Deep Survival Annotation

In Deep Survival, Laurence Gonzales writes about survival, and strives to answer three questions: Who lives? Who dies? And why? Gonzales artfully weaves science and true life stories of survival together in his book, creating a book based in science, philosophy and true life stories. This book is meaningful to me because of how relevant the content is to me as a cancer survivor; On that level I found a great deal of information in the book that I identified with.

One point Gonzales makes that I find to be very valuable is about being able to build up a “familiarization” with pain. On page 183, he writes, “You have to practice hurting. There is no question about it…You have to practice being hazed. You have to learn to take a bunch of junk and accept it with a sense of humor.” These words are meaningful to me on both a physical and emotional level. Physically, I think about the marathon I am currently training for. My weekend long runs began at six miles, which is a short distance for individuals who compete in endurance competitions. Gradually, they will build up to a maximum distance of twenty miles. Although the distance is what determines how long I will be running, it is really the amount of time I spend running that matters. In running a marathon, you need to be familiar with physical fatigue and pain—no matter how fit a marathoner is, they will be in pain by the time they complete the race. My gradual familiarization with physical hurting is teaching me how to withstand and endure physical discomfort, so on race day I can be strong and ready to run through the pain. On an emotional level, these words make me think about my experience as a cancer patient. Although my experience with cancer was emotionally grueling, I have learned and gained so much as a patient and survivor. Dealing with cancer at eighteen years old taught me many things; one of them being having a sense of humor about uncomfortable circumstances. During my illness, I enjoyed laughing at “Top Ten” lists for cancer patients. Some of my favorites are the “Top Ten Worst Responses If Someone Tells You They Have Cancer” and the “Top Ten Ways to Disturb the Waiting Room.” Although I never used humor as a defense mechanism to prevent myself from dealing with my illness, it was a helpful tool that alleviated some of the stress and pressure I felt.

Gonzales also discusses the essence of the survival instinct in survivors. On page 224 he writes, “Like all true survivors, Callahan was not doing it just for himself. Survivors are always connected to loved ones, friends, society. They survive because they are rescuing the species, not just themselves. It’s another paradox of survival: The individual doesn’t matter. But the survival instinct of the individual must matter if the species is to survive. That’s one reason survivors do it for another.” This passage makes me think about my experience as a cancer survivor. As soon as I completed my cancer treatments, I felt a call to action. I felt like I had been given a second chance--and, I thought I owed it to cancer. I immediately got interested and involved in fundraising and service efforts concerned with cancer. I fundraised and ran a half marathon with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and began volunteering at a camp in Maine for children with chronic or life threatening illnesses and their families during oncology sessions. Professionally, I aspire to work with individuals and families who are dealing with cancer or other life threatening illnesses in a clinical social work capacity. Throughout the past three years, the work I have done surrounding cancer has become a passion of mine, and I know the essence of survival is at the core of what I do.

The last section of the book, detailing steps survivors take to stay out of harm’s way was particularly meaningful to me. None of the steps are concrete rules that one might think they would be--Gonzales doesn’t describe how to start a fire in the wilderness or how to find food if stranded on a tropical island. But, he does describe how to keep your mental and emotional self in the role of “survivor.” Nearly every step listed is something that I feel cancer survivors must do in order to ensure survivorship. There were a couple steps in particular that I identified with. Gonzales writes, “Believe that you will succeed (develop a deep conviction that you’ll live)” (290). To have a positive self fulfilling prophecy is vital to individuals dealing with a life threatening illness--the power of a person who believes they will survive is insurmountable. On page 289, Gonzales writes, “See the beauty (remember: it’s a vision quest).” This step is also very important to survivors--although it is very difficult to escape the intense emotions that accompany tragic circumstances, seeing the silver lining in a negative situation can be incredibly uplifting. Although it was difficult for me to see any positive aspect to my own illness, I did embrace the love and support I received from family and friends. I was especially grateful for my mother and her intuitive response to take on the role as my patient advocate throughout the duration of my illness. From the beginning to the end, from each doctor appointment to treatment session, my mother was by my side the entire way. She asked questions of the doctors I had never thought of and took up in my defense when she thought doctors may not be acting in my best possible interest. I was so grateful for the protection my mother offered to me as her child, I saw that as the most beautiful aspect of my difficult circumstance.

I have conflicted feelings about Deep Survival. I found the first half of the book (which dealt with how accidents happen) difficult to enjoy and read, but the second half (which dealt with survivorship) easier to read and identify with. Although I think this book is appealing to a wide variety of readers, the science that is so deeply woven into the text could make the content difficult to understand for a layperson. Despite this, there are a great deal of lessons and strategies present in this book for how to effectively help people. Overall, I was pleased that I was able to identify several concepts of survival that I was familiar with from my own personal experience.