Exhale: Hope, Healing, and a Life in Transplant

As a former lung transplant physician, myself, I turned the first page of Dr. Weill’s book thinking I would have more insight into stories and message than most people. But I was wrong. Dr. Weill’s overarching message is much more universal: personal balance. The book is, of course, packed with the relentless wild pace of transplant medicine, replete with patient successes that, in my own experience, always seem exceeded by the woe of unexpected deaths. More than this, however, it’s a memoir about personal discovery. Dr. Weill reveals his never quenched desire for his father’s approval. He unveils for the reader how perilously lost he became at Stanford, his fourth major transplant position. Then he unpacks his search for more out of life as he looks beyond merely expanding a transplant wait-list and upping his program’s 1-year survival rate. Dr. Weill finds his way via a process of spiritual discernment. It is only then that he opens himself up to the truth that he has been traumatized by his vocation. A diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is now in HIS chart, and it’s time…slowly…to heal. In the end, this book is about personal growth and maturation. In that sense, it was a message that benefited me greatly.

Why would you want to read a book by a transplant doctor on a subject of which you have minimal knowledge? That's the only problem with this book: getting people to read. Because once you start reading, you will enjoy. If you are wondering what a transplant doctor is, he is basically the QB that decides who gets the transplant, cares for the patient post-operation and oversees the entire transplant organization. The book describes his history and how he took on transplant programs that are struggling and turns them in to better entities. But the job is time consuming. and Soul consuming. And eventually leads to life altering decisions and introspection. and it's a great reading journey.This book explores his family, particularly his Dad, but is really at its best when he puts you into the cases he must face: who gets new lungs, who doesn't, who survives, who doesn't. It's heartbreaking watching families struggle with life and depth and gives the reader insight on a world that most of us, INCLUDING many doctors, never see. Burnout? Mental exhaustion? Absolutely.This is a short read meaning it's professionally written, gets you to the key elements and doesn't waste your time. That scores very highly with me as I always have 40 books to read on Kindle and never get to them all. But this book needs to get to the top of your list as it tells a great story that will emotionally involve you.I had met David on the tennis courts in Florida. Seems pretty mild mannered, gracious guy, so when I read about this book I bought it. Don't let initial perception fool you. This mild mannered guy is the person you want if you have serious lung problems and this book demonstrates that repeatedly with some of the stories. Buy for a worthwhile read that will inspire you or to learn of a unique life saving business affecting families.

I could not put down David Weill's "Exhale"!I incorrectly assumed "Exhale" would primarily address the challenging process of a lung transplant, where one person's unfortunate death may save the life of another person, who is anxiously waiting on a coveted transplant list for a phone call to rush to the operating theatre.But "Exhale" covers much more: A broad array of appealing patients, most sympathetic; the progression of a successful career; the difficult challenges of politics among brilliant, striving colleagues in an elite, storied institution; the challenges of ethical decisions; the search for approval from, and then the aging and death of a Dad - and the pain of writing and then delivering the eulogy; the choice between work and family; the exhaustion of burnout; the impossible goal of 100% success when failure, often out of one's control, means death.This would be wonderful reading for a student contemplating medical school or a late career professional wrestling with exhaustion.I was lucky to have known David forty years ago as a classmate at The Isidore Newman School in New Orleans. David's tenacity on the basketball court, coached by the legendary Coach Fitz (see "Coach" by Michael Lewis), foreshadowed a brilliant, meaningful career, where he saved lives and led large teams of doctors and healthcare professionals.Well done David! Congratulations on a model career - and thank you for sharing your story.Jeffrey Lee Moore

I read the reviews and knew Exhale was more than a run-of-the-mill memoir about a doctor working in a transplant unit. Dr.Weill’s writing was so vivid and detailed I felt like I was part of the story. His anguish, grief, and joy exude from each page. At times I had to stop reading because I was crying with Dr.Weill and his patients. His empathetic nature was boundless, and this attribute endeared him to his patients. Considering how involved the process of having a transplant is, it's obvious why they become an extended family. Exhale is also the story of Dr. Weill’s evolution from total absorption with the well-being of each patient to his epiphany that he had to leave to save himself. During his career, it’s apparent that Dr. Weill got his wish to have his father’s brain and have his mother's huge heart. I hope Dr. Weills knows that too.

This book is raw, honest, and deeply personal. David Weill gives us a peak into medicine and specifically transplant medicine. His own perspective runs the emotions from pure joy to disdain of being at the top of your game. Burnout is real in medicine and he tells it perfectly. His words are gripping and you can feel his soul through the pages. Transplant is many parts coming together to be successful, and no medical personnel or patient is unscathed by the emotional toll it takes, yet it can be beautiful and celebratory and it can also be earth shattering devastating. Read it, take it in and know our doctors are human like us.