combines case studies, education theory, neuroscience, special education policy, and more, to highlight a path forward for the countless curious, inventive, creative, and challenged students born with dyslexia, ADHD, and other neurodiversities.Visit elizabethcottone.com