Coping and Prevailing
With Multiple Sclerosis and
other life struggles

By Thomas Bayuk



Publisher: J &B Corporation
2002

Reviewed by: Liz Thompson/LizOP
 MSWorld Book Reviewer



Be forewarned this is not a favorable book review.



Bayuk’s purpose was to encourage people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) to fight and not give up. He was diagnosed with MS in 1984, prior to any medications for treatment of MS. He tried almost every avenue for a cure or alleviation of his myriad of symptoms from bee stings, to an almost frightening vitamin and mineral regimen combined with exercise, to divine intervention.

At one point, he asked his neurologist never to ask him questions. He wrote questions such as, "Have you ever had trouble urinating?" frightened him because of the possibility of catheterization. His fear and denial is common but this seemed a bit bizarre. As I read, I hoped for his acceptance but it took days to get to the final chapter, and his change of heart.

Bayuk obviously fought his disease, which is admirable, but called it a malady, choosing not to say disease. Semantics are apparently a pet peeve for him.

With that thought in mind, I can tell you why this book is not worth purchasing. In my opinion, this $14.95 book is better spent on a coffee and croissant with a friend.

The book is not worth the time it takes to plod your way through 12 chapters and 112 pages of poorly written work. I looked at the page count when I was on page 10.

His writing is redundant, lacking fluidity or consistency, poorly punctuated, and sentence structure is arduous. Many times I had to read a sentence several times to find the purpose of the message.

His audience is people with MS, but he missed the mark and his arrow went into the trees, never to be found. The font (letter size) is small and the paragraphs extremely long. The author suggests therapy that has proven to be detrimental to MS. Case in point; his extensive list of vitamins (31) includes Echinacea and other agents which have been proven to activate the immune system, bringing more damage to our bodies. There is no disclaimer except, "There is no magic bullet."

He then says our attitude and faith in God will help us beat the "malady" of MS. I know attitude and faith help – it took a good attitude and faith, to finish this book.

On a positive note, had he based his book on his last chapter, "Unexpected changes," I would have liked to read that book. Here he describes his revelations and revitalized, personal relationship with God. He accepts his MS as part of who he is.

Bayuk is right to put his feelings and experiences into words. His mistake was publishing it for others to read. This is personal journal material. If I were to seriously edit this book, it might be half the length.

If you enjoy reading sentences such as the following, be my guest. But as your friend, I suggest using your time more wisely.

"Think of it as a journey, think of it as a business plan, think of it as a football game, think of it as a tennis match, think of it as making a quilt, think of it as making a cake, think of it as a war, think of it as just getting in shape, think of it as a diet."

My spell check even said, "Long sentence, no suggestions."

My suggestion is "think of it (the book) as a lost cause."