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TBI – Survivors, Caregivers, Family, and Friends

Posts tagged ‘Survivng Traumatic Brain Injury’

COVID-19: Love in the Time of a Pandemic

COVID-19: Love in the Time of a Pandemic

Columbia University Professor Emeritus, Dr. David Figurski

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

(Disclaimer: The World Health Organization <WHO> has officially named the new coronavirus as SARS-CoV-2 and the disease it causes as COVID-19. Because the majority of people, including much of the press, commonly refer to the virus as “COVID-19,” to avoid confusion I use COVID-19 as the name of the virus in these posts.)

David H. Figurski, Ph.D & Survivor of Brain Injury

Donna and I recently celebrated 51 years of marriage. We chose the beautiful desert scenery around the White Tank Mountains near our home in Arizona. We returned to the place that Donna proposed to me last year as part of our 50^th anniversary celebration.

This year, our anniversary celebration was very different. We are in the middle of a global pandemic of a new coronavirus. To slow the spread of this highly contagious virus, most people wear masks, practice social-distancing, and self-quarantine. (For us, except for monthly food pick-up runs, we have been home over 160 days.)

Desert near the White Tank Mountains

The effect of the pandemic has been horrific and devastating for society, most notably for health-care personnel, blue-collar workers, teachers and school administrators, and middle- and lower-class families, who are struggling with paying bills, having enough food, and eviction.

Donna & David Figurski Wedding Anniversary #51

Globally, there have been over 22.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, and over 795,000 people have died. The U.S. has over 5.5 million cases and over 175,000 deaths. Scientists and physicians around the world are racing to understand the virus and its disease. A viable vaccine is months away.

David & Donna Figurski – so happy together

Everyone is trying to cope as best as he or she can. On a personal level, Donna and I are fortunate to deeply love one another and to have each other in the midst of such chaos.

Love is worth celebrating wherever and whenever you can.

Stay Safe and Healthy!

Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

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Category:

Covid-19

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TBI Tales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Friend? The Need for Better Understanding of Brain Injury

A Friend?
The Need for Better Understanding of Brain Injury
by
Alan Gregory

presented
by
Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Alan Gregory Brain Injury Survivor

I was working at my minimum-wage, 3- to 4-hours-per-day job when an old friend came in. He asked why I was working there and not at my former job. (I had been an accountant at a large manufacturing firm – a job I held for more than 30 years.) I told him I lost my job after I suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Of course, my friend didn’t know what a TBI was, so I explained it to him. He then assumed I must have been in a car accident. But, when I explained to him that I had slipped on ice and landed on my head, he rolled his eyes and moved on.

I wanted to grab him and tell him, “Yes, it’s true, and it totally messed up my life!” clipart-of-person-slipping-on-ice-7

I deal with my brain injury every day. I struggle with the fact that I can no longer financially support my family. Some days, I have to force myself to get up, after I have bounced around the house all night with my head not allowing me to sleep. I used to have a great, salaried job, at which I usually worked ten hours per day. Now, I can barely work a total of ten hours in a week. Ugh!

I honestly wonder what my friend’s reaction would have been if I had told him that I had a heart attack or a stroke or even cancer. I am sure that his reaction would have been sympathetic and understanding with an offer of “If I can do anything …”

A little understanding and compassion go a long way.

Well, I don’t want his sympathy. We have survived these past two years without his help. A simple dose of understanding would have been preferable, rather than the perplexed look, the sudden turn and walk away, or the “Yeah, right” head shake that we survivors of brain injury all too often get from others.

Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

As I say after each post:

Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

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TBI Tales

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Caregivers SPEAK OUT! . . . . Malissa Mallett (caregiver for her son)

Caregivers SPEAK OUT!

Malissa Mallett (caregiver for her son)

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

“Malissa Mallett will be my guest tomorrow (Sunday, February 17) on my radio show (Another Fork in the Road) on the Brain Injury Radio Network. She has been caregiver for her son, who had an anoxic brain injury, since 1997, when he was an infant. Malissa is Program Director for the Brain Injury Alliance of Arizona (BIAAZ). We will discuss caring for her son and the effect of her expertise (opioid use on the brain.) My show broadcasts live at 5:30 PT (blogtalkradio.com/braininjuryradio), or it can be heard as a podcast anytime (https://survivingtraumaticbraininjury.com/category/on-the-air-show-menu/).”

1. What is your name? (last name optional)

Malissa Mallett

2. Where do you live? (city and/or state and/or country) Email? (optional)

Laveen, Arizona, USA Program@biaaz.org

3. What is the brain-injury survivor’s relationship to you? How old was the survivor when he/she had the brain injury? What caused your survivor’s brain injury?

The survivor is my son. He was 2 months old. His brain injury was caused by aspiration, causing him to stop breathing (anoxic brain injury).

4. On what date did you begin care for your brain-injury survivor? Were you the main caregiver? Are you now? How old were you when you began care?

My care began in April 1997. I was 22 years old. I was my son’s main caregiver then, but I’m not now.

Babies get brain injury too

5. Were you caring for anyone else at that time (e.g., children, parents, etc.)?

6. Were you employed at the time of your survivor’s brain injury? If so, were you able to continue working?

I had just returned to work after giving birth. I was not able to continue working, since my son required 24-hour supervision for his heart and lung monitor.

7. Did you have any help? If so, what kind and for how long?

Occasionally. My family, who were trained in CPR, would care for my son to give me a break or a night out.

8. When did your support of the survivor begin (e.g., immediately – in the hospital; when the survivor returned home; etc.)?

In the hospital

9. Was your survivor in a coma? If so, what did you do during that time?

10. Did your survivor have rehab? If so, what kind of rehab (i.e., inpatient and/or outpatient and occupational, physical, speech, and/or other)? How long was the rehab? Where were you when your survivor was getting therapy?

11. What problems or disabilities of your brain-injury survivor required your care, if any?

This is difficult to answer given my son’s age at the time of his brain injury.

12. How has your life changed since you became a caregiver? Is it better? Is it worse?

My life was challenging all throughout my son’s life.

13. What do you miss the most from pre-brain-injury life?

I will never know what could have been.

14. What do you enjoy most in post-brain-injury life?

Does not apply

15. What do you like least about brain injury?

Learn about brain injury

The lack of understanding in the community

16. Has anything helped you to accept your survivor’s brain injury?

Yes. Education.

17. Has your survivor’s injury affected your home life and relationships and, if so, how?

Yes, it has. We can discuss this on your radio show. It’s too much to explain here.

18. Has your social life been altered or changed and, if so, how?

Not anymore

19. What are your plans? What do you expect/hope to be doing ten years from now?

I would love for my son to be successful and independent.

20. What advice would you offer other caregivers of brain-injury survivors? Do you have any other comments that you would like to add?

support Take care of yourself.

Be surrounded by supportive people.

Educate yourself.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

As I say after each post: Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

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Category:

Caregivers SPEAK OUT!

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Past Blast: Mansion Dancing Under the Stars

“TBI Tales: Mansion Dancing Under the Stars”

(originally published April 26, 2014)

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

David and I met on the dance floor when I was 16 years old. He was 17. We fell in love under a strobe light. Through our married years, we danced at weddings and at parties, but when David’s Traumatic Brain Injury left his body as limp as Raggedy Andy, I never dreamed that David and I would ever dance again. But, during a recent trip to Westport, Massachusetts, to spend time with our son, Jared, his fiancé, Emily, and her family, we found ourselves staying in a mansion … only feet from the Atlantic Ocean. Our host, Susan, was beyond gracious, concerned about our every comfort. On our second night there, she threw a big family party on her extensive patio and even more expansive grounds overlooking the ocean; and she invited us. We stopped in about midnight.

The partygoers were huddled around the fire-ring … music still blaring. Jared and Emily began to dance on the patio. I swayed. David sat in a tall patio chair. Then the unthinkable happened. David asked me to dance. I hadn’t expected that! David can barely walk – dancing had not been on his radar for more than seven years. I looked at him expectantly. Was he kidding, being facetious? ballroom_dancing_stars_swinging_lg_clr No! With a huge grin, I answered, “Yes!”

We didn’t Cha-Cha or Swing, as we had learned in our Ballroom Dance classes. We didn’t attempt the Fox Trot, or even the Waltz, though Paula, our dance instructor after David had his TBI (another story), would have been proud of us if we had. But, we did our own dance. We swayed back and forth – never moving our feet. We call it the “TBI Sway.” We swayed with my head resting against David’s shoulder and his hand gently placed at the small of my back. We swayed with David holding on to me for dear life … for balance. We danced under the stars to an old favorite, “Unchained Melody” by The Righteous Brothers, with the sounds of ocean waves lapping the shore, with smiles on our lips, and remembrances of days gone by … and the promise of our days ahead.

As I say after each post:

Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

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Permission granted to “Reblog” my post.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of ME.)

If you have a story to tell, please contact me at donnaodonnellfigurski@gmail.com

Category:

Past Blasts

Tagged with:

New NEWS: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Website for Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale

New NEWS: Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale – New Website

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

I launched a new website dedicated to my Writing Life. It’s simply called, “donna o’donnell figurski – Author.”

It tells about Me, Me, Me. Who Am I anyway?

You can learn about my books here.

The site includes my online and print publications. You can even find the links to the articles so you can read them right now.

It shares some of my favorite books–both for adult and for children. How many have you read? What’s your favorite?

It lists Praise for Prisoners. Oh MY Gosh — I can’t believe what folks are saying about Prisoners.

Thanks for reading my book, Prisoners without Bar: A Caregiver’s Tale. Did you know that there aren’t many books about brain injury? But, here are a few good ones. Prisoners without Bars

As I say after each post: Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

Feel free to follow my blog. Click on “Follow” on the upper right sidebar.

If you like my blog, share it (intact) with your friends. It’s easy! Click the “Share” buttons below.

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New NEWS

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! Jim Ledgewood

Survivors SPEAK OUT! Jim Ledgewood

presented

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

1. What is your name? (last name optional)

Jim Ledgewood

2. Where do you live? (city and/or state and/or country) Email (optional)

Phoenix, Arizona, USA

3. On what date did you have your brain injury? At what age?

January 27, 2006 Age 27

4. How did your brain injury occur?

I was shot with a 9 mm on the left side of my face.

5. When did you (or someone) first realize you had a problem?

I did not realize I had a brain injury until seven years after being shot. My company brought to my attention that something was off.

6. What kind of emergency treatment, if any, did you have?

I had multiple surgeries. They had to put twenty-five coils around my carotid artery to stop the bleeding around my brain.

7. Were you in a coma? If so, how long?

I believe they induced a coma in me. Not sure, though.

8. Did you do rehab? What kind of rehab (i.e., inpatient or outpatient and occupational and/or physical and/or speech and/or other)? How long were you in rehab?

I had inpatient rehab (cognitive, physical, and speech therapies) at St. Joseph’s Hospital/Barrow Neurological Institute and at Mesa General Hospital; outpatient rehab (cognitive, physical, occupational, and speech therapies), for one week at Mesa General and for one week at Chandler Regional Medical Center.

9. What problems or disabilities, if any, resulted from your brain injury (e.g., balance, perception, personality, etc.)?

The frontal and temporal lobes were damaged, so all the things that those two parts of the brain control were affected in a negative way.

Donna’s note: The cerebral cortex can be divided into four sections, which are known as lobes: frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal.

Following a frontal lobe injury, an individual’s abilities to make good choices and recognize consequences are often impaired. Damage can cause increased irritability, which may include a change in mood and an inability to regulate behavior, such as anticipation, goal selection, planning, initiation, sequencing, detecting errors, and initiating novel responses.

The temporal lobe is located behind the ears and extends to both sides of the brain. It is involved in hearing and holds the primary auditory cortex, which receives sensory information from the ears. Secondary areas process the information into speech and words. Left temporal damage can disturb recognition of words and impair memory for verbal material.

10. How has your life changed? Is it better? Is it worse?

There are certain things that I was able to do before my TBI (traumatic brain injury) that I cannot do now. This has affected all aspects of my life.

11. What do you miss the most from your pre-brain-injury life?

I miss the control I had over my life.

12. What do you enjoy most in your post-brain-injury life?

I like helping others and being able to share my story. I take pleasure in doing something that only 5% of 5% of the population is able to do.

13. What do you like least about your brain injury?

Everything

14. Has anything helped you to accept your brain injury?

Learning and understanding my TBI and what it is doing have helped.

15. Has your injury affected your home life and relationships and, if so, how?

I have to move at a different pace than others. A lot of people around me have a hard time because they don’t know or understand why I do what I do or why I express myself the way I do. Once people learn that I have a TBI, the part of my brain that was injured, and what that part of the brain controls, they get more comfortable. But, I believe they are still not 100% comfortable.

16. Has your social life been altered or changed and, if so, how?

I was not in a relationship before my injury. I have found it hard to get into a relationship since my injury.

17. Who is your main caregiver? Do you understand what it takes to be a caregiver?

I am my own caregiver.

18. What are your plans? What do you expect/hope to be doing ten years from now?

I hope to have that relationship/family that I thought I would have by now. I don’t try to look that far into the future.

19. Are you able to provide a helpful hint that may have taken you a long time to learn, but which you wished you had known earlier? If so, please state what it is to potentially help other survivors with your specific kind of brain injury.

I would say that you should learn as much as you can about your TBI. That way you know that problem. Then you can try to come up with solutions to better your life.

20. What advice would you offer to other brain-injury survivors? Do you have any other comments that you would like to add?

It is not what happens – it is what you do about it that defines the person you are.

N-E-V-E-R G-I-V-E U-P!

Please leave a comment/question. I will respond.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

As I say after each post: Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

Feel free to follow my blog. Click on “Follow” on the upper right sidebar.

If you like my blog, share it (intact) with your friends. It’s easy! Click the “Share” buttons below.

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Category:

Survivors SPEAK OUT!

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SPEAK OUT! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Itty-Bitty Giant Steps

SPEAK OUT! Itty-Bitty Giant Steps

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Itty-Bitty GIant Steps for Blog SPEAK OUT! Itty-Bitty Giant Steps will provide a venue for brain-injury survivors and caregivers to shout out their accomplishments of the week.

If you have an Itty-Bitty Giant Step and you would like to share it, just send an email to me at neelyf@aol.com.

If you are on Facebook, you can simply send a Private Message to me. It need only be a sentence or two. I’ll gather the accomplishments and post them with your name on my blog approximately once a week. (If you do not want your last name to be posted, please tell me in your email or Private Message.)

I hope we have millions of Itty-Bitty Giant Steps.

Manda Tripp (survivor) … Two years ago, I came home in a wheelchair. Today, I’m walking downstairs without holding on to anything! (It’s the little things … )

YOU did it!

Congratulations to Manda!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

As I say after each post:

Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

Feel free to follow my blog. Click on “Follow” on the upper right sidebar.

If you like my blog, share it intact with your friends. It’s easy! Click the “Share” buttons below.

If you don’t like my blog, “Share” it intact with your enemies. I don’t care!

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Category:

Itty-Bitty GIANT Step

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Past Blast . . . . . . . . . . . . . Survivors SPEAK OUT! . . Lauren

SPEAK OUT! – Lauren

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

(originally published April 13, 2014)

1. What is your name? (last name optional)

Lauren

2. Where do you live? (city and/or state and/or country) Email address? (optional)

Belfast, Northern Ireland

3. When did you have your TBI? At what age?

September 2012. I was 35

4. How did your TBI occur?

Playing roller derby

5. When did you (or someone) first realize you had a problem?

It was very sudden, I felt something wasn’t right in my head, then my vision went and I collapsed.

6. What kind of emergency treatment, if any, did you have? (e.g., surgery, tracheotomy, G-peg)

Ambulance to Accident and Emergency.
A CT scan, then a craniotomy

7. Were you in a coma? If so, how long?

4 days. It was medically induced because I kept wanting to wake up!

8. Did you do rehab? What kind of rehab (i.e., In-patient and/or Out-patient; Occupational, Physical, Speech, and/or Other)? How long were you in rehab?

No rehab to speak of, Out-patient appointments with Neuro every few months. I’m now discharged.

9. What problems or disabilities, if any, resulted from your TBI? (e.g., balance, perception, personality, etc.)

Initially I had palsy of the left eye. Most of my problems have been psychological. I also had fatigue for a long time. (It’s still here but not as strong.)

10. How has your life changed? Is it better? Is it worse?

How do you put this into words? My life has changed in many ways, I was very independent. Now I rely on my partner a lot, mainly due to anxiety and depression.

There are things that are better – the ability to let small things slide is easy. I have an appreciation of life. I know what I DONT want anymore. My BS detector is much improved.

The bad – feeling scared for no reason. Crying a lot

11. What do you miss the most from your pre-TBI life?

My independence

12. What do you enjoy most in your post-TBI life?

The slower pace; the ability to filter stressful people

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

Anxiety anxiety anxiety

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

Time, patience, writing, lots of reading and meeting other survivors

15. Has your injury affected your home life and relationships and, if so, how?

It has made us a lot closer. It’s not an easy ride. It can get rough, but we’ve learnt to communicate in a much more meaningful and honest way.

16. Has your social life been altered or changed and, if so, how?

Yes, I’ve become more isolated. My social circle reduced a lot post-injury. That hurt at first, but I’ve accepted it now. More contact with others would be nice though.

17. Who is your main caregiver? Do you understand what it takes to be a caregiver?

My partner, he’s great. He’s put up with so much. I have an idea of what he’s been through, but I’ll never truly understand how it feels. It is difficult and tiring.

18. What are your future plans? What do you expect/hope to be doing 10 years from now?

I hope to study again. I want to complete a Psychology or counselling course so I can help others. I want to be out in the world again, and most of all I hope to have my joy back.

19. What advice would you offer to other TBI survivors?

It’s hard but it will pass
What you feel is normal
Be kind to yourself, and you will also need plenty of patience!

20. Do you have any other comments that you would like to add?

Good luck to all TBI/ABI survivors. Remember you are never alone.

Thank you, Lauren, for taking part in this interview. I hope that your experience will offer some hope, comfort, and inspiration to my readers.

If you would like to be a part of this project, please go to TBI Survivor Interview Questionnaire for a copy of the questions and the release form.

(Photos compliments of Lauren.)

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

As I say after each post: Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

Feel free to follow my blog. Click on “Follow” on the upper right sidebar.

If you like my blog, share it intact with your friends. It’s easy! Click the “Share” buttons below.

If you don’t like my blog, “Share” it intact with your enemies. I don’t care!

Feel free to “Like” my post.

Category:

Past Blasts

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SPEAK OUT! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Faces of Brain Injury . . . . . . Gabee Snarr Wilcox (survivor)

SPEAK OUT! Faces of Brain Injury

Gabee Snarr Wilcox (survivor)

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Brain Injury is NOT Discriminating!

bigstock-cartoon-face-vector-people-25671746-e1348136261718 It can happen to anyone, anytime, . . . and anywhere.

The Brain Trauma Foundation states that there are 5.3 million people in the United States living with some form of brain injury.

On “Faces of Brain Injury,” you will meet survivors living with brain injury. I hope that their stories will help you to understand the serious implications and complications of brain injury.

The stories on SPEAK OUT! Faces of Brain Injury are published with the permission of the survivor or designated caregiver.

If you would like your story to be published, please send a short account and two photos to me at neelyf@aol.com. I’d love to publish your story and raise awareness for Brain Injury.

Gabee Snarr Wilcox (survivor)

Gabee Snarr Wilcox – brain injury survivor

When I was 16, I went through a windshield. Before that, I was the lead in every musical and captain of the dance team. My whole life changed in an instant. I ripped my liver in half; broke my leg, nose, ribs, and arm; suffered some minor flesh wounds; etc. But, nothing could compare to or prepare me for the TBI (traumatic brain injury) I also suffered.

Gabee Snarr Wilcox – brain injury survivor

I woke up a different person. My personality was completely different than the one I had before. I was having rage fits for no reason. The next two years would come with some new-found crippling anxiety and depression. I had no balance, and my memory was awful. (Still kinda is … Do not trust me with your keys, people!) I was confined to a wheelchair for about a year. I felt nothing but hopeless.

It seemed like I had lost everybody. The people who did stick around, I treated terribly. I was wallowing in my own self-pity … and I wanted to die. I felt like I would never live up to the person I had been. I didn’t think I would ever be able to go to college or find love. I thought suicide was the best solution. I planned my death, and I looked forward to it every day.

Then one day, I saw a dear friend of mine, who also had a TBI. Later, news broke that she had killed herself. My world changed that day. I started living for Hannah. I saw the potential she had, and I wanted to show her that I wasn’t going to let a stupid TBI take both of us down.

I started really trying at physical therapy. Instead of hating myself for my memory, my anxiety, my insomnia, and my depression, I learned to laugh at it. I stopped hating people because they didn’t understand, and I realized they were lucky they didn’t. I went to college, and I failed. So, I tried again, and I failed. I tried again, and I found joy and love in working hard in school. I passed a whole year. I proved every doctor, friend, and family-member wrong – they said I was too damaged. But, I did it!

Gabee Snarr Wilcox – brain injury survivor

I took the jump and married the love of my life. I stopped putting my TBI first and started putting my happiness first. Today, I still have problems – headaches every day, anxiety, depression, insomnia, exhaustion … you name it! But, I push through and find myself every day.

It’s been a hard five years, but I wouldn’t change them. I’ve learned to be glad this happened to me – it’s made me stronger than I ever thought I could be. I commend everyone going through this – it’s hard! But, you can do anything. I truly believe that.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

As I say after each post: Please leave a comment by clicking the blue words “Leave a Comment” below this post.

Feel free to follow my blog. Click on “Follow” on the upper right sidebar.

If you like my blog, share it intact with your friends. It’s easy! Click the “Share” buttons below.

If you don’t like my blog, “Share” it intact with your enemies. I don’t care!

Feel free to “Like” my post.

Category:

Faces of Brain Injury

Tagged with:

Caregivers SPEAK OUT! . . . Pattie Welek Hall . . . . . . . . (caregiver for her son)

Caregivers SPEAK OUT!

Pattie Welek Hall (caregiver for her son)

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Pattie Welek Hall (caregiver for son) Author of “A Mother’s Dance”

1. What is your name? (last name optional)

Pattie Welek Hall

2. Where do you live? (city and/or state and/or country) Email? (optional)

Summerville, South Carolina, USA pattie@pattiewelekhall.com

3. What is the brain-injury survivor’s relationship to you?

He’s my son.

How old was the survivor when he/she had the brain injury?

19 years old

What caused your survivor’s brain injury?

Motorcycle accident

4. On what date did you begin care for your brain-injury survivor?

October 6, 2002

Were you the main caregiver?

Yes

Are you now?

We live in different states now, but I’d have to say that emotionally I am his main caregiver.

How old were you when you began care?

5. Were you caring for anyone else at that time (e.g., children, parents, etc.)?

I was in the process of finalizing a divorce and also raising my other two children, Annie (freshman in college) and Bo (junior in college).

6. Were you employed at the time of your survivor’s brain injury?

Yes – at Barnes & Noble in Charlotte, North Carolina

If so, were you able to continue working?

No. Mid-October, I was scheduled to step into new position – Community Relations Manager at Barnes & Noble in Huntersville, North Carolina. The manager held my position until I was able to return.

7. Did you have any help?

Yes

If so, what kind and for how long?

When Casey returned home, he went to outpatient care in Charlotte, North Carolina. At that time, his dad’s insurance paid for a driver to take and pick him up from rehab so I could return to work. Casey remained in rehab until April 2003.

8. When did your support of the survivor begin (e.g., immediately – in the hospital; when the survivor returned home; etc.)?

For the first eleven days after my son’s accident, I slept on the floor in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) at the Medical University of South Carolina, and then I moved to Marriott Courtyard for the remaining days of his six-week stay.

“A Mother’s Dance’ by Pattie Welek Hall

9Was your survivor in a coma?

Yes. Twice.

If so, what did you do during that time?

I prayed out loud to him; I talked to him; I relayed how his day unfolded (Guess who visited; I recounted what they said) . . . and I told him stories.

10. Did your survivor have rehab?

Yes

If so, what kind of rehab (i.e., inpatient and/or outpatient and occupational, physical, speech, and/or other)?

Outpatient—speech, occupational, and physical

How long was the rehab?

Five months

Where were you when your survivor was getting therapy?

At work

11. What problems or disabilities of your brain-injury survivor required your care, if any?

12. How has your life changed since you became a caregiver? Is it better? Is it worse?

13. What do you miss the most from pre-brain-injury life?

I miss my boy’s easy-going nature.

14. What do you enjoy most in post-brain-injury life?

Pattie Welek Hall (caregiver of son) Author of “A Mother’s Dance”

That my son is alive

15. What do you like least about brain injury?

That my son has frontal lobe damage which affects those he loves

16. Has anything helped you to accept your survivor’s brain injury?

17. Has your survivor’s injury affected your home life and relationships and, if so, how?

Relationships are up and down – mostly due to frontal lobe damage.

18. Has your social life been altered or changed and, if so, how?

19. What are your plans? What do you expect/hope to be doing ten years from now?

I hope that my son’s life is filled with love, laughter, and peace.

20. What advice would you offer other caregivers of brain-injury survivors? Do you have any other comments that you would like to add?

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

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