Bruce Ballister
Cover Designer: Mark Gerber
Publisher: Emerald Lake Books
Publication Date: January 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-945847-22-6
Book Description:
Are you or a loved one facing cardiac surgery?
There’s nothing more frightening than when your heart isn’t functioning the way it’s supposed to, except possibly when the heart of someone you love is in trouble.
Of course, it’s a natural reaction to want more information about what to expect and how to heal quickly.
And while there’s a lot of great information on the internet, much of it is on medical websites that provide bulleted lists of information mixed with incomprehensible jargon.
In this first-person account, author Bruce Ballister shares his own experience with coronary artery bypass grafting so that you will know:
- What to expect as you prepare for your surgery.
- How it feels to have had your chest cracked open.
- Why a support team is so important for your recovery.
- How to transition back home as smoothly as possible.
- And most importantly, what you need to do to avoid a repeat performance.
Whether you’re preparing for heart surgery yourself or you’ll be supporting someone through the process, this book will explain what to expect and how to survive beyond the surgery.
Project Info:
Emerald Lake Books’ founder, Tara Alemany, met Bruce Ballister at the annual conference of the Florida Authors and Publishers Association. Bruce was running for the organization’s Board and came around to various attendees to introduce himself, get to know them a little, and make sure they knew he was running.
This impressed Tara (so much so that she voted for him!) because many new authors are too shy or uncertain of how to conduct meaningful conversations, but still lead to being able to share about their writing. There’s a technique that’s hard to learn, but essential if you want to avoid being a one-hit-wonder.
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Readers Favorite 5-star Review
Your health is important. Each one of us has various types of challenges whether it’s losing or gaining weight or being genetically predisposed to various diseases or illnesses that tend to control our lives. In this humorous yet candid work, Welcome to the Zipper Club: Surviving Heart Surgery and Beyond, author Bruce Ballister gives us a blow by blow account of his journey in surviving heart surgery. He recommends that if you are in the position to become a part of “the zipper club,” not to look at bypass or quadruple bypass surgery on YouTube for how the process goes because it can become unsettling. If Youtube does become your resource, he states that one must remember each medical facility is different and besides you want to be amongst the 98% that survives – looking at these YouTube images may not be so smart. Bruce not only gives definitions to many medical terms but ‘a word of caution’ is to hold on to your seat because the ride will be bumpy. But you will learn a lot about heart surgery.
I enjoyed Welcome to the Zipper Club due to the blow-by-blow account of how Bruce was not only able to survive heart surgery, given the pros and cons of the process but kept his wits about him through it all. Humor and laughter are good for the soul and help to heal and I’m sure that this contributed to his survival. The important thing that the author points out is that the whole process is contingent upon your pre-existing condition and the type of care that you receive at the hospital. And I found it fascinating to learn that there are 800,000 survivors that join “the zipper club” every year. Did you know that? This book is highly recommended and a must-have for any library.
Reviewed by Vernita Naylor for Readers’ Favorite
