Find out more about the life of one of our best known clinical neuropsychologists in her new autobiography which will be released this December.

The Story of a Clinical Neuropsychologist follows the journey that took Professor Barbara Wilson OBE from a disadvantaged childhood through a highly respected 42-year career which changed the way we think about brain injury rehabilitation.

Dr Ava Easton, Chief Executive of the Encephalitis Society, said: “Barbara’s story shows how it is possible to have a fulfilling career alongside a successful family life, even when faced with the deepest of personal tragedies; the death of her adult daughter Sarah.

“Readers will recognise Barbara’s influence on rehabilitation practice and her tireless aim to get what is best for people needing neuropsychological rehabilitation.

“It will inspire those with brain injury and their families who may struggle to make life meaningful, as well as encourage readers to stick to their beliefs and triumph in the face of obstacles.”

*Professor Wilson has worked in brain injury rehabilitation for 42 years. She founded the Oliver Zangwill Centre and the Journal of Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, has been honoured with many awards, including an OBE for services to rehabilitation, and is President of the Encephalitis Society.

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The Story of a Clinical Neuropsychologist is available to pre-order with a 20% discount. 

Simply, visit the Routledge website and enter the discount code is BSE19 which is available until the end of the year.

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"I knew I would remain in brain injury rehabilitation"

by Professor Barbara Wilson OBE

This book has been a labour of love and combines both personal and professional accounts of how I came to be an eminent clinical neuropsychologist specialising in the rehabilitation of survivors of brain injury.

I describe my disadvantaged childhood, with a learning-disabled mother, and my ultimate success through education, aided by my marriage to a supportive partner.

I first went to university as a mature student at the age of 30 when my third and youngest child started school. I describe my education from graduation to PhD and my early career at Rivermead Rehabilitation Centre in 1979.

It was here, at Rivermead, when I first became interested in the lives of brain-injured people. From the very first day there, I knew I would remain in brain injury rehabilitation for the rest of my career.

Readers will learn about the fascinating lives of brain-injured people and about the rehabilitation they receive in order to make their lives more manageable.

They will read about my travels in over 100 different countries, many of which I lectured in and worked with specialists in the field of neuropsychological rehabilitation.

They will learn about scientific research and collaboration between professionals as well as the actual clinical work by therapists and psychologists at patient level.

The book highlights the trials, triumphs and honours of my professional career interspersed with the personal story of my marriage, and friendships, and will describe the death of my firstborn child, Sarah, in a white- water rafting accident in Peru when she was an adult, and my subsequent travels through the extraordinary landscape of remote parts of Peru in order to reach the scene of her death in the deepest canyon in the world, the Cotahuasi.

The book concludes with life after Sarah’s death and after official retirement, when I continued to work as both a clinical neuropsychologist and a writer.