“The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” is a Non-Fiction book written by Anne Fadiman. This book was published in 1997, however the later printing edition was published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux on April 24, 2012 containing 368 pages. This book is based on a Hmong family who was introduced to the American world of medicine due to an ill child named Lia who suffered from epilepsy. There were numerous conflicts between the Hmong parents and the American doctors due to their different beliefs on maintaining health. Fadiman goes into great detail supporting each view of the American doctors and the Hmong families by presenting their culture and background. Throughout the story were historical events that gave reasons behind the Hmong strong cultural beliefs …show more content…
One of Lia’s doctors, Neil decided to have her placed in foster care in order to receive proper health care. Neil’s desire wasn’t to punish Nao Kao and Foau even though this is what they believed. Later in the story Lia was given back to her parents who took care of her to their best ability. With the help of social workers Nao Kao and Foau gained knowledge of Lia’s medicines and the amounts she should receive. However Lia began to have symptoms of a common cold that led to Lia’s last seizure. This was by far the worst seizure that caused Lia to never return to her normal self. This left the doctor’s in awe questioning what they had done wrong and who was at fault for letting this disorder become so severe. This episode of Lia’s life influenced many people such as the doctors, her family, and even the author Anne Fadiman who published this story. This experience highlighted the misunderstandings and misjudgments in the medical field when dealing with foreign patients. Needless to say, Lia’s story along with similar situations mentioned in her story are lessons learned for future