Waubonsee Community College

My wonderful life as a vegetable, directed and produced by Lars Feldballe

eng

videorecording

My wonderful life as a vegetable

electronic resource

864629228

directed and produced by Lars Feldballe

59

Health and society in video

My Wonderful Life as a Vegetable shares the story Birger Bergmann and his zeal for life. After developing the incurable degenerative neurological disease amyotrophic lateral schlerosis—also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease—Birger became fiercely determined to educate other ALS patients and their families. He's published several books and describes himself as a happier man after his diagnosis, despite his head-to-toe paralysis and obstacles to communicating. My Wonderful Life as a Vegetable raises valuable ethical dilemmas including the question of whether governments have the right to deny life-saving medical equipment when costs become exorbitant. As a resident of Denmark, Birger was given access to a mechanical ventilator, a machine that has kept him alive for more than ten years. When Birger learns of Johan, a young Swedish father of two who may die without the same technology, Birger travels to Sweden to encourage him to be more proactive in soliciting the medical community's help. Birger also persuades Susannah, a grandmother suffering from ALS to undergo lifesaving procedures. My Wonderful Life as a Vegetable offers a meaningful example of someone who sees life for its opportunities, rather than its difficulties

adult