On a trip to Los Angeles to report a story, she met Ron Ramin, at that time, a composer for television and movies.
[7] Her reporting and writing, which took six years to complete, examines why so many patients fail to get better, reveals the cost of industry malfeasance, and offers practical solutions.
Ramin explores the political, psychological and economic context that greatly influences how patients with back pain are treated – and whether they’ll recover.
“Though Ramin asserts that she knew very little about the back-pain industry when she began her research, she soon realized that she was delving into a checkered subject with ‘twists, turns and corrupt characters’ worthy of a Le Carré novel,” wrote Publishers Weekly.
[12] “Crooked is a well-researched and fascinating read detailing the heart-wrenching experience so common to millions of back pain sufferers,” wrote Miranda Esmonde-White,[13] author of the New York Times bestseller Forever Painless.
[22] She was also interviewed on Talk of the Nation, The Leonard Lopate Show,[23] Michael Krasny's Forum[24] and several other public radio affiliate stations.
From Publishers Weekly: "In her first book, veteran journalist Ramin turns herself into a guinea pig as she seeks ways to restore her own failing memory and growing inability to concentrate.
Looking at a wide variety of genetic, biochemical and environmental factors that slow the connections among the brain's 100 billion neurons, especially in the hippocampus, Ramin undertakes 10 interventions, methods of achieving her cognitive enhancement.
… Overall, the variety of perspectives and the wealth of scientific information Ramin provides, as well as her warm personal style, will reward readers and may help them stay mentally sharp.