Tavares woman’s faith strengthened by tragic event

She was on the brink of death. However, her damaged brain underwent a spiritual awakening. Now, she’s living to serve God. 

That’s the story of Dr. Candace Booth, who successfully recovered from a traumatic brain injury. 

Dr. Booth, a naturopath and Tavares resident, is sharing her miraculous story of recovery through her book, “And Then God Stepped In: My Journey Through Healing a Traumatic Brain Injury.” The 68-page book, available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble, provides hope to anyone suffering from physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental trauma. 

“I’m really excited people in Lake County will be able to hear my story,” she says. “It’s a two-fold story. The book is based on my journey through healing of a traumatic brain injury and my foray into becoming a Christian. Through the healing, I learned how much God came into my life to help me.”

Her transformation began in November 2017, when Dr. Booth was at a rehabilitation facility after undergoing a hip replacement surgery. While trying to use the bathroom by herself, she stood up, became dizzy, and fell backward, slamming her head into a steel pipe. She suffered a subdural hematoma, or bleeding on the brain. She was airlifted to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville, where doctors performed emergency surgery. They told her family that she’d likely die or remain in a vegetative state. 

Dr. Booth’s life wasn’t taken, but it was certainly changed. God’s purpose prevailed during a brutal three-year recovery defined by being paralyzed on her left side and numerous brain seizures. 

“Throughout my rehabilitation, I felt God’s presence all around me,” she says. 

Her book reflects that. The beautiful cover, which is worthy of being displayed in an art gallery, depicts God’s hands bursting through heaven’s light holding a brain. Her son, Max Wettstein, wrote the introduction, and her priest, Mark A. Lafler of St. Edward’s Episcopal Church in Mount Dora, wrote a touching blurb for the back cover. 

“I want people who read my book to have hope,” she says. “They should empower themselves whenever they experience pain, agony, frustration, or fear.”

Dr. Booth is taking that same message to St. Edward’s Episcopal Church. Two years ago, she became one of the church’s healing prayer ministers. 

“Prayer is power, and prayer is healing,” she says. “Our ministry is invited to pray for people who are ill, and we also go into nursing homes to provide eucharistic communion prayer.”

Today, Dr. Booth rides her bicycle 15 miles a week and goes to the gym four days a week. She’s a shining example on how to trust God through life’s tragedies.