Swimming in the sink : an episode of the Heart

Format:

Book

Title:

Swimming in the sink : an episode of the Heart

Author:

Cox, Lynne, 1957-

ISBN:

9781101947623

9781101971833

Edition:

First [United States/American] edition.

Publication:

New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2016.

Physical Description:

x, 225 pages ; 21 cm

Contents:

The bucket -- Mind shift -- Cannulas -- The discovery -- Science and magic -- November 2012: alarms -- December 18: Doctor's office -- December 19: hospital -- December 21: walking -- December 22: drifting away -- December 23: in the arms of friends -- The gift -- Christmas Eve at Howard's -- New York City and the country -- Sheltered -- Rewiring the mind -- January 19, 2013: joy and inspiration -- Dreams -- Synchronicity -- Heart cells -- Moved -- April 5: elated -- April kisses -- The sink -- May 7: not yet -- July 2: floating -- Crawling -- The heart knows -- Love and life.

Summary:

A memoir from the open-water swimmer in which "we see Cox finding her way, writing about her transformative journey back toward health, and slowly moving toward the one aspect of her life that meant everything to her--freedom, mastery, transcendence--back to open waters, and the surprise that she never saw coming: falling in love"--Dust jacket flap.

Cox swam the English Channel at fifteen, and was the first to swim off Antarctica in 32-degree water without a wetsuit. But this story starts at a laboratory at the University of London, with Cox hooked up to thermocouples and probes, with three scientists trying to make sense of her extraordinary human capabilities. The test results paved the way for new medical and life-saving practices. When Cox was later diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AFib), she was in fear of living out a lesser life as an invalid. Here, Cox writes of her full surrender to her increasing physical frailty, to her illness, her treatment, her slow pull toward recovery.

Personal Subject:

Cox, Lynne, 1957-

Cox, Lynne, 1957- (OCoLC)fst00494142

Subject(s):

Swimmers -- United States -- Biography.

Geographic Term:

United States.

Genre:

Autobiographies.

Biographies.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Salem Main Library	921 Cox, Lynne 2016	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Newberg Public Library	921 COX, LYNNE	Searching... Unknown

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On Order

Summary

From inspired and inspiring open-water swimmer and supreme athlete, able to endure cold water temperatures that would kill others, author of Swimming to Antarctica ("Riveting" -- Sports Illustrated ) and Grayson ("Moving, mystical" -- People) --a powerful book about super athleticism and human frailty, about invincibility and the sudden (mind-altering) repercussions of illness, and about the triumph of spirit, surrender, and love.

Lynne Cox is an elite athlete who broke many world records, among them swimming the English Channel at fifteen, being the first woman to swim across Cook Strait (eighteen miles), and being the first to swim off Antarctica in 32-degree water--for twenty-five minutes!--all without a wetsuit.

And that's where Swimming in the Sink begins--at a laboratory at the University of London, with Cox's hand in ice-cold water, hooked up to thermocouples and probes, with three scientists trying to make sense of her extraordinary human capabilities. The test results paved the way for new medical and life-saving practices.

As an athlete, Cox had put her heart into everything she'd ever accomplished. In turn her heart gave her great physical strength and endurance.

In the midst of becoming the embodiment of a supreme endurance athlete, Cox took care of her elderly parents, both of whom passed away in quick succession, followed by the death of her beloved Labrador retriever, leaving Lynne in shock from loss and loneliness and soon literally suffering from the debilitating effects of a broken heart.

On the edge of a precipice, Cox was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AFib). As the prognosis went from bad to worse, Cox was in fear of living out a lesser life as an invalid with a pacemaker and a defibrillator and the real possibility of her own death was before her. Cox writes of her full surrender to her increasing physical frailty, to her illness, her treatment, her slow pull toward recovery.

In Swimming in the Sink we see Cox finding her way, writing about her transformative journey back toward health, and slowly moving toward the one aspect of her life that meant everything to her--freedom; mastery; transcendence--back to open waters, and the surprise that she never saw coming: falling in love.

Author Notes

LYNNE COX was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and grew up in Los Alamitos, California. She has held open-water swimming records all over the world, swimming without a wetsuit. Cox has been inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Her articles have appeared in many publications, among them The New Yorker, The New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times Magazine . Cox lives in Long Beach, California.

www.lynnecox.org

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Champion long-distance swimmer Cox (Open Water Swimming Manual) has been inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and holds open-water swimming records around the globe. The author swims, sans wetsuit, in some of the most frigid waters on Earth, including Antarctica and the Cook Strait between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. In her new memoir, Cox chronicles how her deep grief (following the deaths of both parents and her Labrador retriever) and a startling diagnosis of arterial fibrillation precipitated a severe health and emotional crisis in her life. "It seemed like I had to start all over again," she writes. "I had prided myself on being an elite athlete, and now I had to start from zero. It was sad, sobering, and scary." Cox vividly explains her struggle to recover after facing the options of death, a heart transplant, or life as an invalid. Two years later Cox began training again in open water, which began her return to emotional and physical health. Friends, faith, meditation, and counseling all helped as well. Cox's narrative is straightforward and intimate, and she never succumbs to self-pity. This satisfying journey through a world-class athlete's heart-centered crisis is a warm tale of recovery and even finding love. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* Cox was once an elite athlete, swimming long distances in extremely cold temperatures. But now the closest she had come to swimming since being diagnosed with a heart condition was plunging her hands into the kitchen sink. Cox achingly describes the betrayal she felt when she discovered her once well-tuned heart was firing erratically, just as she was preparing to strike out on her own after years caring for her ailing parents. Where once she forged a path through cold and choppy waters, from the dangerous strait between Argentina and Chile to Lake Titicaca high in the Andes mountains, now she could barely walk from her car to a restaurant. In contrast to her rhapsodic descriptions of swimming, Cox delivers the details of her medical treatment somberly. In her efforts to recover, she brings both the unique perspective of an athlete who spent a lifetime exploring her physical limits and the determination of someone who braved painful research into the body's ability to survive the cold. Her journey here proves the strength of her heart.--Thoreson, Bridget Copyright 2016 Booklist

Library Journal Review

In open-water swimmer Cox's inspiring and engaging sixth book, she confronts new challenges: the recent deaths of both parents and a beloved dog, then the breakdown of her own body. As she struggles, Cox keeps a coolheaded optimism throughout and works to get "my heart, mind, and body back into their normal rhythm." The book is a reminder that even the strongest and most solitary among us require the support of friends and family. Cox clearly adores those people in her life and lovingly chronicles them here. VERDICT A feel-good nonfiction beach read for the athletic and nonathletic alike. (LJ 7/16)-Valerie Hamra © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

1 The Bucket	p. 3
2 Mind Shift	p. 17
3 Cannulas	p. 27
4 The Discovery	p. 31
5 Science and Magic	p. 42
6 November 2012-Alarms	p. 59
7 December 18-Doctor's Office	p. 75
8 December 19-Hospital	p. 95
9 December 21-Walking	p. 106
10 December 22-Drifting Away	p. 115
11 December 23-In the Arms of Friends	p. 117
12 The Gift	p. 121
13 Christmas Eve at Howard's	p. 126
14 New York City and the Country	p. 130
15 Sheltered	p. 137
16 Rewiring the Mind	p. 144
17 January 19, 2013-Joy and Inspiration	p. 149
18 Dreams	p. 156
19 Synchronicity	p. 160
20 Heart Cells	p. 164
21 Moved	p. 169
22 April 5-Elated	p. 171
23 April Kisses	p. 176
24 The Sink	p. 184
25 May 7-Not Yet	p. 188
26 July 2-Floating	p. 191
27 Crawling	p. 200
28 The Heart Knows	p. 207
29 Love and Life	p. 212

Available:*

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Booklist Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents