Some acts are obviously courageous: a person runs into a burning building and saves a life, or a bystander dives into a lake to save a drowning person. These are dramatic examples of courage and bravery, when people make spur of the moment decisions and put their own lives at risk in order to save others. There is, however, another, harder to see type of courage, and to ... Read On
TBI & Me: If I Die Today
The story of our life starts the moment we are born into this world. Our story is full of what makes us human: joy, failure, triumph, heartbreak, perseverance, love, facing obstacles and learning what it takes to live. As stories go, each story has a beginning and has an end, and we, at some point during our lives, become aware of our mortality and learn to deal ... Read On
Lost My Car & Nearly Fell Into the “Brain Injury Trap”
I get a laugh when I mention to somebody that I lost my car in the parking lot and they respond with, "Oh yeah, I do that all the time." I know they are just trying to be cute and funny or to find a way to make a connection with me, but what these people don't understand is that there is nothing cute or funny about a brain injured individual having to deal with constantly ... Read On
My Mental Balancing Act-Post Brain Injury
For the last forty three years, since my car crash and month long coma, I have essentially been performing one big balancing act. Over this time I have learned what it takes to maintain my balance on the brain injury high wire; balancing what I used to be, what I was becoming, what I thought I was and my new reality in order to build a life that works. I will be ... Read On
“Strategies” Are Important, but We Need Solutions
After we experience a brain injury we want answers to some important questions: when will I be my old self again, and how do I get myself back? Unfortunately, there are no answers. We learn quickly that, much to our dismay, there is no roadmap for life after brain injury. There is no schedule. There is no "approved method" for living. The best we can do is listen to ... Read On