Insistent
About this book
A Traumatic Brain Injury. A Fluffy White Service Dog. A Fight That Changed Everything.
After a devastating accident left Joey Ramp-Adams with twenty-three broken bones, a traumatic brain injury, and severe neurological impairments, she lost her ability to speak, understand language, and even function in the outside world. Isolated in a world of pain, confusion, and despair, she saw no way forward—until one soft-eyed Golden Retriever named Sampson showed her otherwise.
With Sampson by her side, Joey didn’t just rebuild her life—she rewrote the rules. Determined to understand the science behind her injury, she returned to academia to study neuroscience, becoming the first service dog handler to demand full access to scientific laboratories. Faced with systemic bias, discrimination, and doors slammed shut, Joey refused to back down. Instead, she and Sampson became a force for global change.
Insistent is a powerful memoir of resilience, advocacy, and the unbreakable bond between a woman and her service dog. Together, they shattered barriers, reshaped policies, and sparked a movement that reached from classrooms to Congress.
This is not just a story about survival—it’s a story about transformation, purpose, and the courage to challenge a system stacked against you.
Joey fought for her life. Then she fought for others. With Sampson leading the way, she proved that determination—like love—never gives up.
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Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title
- Copyright
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Preface
- 1 Bronco Billy
- 2 Texas to Illinois
- 3 The Demon and the Dog
- 4 A Ghost of a Girl
- 5 Everything Translates Down the Leash
- 6 Service Dog in a Chemistry Lab and the Accidental Overdose
- 7 Dog Girl
- 8 Not All Make It Through the Dark
- 9 Finding Trinkets of Hope
- 10 Theo Retires
- 11 Out of the Darkness and into the Light
- 12 Catalyzing a Revolution
- 13 Navigating the “What-if’s” and “What Next’s” My Way
- 14 Brick Walls and Mountainous Barriers
- 15 You’re Just an Undergrad!
- 16 Fighting Back Against Systemic Bias
- 17 Pomp and Circumstance: Winning the Battle but not the War
- 18 Remember the Alamo
- 19 Sydney
- 20 Sampson the Service Dog in Science
- 21 Healing the Body and Brain
- 22 The Art of Advocating with Grace and Composure
- 23 A 12-Minute Date
- 24 Marshal Jim
- 25 Sampson Goes to Washington
- 26 Dropping Adversity Baggage at the Bus Station
- 27 A Flush of Success
- 28 One Paw Print at a Time
- Afterword
- About the Author
