Publisher's Synopsis
This book is about my traumatic brain injury recovery since 1969. I have with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) for almost fifty years. The accident happened when I was 11. This book documents my struggle to survive through the good days as well as the bad days. Writing this book encourages me to move forward in spite of the brain change. The messages conveyed in this book has inspired me to pick up the TBI mantle and expand my vision of what is possible after the injury. This book encourages me to overcome any obstacle and achieve my dream. As I constantly stretch forward and live my life to the fullest, I know that the next adventure is going to be better, greater. At times it seems like I am in a "brain fog" as a result of the injury. Dealing with a brain injury is not easy. The situation of brain-impairment may not change in my lifetime. Sure I have overcome obstacles, however like most brain injury survivors I have to be vigilant otherwise negative thoughts will overcome me. Negative thoughts are bound to appear, but I have the right to not let them take rest in my life. I must pay attention to what plays in my mind. I only give thoughts of hope, thoughts of faith and thoughts of victory space to run in my mind, not thoughts of despair or disappointment. This book is testimony that I have been refreshed mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically by my recovery in the past and today. Better things tomorrow are just around the corner. Things that go wrong can shape me or scar me. However, I choose to live happy. My attitude has been affected by the traumatic brain injury I suffered, but still I have gratitude that I am alive. I could have been killed in the accident. TBI is a hard and lonely experience to go through, filled with disappointments and uphill battles, but sometimes in life, the most painful lessons are best remembered. TBI is like navigating the maze with a blindfold. My hope is that these words help you in some way, and that you believe you can and that you will have a fulfilling life. With TBI the chaos of life is often too much for my sensitive brain to handle. Doctor visits and hospital stays are their own trials with a brain injury. It doesn't have to be a battle. I just have to learn and adjust to the brain change. In 1969, as a brain injury survivor I was misunderstood. I was either dead or visibly disabled (speech or motion defects), or I was just fine. I fell into the "just fine" group. No instruction to see a neurologist or mental health professional, or counselor was given. No emphasis to medicate problems was given; of course, there was probably no medicine to prescribe that would help. The brain is the stuff in my skull. But the mind is a lot like the Internet, a map of information collected from all my experiences and interaction with other people. I have a lot more power to decide what and when I do life than I think. Most my experiences were formed after the accident as I was still developing experiences when the injury occurred because I was a young teenager. I was still learning who I was and how I fit into life. I make mistakes, however I thrive in my recovery by staying connected in my relationships and seeking solutions to the injury I suffered, working around the obstacles and setbacks I encounter. Through the process of looking in the rearview mirror of my life for the past 49+ years--looking at the triumphs, the hardships, the joys, the fears--I can see that life transcends traumatic brain injury. I have had many successes, many failures, made many mistakes, yet I keep moving forward.Brain injury is a hard and lonely experience to go through, filled with disappoointments and uphill battles, but sometimes in life, the most painful lessons are best remembered. Overcoming challenges is the fuel that keeps me going to reach the next level. Attempting to smooth out the potholes and rough spots makes life easier.
