HOW DID I GET HERE: TRAVELING THE ROAD TO RESILIENCE

Book by Andrew Fitzgerald

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

September 14,2023 (San Diego)  -- In How Did I Get Here? Traveling the Road to Resilience, author Andrew Fitgerald shares his difficulties and determined resilience to overcome health issues. He also recounts how  he and his wife later struggled to settle in the United States. The second time they emigrated, they stayed. Then, after four miscarriages, they had a healthy boy. They live in San Diego County.

Fitzgerald begins his debut story being faced with death. His heart needed to be stopped and restarted. Doctors did this procedure twice before doing surgery on his heart to solve the problem. Over time, Fitzgerald reclaimed his strength and love of sports. 

He and his wife decided to move to the United States but initially had hardships and difficulties that drove them back to Ireland. They recommitted themselves and successfully relocated to the San Diego region, where they flourished in their second move. 

Fitzgerald tried out all sorts of careers, including consulting, rearing his son, and writing a novel. He shares his successes and setbacks in the corporate world. Time to time, he gives helpful hints to readers for achieving resilience in their endeavors. He shares the highs and lows that shaped his path.

To demonstrate Fitzgerald’s writing, here is a sample. Jane, his wife, has experienced four miscarriages in a row:

… I’ll never forget how stoic and resilient Jane was during our four losses. For the male partner, I think there’s a range of emotions. But straight away I felt my role was to project confidence. If I showed too many negative emotions, I thought it might have a negative effect on Jane who was already dealing with a lot. Though because we had been around each other for so long, by osmosis we just rubbed off on each other, that is, we both became resilient. We really had no other choice.

Jane works in the corporate world as I do, so we threw ourselves right back into work after each miscarriage. That worked for us, although it may not have been the healthiest of distractions. Yet, we knew at some point we had to face the loss. We had to sit with and accept it, let it seep into our souls. We realized we were working ourselves too hard and our work was masking our pain and heartbreak.  One Friday night after dinner, we broke down in each other’s arms and let it all out: the grief, the sadness, the endless tears. And this feeling we both had of being cold, as if we were in shock. I think sometimes you have to breakdown before you can build up again.”

A father, husband, and author, Fitzgerald speaks on what it takes to be successful in the corporate world and how to overcome health crises and other losses. For inspiration, read his debut book, How Did I Get Here: Traveling the Road to Resilience. 

Visit his website at www.AndrewFitzgeraldAuthor.com.