A Dream Impossible!

About the Book

After I had published my first book, A First Step - Understanding Guillain-Barré Syndrome, it occurred to me that the dream sequences described in that book would make for an interesting read on their own, as a collection of short - but impossible - stories.

Thus were sewn the seeds for this publication. The 'postscripts' that have been added are included to assist readers who have not read the earlier book, and who therefore may not have a full understanding of the circumstances I found myself in.

During my seven-month confinement in Intensive Care, on a ventilator for breathing assistance, diagnosed with severe acute chronic Guillain-Barré Syndrome - sometimes referred to in its abbreviated form as GBS, I experienced many dreams and hullucinations, some of which are described in the book. The medications I was taking, the inability to distinguish between night and day, being thrust into an unfamiliar environment, or something inherent in the disease itself may have been the cause. Although these dreams are not necessarily in the sequence in which I dreamed them, it is possible to connect them to certain events or phases of my illness.

Initially, I was paralysed from my toes up to my eyebrows. This did not appear to inhibit my mobilty in some of the dreams though. One moment I was in a wheelchair, the next flying an F16 fighter jet, even though I had never flown before, other then as a fare paying passenger.

I found these episodes much more intense than the garden-variety dream. In fact, most seemed so real that sometimes it was difficult, if not impossible, to separate them from reality. Every effort has been made to keep the original story lines. It must, of course be understood there were a few - although very few - grey areas, and only in those situations have I linked different parts of the story by the logical threads suggested by circumstances. For the most part, my recall of these dreams was total.

Except for my relatives, the names used to identify characters are fictitious and used to enable the reader to follow the thread of the story. In these sequences, any similarity to any person, living or deceased, other than in the case of the exception noted, is entirely coincidental and unintended.

I hope you enjoy your read.

About the Author

Brian S. Langton was born in Derbyshire, England in 1928. He was educated at the West Bridgford Grammar School, Nottingham. After two years of service in the British Army, he embarked on an accounting career, which eventually led to a senior financial position in Salisbury, Wiltshire. In 1977, having achieved his career ambition, he emigrated for the second time to the 'Blue Sky Country' - Alberta, Canada - with his wife and three daughters, seeking new challenges.

It was June 1998 when he became paralyzed by a catastrophic life-threatening illness, Guillain-Barré Syndrome. At the time of his frightening encounter with that disease, Brian was a healthy 'young' sixty-nine year old International Sales Manager. He was an enthusiastic golfer, even if, in his own words, not particularly good.

His book, A Dream Impossible, is a collection of short stories, describing some of the dreams he experienced during his seven-month stay in Intensive Care, some moving, some frightening, but most really hilarious.