On Tuesday, October 27th at 5:00pm PDT Warwick's will host Linda K. Olson as she discusses her new book, Gone: A Memoir of Love, Body, and Taking Back My Life, in conversation with Jeniffer Thompson. Linda K. Olson, MD, FACR, is an author and motivational speaker with a Get Out and Go message. A Professor Emeritus of radiology at University of California, San Diego, she is committed to empowering Parkinson’s patients and families to live life as fully as possible in spite of their disabilities. She has been a triple amputee since 1979 and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2015. Olson and her husband, David Hodgens, MD, raised two children and now live in San Diego with their black lab, Sally. This is her first book.
Linda Olson and her husband, Dave Hodgens, were young doctors whose story had all the makings of a fairy tale. But then, while they were vacationing in Germany, a train hit their van, shattering their lives - and Linda's body. When Linda saw Dave for the first time after losing her right arm and both of her legs, she told him she would understand if he left. His response: "I didn't marry your arms or your legs. If you can do it, I can do it."
In order to protect their loved ones, they decided to hide the truth about what really happened on those train tracks, and they kept their secret for thirty-five years. As a triple amputee, Linda learned to walk with prostheses and change diapers and insert IVs with one hand. She finished her residency while pregnant and living on her own. And she and Dave went on to pursue their dream careers, raise two children, and travel the world.
Inspiring and deeply moving, Gone asks readers to find not only courage but also laughter in the unexpected challenges we all face. The day of the accident, no one envied Linda and Dave. Today, many do.
Jeniffer Thompson is co-founder of the San Diego Writers Festival, an author branding expert, digital marketing strategist, and host of The Premise podcast. She is an author and speaker who delivers strategy-rich content and actionable tools that educate and empower authors. She is also the founder and principal at Monkey C Media, an award-winning design firm specializing in book packaging, author websites, and digital marketing strategies.
