Here I am, at age sixty-four, about to enter a new phase of my life: forty-five years after my month-long coma, I've reached that age when I can retire. That idea sounds great, so I tell people I am going to retire in a year. Their usual response is, "Well, what are you retiring from?" "I am going to retire from being disabled." Do I really believe that? No, no I ... Read On
This TBI Survivor Doesn’t Care How You Talk to Me
At some point during this 43 year "trip" I've spent living with a brain injury, I got fed up: too much of my mental energy was being spent getting frustrated and angry because of things other people said to me. That was the moment I decided that I should not allow my mental health or my well being be dependent on the words of others. I saw that no matter how much I tried to ... 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
“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
“Stuff” I Have Forgotten Since My TBI
Of course there have been many things - all kinds of things - I have forgotten at some point since my TBI, but I'm not talking here about everyday things. I don't mean it the same way that we TBI survivors have become used to: those memory problems that plague us daily and won't go away. Forgetting in our daily lives is something we are all familiar with. We forget things ... Read On