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Survivors SPEAK OUT! . . . . . . . Ken Collins

SPEAK OUT! – Ken Collins

Brain Injury Radio Network Host

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Ken Collins – TBI Survivor Host on the Brain Injury Radio Network

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

Ken Collins

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

Gamerco, New Mexico, USA on3.go@live.com

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

December 31, 1976 Age 26

4. How did your TBI occur?

I ran into a parked car while driving a snowmobile.

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

I realized the seriousness of my injury after I “woke” several weeks later. I was standing in front a mirror and picking at the wires in my mouth.

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

I was taken to the Emergency Room, and I had surgery. I broke my jaw below my chin on the left side and rammed my right jawbone into my right ear canal.

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

I have a month missing. My hospital records say that I was “in and out” and that I was in a Posey jacket and wrist restraints all the time I was in the hospital. I didn’t have any insurance, and there was no insurance on the snowmobile I was on or the car I ran into. I was in the hospital a week, and then I was released to go home with my parents because I kept getting out of the restraints and wandering the halls. On the last day I was in the hospital, they found me untied three times. One of those times, I was urinating on a plant in the lobby. I remember Christmas Eve, and then I don’t remember anything until I woke up in front of the mirror in late January.

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 didn’t have any rehab because there wasn’t any rehab in 1976. My rehab came from playing baseball and community organizing.

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

My short-term memory problem has gotten much better over time. I have issues with balance and impulsivity.

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

My brain injury has given me insights that have allowed me to become a better person.

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

Nothing

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

I have a better understanding of people and life in general.

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

Nothing

14.Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

Time

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

I’ve been married three times. The relationships were hurt by my impulsivity and money-management issues.

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

Not really

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

My family provided me with the love and support I needed after my brain injury. They also gave me a place to live for a couple years until I was able to live on my own.

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

I plan to be retired.

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 TBI survivors with your specific kind of TBI.

Talk with other brain-injury survivors. I wish there would have been some people with brain injuries to talk to after my brain injury. I wish also that the Internet and smart phones would have existed.

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

Ken Collins – TBI Survivor Host on the Brain Injury Radio Network

Find purpose and meaning in your life again because this will make it easier to get out of bed in the morning. Having a sense of purpose and meaning will give you something to live for. This will also help you feel worthwhile, help motivate you, and improve your recovery process. Take ownership of your recovery, and get rid of the word “can’t” in your vocabulary.

To learn more about Ken, stop by the Brain Injury Radio Network to hear some of Ken’s archived shows.

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

(Disclaimer: The views or opinions in this post are solely that of the interviewee.)

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

(Photos compliments of Ken.)

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Survivors SPEAK OUT!

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! . . . . . . . Deb Angus

SPEAK OUT! – Deb Angus

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Deb Angus with Regaining Consciousness

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

Deb Angus

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

Alberta, Canada

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

July 2001 Age 44

4. How did your TBI occur?

We were rear-ended at a red light by a distracted driver.

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

It was realized I had a brain injury about one week afterwards.

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

None

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

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?

My rehab was all outpatient: physical therapy, January-March 2002; vestibular therapy, March-April 2002; occupational therapy, April-May 2003; and speech therapy, May-June 2003.

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

I have light-sensitivity (pain from bright sunlight, photo flash, strobe lights, etc.), double vision, depth-perception problems, tinnitus, pain from loud noises, speaking problems (word-finding, stuttering, and stammering), memory problems, concentration and attention problems, a balance problem and dizziness, left-side weakness, sleeping problems, and spatial-coordination problems. I had constant debilitating head pain for the first three weeks and shooting head-pains from August 2001 until about 2010, which have dissipated quite a lot over the years. They still occur once in a while, but they’re much milder than earlier in my recovery. In 2005, I developed an extreme sensitivity to perfumes and colognes. It started as the result of olfactory and trigeminal nerve damage.

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

My life is worse. I cannot do many activities anymore (e.g., riding a bicycle or ice-skating). Parties, large crowds, and loud noises are difficult or impossible. Light-sensitivity is still an ongoing issue. It affects my driving, watching certain movies and TV programs, and attending certain events.

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

I miss the spontaneity – just going out and doing whatever whenever.

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

I have more compassion and understanding. I’m more aware of concussions and their impact on brain health.

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

I realize our fragility in life.

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

I have been helped by time, a lot of inner work on acceptance, and learning about TBI.

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

Many people have given up on me; good friends have stood by me; many more new friends have entered my life. Only I and my husband are here – I have no contact with my family back east. It wasn’t until halfway through my rehab that I realized what a brain injury was and how much it had affected me. I was then able to recognize the symptoms in my husband when he was rear-ended at red light by a drunk driver in ’92. He was never diagnosed. He hasn’t worked outside the home in 22 years. His injury is more depressive than mine, and he dislikes being around people now.

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

I don’t go out as much as I used to. A small circle of friends, who understand what I’ve gone through and what I still contend with, invite me out for lunches, etc. No more drinking; no more music events; no large-crowd events, like the Calgary Stampede or fireworks.

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

My caregiver is just me, my husband, and patience.

Regaining Consciousness: My Encounter with Mild Brain Injury — The Silent Epidemic

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

I still continue to work full-time. It took 10 years of writing and research, but I finally published my book on mild brain injury in 2014. I am now out delivering talks on concussions and brain injuries to raise awareness. I’m hoping to be able to retire in next 3-5 years and to concentrate more on promoting my book and delivering talks. I’m hoping that this work will help change the paradigms in the medical, legal, and insurance industries for recognition of these injuries, the recovery process involved, and the fact that many survivors need support for employment, housing, and medical issues that may crop up due to TBI – especially as we age.

I wish I would have known how easily concussions occurred and that repeated concussions lead to permanent brain injury. And to deal more effectively with stress, which can wear the body and spirit down to dust. I am currently dealing with kidney failure due to a rare autoimmune response to a virus. My general practitioner is convinced that this occurred because of the stress I’ve endured working through brain injury, having a job that was uncertain from year to year, and having to move six times in four years, due to problem tenants, a rodent problem, and a job transition in 2012.

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

Deb Angus

Be patient with yourself. Be gentle and nurturing with lots of self-care. Keep strong, be determined to improve, and be willing to explore all kinds of healing modalities. Keep trying to find the right doctors and the right therapists who will listen to you and help you.

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

(Disclaimer: The views or opinions in this post are solely that of the interviewee.)

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

(Photos compliments of Deb.)

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! . . . . . . . Anthony Vigil Jr.

SPEAK OUT! – Anthony Vigil Jr.

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

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

Anthony Vigil, Jr.

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

Guam

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

July 2011 I was 31 years old.

4. How did your TBI occur?

I was in a traumatic car accident while on my way to train for my 2^nd half-marathon. I was an avid long-distance runner, had completed my first in 1:39, and was training to come in under 1:30 for my 2^nd. The accident also resulted in the loss of both legs above the knees.

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

I realized I had a problem when I started studying for the LSAT (law school admission test) during the summer of 2013.

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

I was in bad shape – both lungs were collapsed, and my kidneys, liver, and gallbladder failed. There was much more that I don’t remember. I was lucky that my accident was less than a mile from the US Naval Hospital, where many doctors there were previously stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan and had experience with the kind of trauma I suffered. I was eventually transported to St. Luke’s Hospital in the Philippines, where they had a brain drug that is not approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), but is used in Europe and Asia.

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

I was in a medically induced coma for one month.

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 was in physical rehab, both as an inpatient and an outpatient, for about two months. Then I decided to complete it at home. It took two years to fully recover physically. I’m still working on the cognitive aspect.

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

The doctors told my parents that I would have the mind of a child, but luckily that didn’t happen. When I was being tested in the Philippines, I couldn’t even draw a clock, my speech was slurred, and I didn’t know what year it was or how old I was. I did know who all my family was, though. I still have trouble reading dense passages and have to reread them just to comprehend. Because my short-term memory was affected, I have trouble keeping track of concepts in dense passages.

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

For the better – my relationship with my parents is so much better.

For worse – it has quashed (or at least delayed) my aspirations for a professional degree (law or MBA).

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

I greatly miss my processing speed. I used to be very quick to pick up new concepts, and many people thought I was smart. (I guess they still do.)

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

I enjoy relationships with people. I’ve realized that relationships are more important than money. I also try to enjoy life in every little thing I do.

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

I dislike knowing that I’m not as capable as before, but I’ve finally arrived at peace with that.

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

I’ve been helped by reading other people’s stories and by learning how people were able to succeed despite the TBI.

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

For the first two years, I hated being stuck at home with my parents again, after I had been living on my own since 19. I’ve finally come to enjoy and appreciate my parents.

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

I didn’t have much of a social life before the accident, so not much has changed.

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

During the first year of my recovery, my mom was my caregiver. Yes, I understand that it takes a lot of love, even though you may not understand why things happened that way and even if the other person fights you the whole time. =)

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

I was approved for a business loan a week before my accident, so I hope to resume that plan and maybe get a professional degree. That’s a big maybe.

Try working or really exerting your mind. You won’t really know your capabilities until you try.

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

Research, research, research. Reach out to other survivors, for no one else knows what you are experiencing. I tried explaining it to my coworkers and parents, and it was impossible for them to understand!

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

(Disclaimer: The views or opinions in this post are solely that of the interviewee.)

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

(Photos compliments of Anthony.)

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Speak OUT! NewsBit . . . . . . . . . Major News About Football-Caused Concussions

Major News About Football-Caused Concussions

You’ve probably heard of Kosta Karageorge, the senior on the Ohio State University football team who apparently committed suicide. He enjoyed hitting his opponents. He had several known concussions, and probably several more that were unreported. It’s now very clear that concussions injure the brain. Kosta complained about his concussions in his last text message to his mother, saying “…but these concussions have my head all f—ed up.” His tragic case is still being investigated, but because he played on a major football team and because he had a history of brain trauma, his case has highlighted the need to know more about concussions and the need to better protect players, particularly young players, whose brains are still developing. (Full stories 1 and 2)

Both the National Football League (NFL), a league of professional players, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), a national organization that oversees most college football, have settled class-action lawsuits about concussions. (The NFL settled for $765 million, and the NCAA, for $70 million, but judges are likely to rule that more is needed.) High school football is not regulated by a national organization, but rather by the individual states. Now the first class-action lawsuit has been filed against the athletic association of a state – Illinois. The attorney is the same one that filed the NCAA lawsuit. This is the first lawsuit for high school football, and the attorney believes that high school athletic associations need to be sued in every state to affect the sport nationally. He is representing a former high school quarterback who suffered several concussions. The objective of the lawsuit is to make the sport safer. (Full stories 3 and 4)

A star high school football player has written a poignant essay about why his concussion landed him in the hospital fighting for his life. He definitely enjoyed being one of the “elite,” but now he writes that football wasn’t worth shattering his life and dreams (“…was playing football worth it? The answer is no. Not by a long shot”). He hopes to warn other youths of the incredible danger. (Full story)

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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“Another Fork in the Road” . . . Brain Injury Radio Network Interview with Christian Jungersen, author of “You Disappear”

YOU ARE INVITED!

Christian Jungersen, author of “You Disappear” takes his readers on the twisted journey of Frederick, a headmaster at a prestigious school; Mia, his wife and a reputable schoolteacher; and their teenage son, Niklas as they are caught in the web of brain injury.

Come One! Come ALL!

What: Interview with Christian Jungersen, author of “You Disappear”

Why: Hear Christian talk about his book, “You Disappear” and take a glimpse into the life of a TBI Survivor and his family as they maneuver through the TBI maze.

You Disappear
by
Christian Jungersen

Where: Brain Injury Radio Network

When: Sunday, December 7, 2014 (Special Announcement: It’s my birthday. Bring

Time: 5:00p PT (6:00p MT, 7:00p CT, and 8:00p ET) 90 minute show

How: Click: Brain Injury Radio Network

Call In: 424-243-9540

Call In: 855-473-3711 toll free in USA

Call In: 202-559-7907 free outside US

or SKYPE

If you miss the show, but would like to still hear the interview, you can access the archive on On Demand listening. The archived show will be available after the show both on the Brain Injury Radio Network site and on my blog in “On the Air.”

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Bob Bernardi

SPEAK OUT! – Bob Bernardi

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Bob Bernardi

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

Bob

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

Wheeling, West Virginia, USA

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

My TBI happened in 1992 at the age of 35.

4. How did your TBI occur?

Car accident

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

It was first realized while I was in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit).

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

I was put on a respirator at the scene of the accident because I stopped breathing. My chest was crushed, and my back was broken in half at my T6 vertebra. My spine was bruised, and I had a traumatic brain injury. My lung collapsed three days later.

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

I was in a semi-coma for about six days.

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 was in the hospital for almost 7 weeks. Then I was in outpatient rehab from May until February. In that time, I had physical, work, and speech therapies.

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

My whole life changed on that terrible morning. I had to relearn all of my simple math skills and redevelop my short-term memory. I slowly regained my ability to walk. My attention span has been diminished, and I go into a deep depression at times.

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

Bob Bernardi

My life is much worse. I was never able to regain my executive skills or my position as a Regional Human Resources Manager. I am 100% disabled today and feel as if I am a warehoused individual. A diabetic hypoglycemic reaction caused my car accident, and since my accident, my condition has worsened to the point that I am now very brittle. In 2009, I applied for 100% disability, and, in 2010, it was granted. I now depend on a small Social Security check and my wife’s pay. Our whole lifestyle has changed because my earning potential was eliminated. Seven years ago, I was diagnosed with celiac disease and also with brain meningiomas. In May of 2014, it was determined that I needed Gamma Knife brain surgery to stop the growth of the meningioma. So far, the surgery has been deemed a success. I now live day-to-day and do my best to enjoy life the best way that I can. I feel that my best therapy is talking to friends on the Brain Injury Awareness Group on Facebook and giving and taking advice on making our lives more bearable. I try as often as I can to inform and educate people on Traumatic Brain Injuries, how best to avoid them, and, if they do occur, how to deal with this tragic occurrence in life.

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

Work. I was diagnosed with having a Type 1 personality, and so my mind is always trying to work at accomplishing things.

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

I enjoy helping others cope and giving encouragement to others who have injured their brains.

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

I dislike the stigma attached to me that I am slow or stupid.

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

Not really, but, when I look at others who have suffered this terrible happening in their lives, I feel lucky at times because I came out better than a lot of my survivor friends.

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

My injury has put all of our financial burden on my wife, who is in constant worry both for me and in handling her “management” position. She is stressed to the maximum.

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

My social life is not too bad because when others look at me, they really do not know. I have some scars on my forehead, but you really have to look, and I have no problems with speech. I may repeat myself at times, but I know how to keep my conversations in check. I have no problems today walking or doing physical activities, but I will tire more easily. Many have no idea what my physical body has gone through. I have always kept a small circle of friends. Probably the worse aspect of my TBI is that many have left me because they all want the “Old Bob” back. I would love for the “Old Bob” to come back, but he is gone forever.

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

My wife has always been there for me. After 22 years, she is worn out, and her health is beginning to fail.

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

I do not plan ahead anymore. I do one day at a time. Ten years from now is just too far away. I keep getting all of these health challenges, and that keeps me busy enough.

I have learned that, if I need to remember something, then I must tell myself to remember it. I almost curse myself to remember and not to forget. So far it has worked. I also would like for people who have suffered with TBI, or BI in general, to not always write in stone what the doctors tell you. The human brain is more capable than even they know, and the healing process never really stops. I just had cognitive tests done, and I only scored “fair” on almost all of them. I was somewhat down, but I started thinking how I handle things in real life situations, and I can do a lot. I even do our own taxes every year. I am an avid reader, and I do word puzzles to keep my brain active. I refuse to give up. The bottom line is DO NOT GIVE UP ON YOURSELF!

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

I honestly think that TBI is one of most evil happenings that a person can go through because it alters how one thinks, one’s personality, and his or her life in general. I would suggest for anyone who has gone through this personal hell to hook up with others – either online or in personal groups – so as to talk about your different problems and to share feelings – both negative and positive – so as to help one another cope.

Bob Bernardi

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

(Disclaimer: The views or opinions in this post are solely that of the interviewee.)

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

(Photos compliments of Bob.)

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

SPEAK OUT! Itty-Bitty GIANT Steps

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 donnaodonnellfigurski@gmail.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.

Here are this week’s Itty-Bitty Giant Steps.

Beckie (caregiver) and Jerry…An Itty-Bitty Giant Step from a spouse’s viewpoint:

I’m learning to ease off. He is still a man. He can do and think for himself – just differently. And when I do NOT micromanage, we both are better. (P.S. TBI still sucks.)

Joyce Benavidez (survivor)…Today was the anniversary of my twin birth/death. Thanks to the wonderful support and encouragement I have on Facebook, I made it through my first year without a seizure.

Sara Catherine Birch (caregiver)…My husband managed several days last week without a daytime nap. Yesterday our daughter kept him from sleeping after a shopping trip, but he still managed to make it to bedtime without shouting at any of us. Very happy.

Joey Buchanan (survivor)…I’m getting the leaves out of the pool.

Joy Cameron (survivor)…I survived (LOL). It was a hell of a week, and I am still here, fighting and putting one foot in front of the other.

Natalie Elliott (survivor)…Here’s my Itty-Bitty Giant Step: I survived Thanksgiving with family. I put the tree up, but I had to put it together four times because following a sequence is taxing and very difficult.

Debbie Madison (survivor)…I survived Thanksgiving without killing my brother! And I had a great time!

Gena Marie (survivor)…I flew on an airplane for the first time and did OK. I never thought I would make it safely, but I did.

Joshua Puckett (survivor)…Despite being engulfed by a lot of the flooding feelings this week, I was able to maintain calm throughout. I never went St. Helens. So progress. That’s my Itty-Bitty Giant Step.

Kimberly June West (survivor)…I went on a trip and didn’t have a panic-attack!!

Sandra Williams (survivor/caregiver)…I had a successful IEP (Individualized Education Program) meeting. I fought back so many flashbacks and tears. When it was over, the staff said they couldn’t even tell if I was nervous. I still battle negative thoughts, but I ate two meals today – so huge for me since I wasn’t eating but a few times a week!

YOU did it!

Congratulations to all contributors!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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On the Air: Brain Injury Radio Holiday Stressors

On the Air: Brain Injury Radio – Holiday Stressors

Many people suffer with stress brought on by the holidays. But holiday stress can be exaggerated when someone is living with a brain injury. Julie Kintz and Donna O’Donnell Figurski hosts of “Another Quantum Leap in the Road” talked about how to get through the holidays. They examined possible stressors and suggested ways to overcome many problems that result.

Here are some sites that offer more information.

Brain Injury – Surviving Holiday Stress by Marilyn Lash of Lash & Associates

Enjoying the Holidays After Brain Injury

15 Tips for Surviving — and Enjoying — the Holidays with TBI

If you missed the show, don’t fret. You can always listen to the archived show. I’ve included the link below.

Please SHARE!

I hope you’ll tune in to my show, “Another Fork in the Road,” which airs the 1st and 3rd Sunday evenings of every month. The show starts at 5:00p Pacific Time and runs for 90 minutes. On the fifth Sunday in a month, Julie Kintz, Host of “Quantum Leap,” and I team up to cohost a show called “Another Quantum Leap in the Road.”

See you “On the Air!”

On the Air: Brain Injury Radio – Holiday Stressors

Click here for a list of all “Another Fork in the Road” shows on the Brain Injury Radio Network.

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

SPEAK OUT! Itty-Bitty GIANT Steps

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 donnaodonnellfigurski@gmail.com.

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

Here are this week’s Itty-Bitty Giant Steps.

Roy Anthony (survivor)…I broke off a toxic relationship that has taken a good part of me. Now is the start of gaining my life back.

Wendy Coulter (survivor)…I went outside into my front yard without a cane! First time since the accident in March!

Sherrie Crusha (survivor)…I put in a back door with only hand tools.

Laura Doughty (survivor)…Saved a dog. He is a stray. Really cut up. Scares really easily. No doubt he has been abused. He needs love and care. It was the right thing to do. He is a boxer – named after the boxer, Jack Dempsy. Dempsy is happy here.

George Frederick Dunton IV (survivor)…My big accomplishment for the week was being able to babysit three very young kids for 3 hours.

John Hatten (survivor)…Well, Donna, I’ve been working with HOPE Beyond Trauma (www.HOPEBeyondTrauma.com) to build a new service for Survivors of Brain Injury, an online teleconference/teleseminar/support group. We plan on starting before February (the gods being willing). It’s a pretty big step for a survivor of a serious brain injury.

Kelley (survivor)…My big step is helping others. We all were snatched from death for a reason. My reason is to help others. My estranged, alone father needed to be put into a home and get care. I found him one of the best in our area that takes a couple of Medicaid patients. He gets the best care, and I can visit him almost every day, since I put him so close to me. He has dementia, and so do I (but not as bad as he does). I am able to give him cognitive exercises, since I had rehab for over a year and know them very well. His nurses say he’s getting better all the time. I forgave him and am his only guest and caregiver. What I’m accomplishing makes me feel good.

Carmen Gaarder Kumm (survivor)…Today’s test – I passed with flying colors. My car slipped into a ditch. I didn’t panic, couldn’t get out, didn’t panic. I called my husband. He got me out! I didn’t cry; I didn’t yell; I kept my head! Yay!

Susie Farrell Mayowski (caregiver)…My daughter actually wanted a hug and had a smile on her face tonight. I was almost in tears with that.

Grant Mealey (survivor)…Hi, Donna. OK, so I learned this week that when my voice escalates, it causes heck to break loose. So, it’s apparently up to me to keep things calm by leaving for a while before a problem happens. I’m a little nervous, since I am neither quiet nor mellow. I have been working on this for a few days and seem to be doing well. I have learned I can voice concerns over things, as long as I remain calm. OK, it’s a big step forward, and I can do this. No one deserves to be yelled at.

Michael Montepara (survivor)…My Itty-Bitty Giant Step for today was actually waking up, getting dressed, and having at least one cup of coffee. For me, that small accomplishment is a lot harder than one would imagine.

Michael Montepara (survivor)…My Itty-Bitty Giant Step accomplishment is getting outdoors in bitter 16-degree cold, starting and de-thawing my poor truck, and taking my friend to his uncle’s house a few towns away. For me, movement in cold mornings is extremely difficult! Stay warm, be well, and smile a little smile today.

Shanna Wolf Heart Powell (survivor)…Last week I went Christmas shopping – first time since my TBI (approximately two and a half years ago)!!! I forgot what I was doing once, but I didn’t panic, and I didn’t stress!! I dominated the situation!!! But, I do have to do a return/exchange tomorrow!!! I got one item wrong!!! Not bad, considering, I guess!!

Scott Sheehan (survivor)…Eighty-four hours of world peace. No hate or anger, and I will play any song for anyone in the world during my record-breaker. Ambitious? Thanks to you, even more so now. As support grows, so does the ambition. Got my first sponsor. The focus it takes makes me a blithering idiot. My speech and vision are affected. Learned to play blindfolded. Been called a retard thousands of times. And I open up to you now because “it’s time” (the name I always wanted to call a band). But it’s time, to make Ma and Dad proud. And save the world. And no better time than my 50th birthday. Hahaha. An old guy. Doing the impossible. With a traumatic brain injury, no less. I know this is long. Understand this is huge. And now, you are a part of it. Hour 85, I will probably die. But not until then. For Ma, Dad, Milo, and you and to save the world! A lot of work to do in the next 13 months.

Laurie Whyte (survivor)…I realize what depersonalization means! I’ve been a chameleon since my injury – just doing what everyone else does or asking for advice all the time. Or over-sharing. Not really knowing my own mind. It’s been 9 years, and I’m starting to think for myself.

YOU did it!

Congratulations to all contributors!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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Itty-Bitty GIANT Step

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Ali Stretmater

SPEAK OUT! – Ali Stretmater

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

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

Ali Stretmater

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

Rockville, Maryland, USA alicat012003@yahoo.com

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

I’ve had four TBIs: the first was at age 3; the second, at age 4; the third, at age 30; and the fourth, at age 37.

4. How did your TBI occur?

All four of my TBIs were due to blunt-force trauma. TBI #1 occurred when a friend went to hug me. I fell back against the hard wooden arm of a recliner and cracked my skull open. TBI #2 occurred when I fell from the monkey bars while playing on them. The details of TBI #3 are still sketchy to this day. Just before surgery, I fainted in the hospital from debilitating pain due to a spinal cord issue. I struck my head on the corner of a filing cabinet and then again on the floor. TBI #4 was due to an assault. I was unknowingly drugged in my own home. It’s believed that I passed out and struck my head on the bathroom sink. The details surrounding TBI #4 are still unclear. The only witness isn’t an especially reliable source, as that witness is also the assailant.

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

I was 32 years old and had sustained three TBIs by the time I was finally told I had a TBI!! My neurosurgeon and neuropsychologist were the ones who finally explained to me that I wasn’t crazy and that my behavior(s) was perfectly normal for a TBI survivor. Until then, I had no clue that I had a TBI. When I was growing up, it was common for doctors to “spare” the parents of a TBI-child by not telling them anything at all about it. I wish I knew I had a TBI when I was growing up. It could’ve saved me a lot of difficulties with school, work, life, etc.

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

For the first two TBIs, I was taken to the hospital. For TBI #3, I was already in the hospital. For TBI #4, I had no treatment for at least a week. I wasn’t able to schedule a visit with my neurologist until then. That appointment was at the insistence of another doctor whom I ran into a few days after I had TBI #4. That doctor was alarmed by my behavior. (I was in a complete blackout from TBI #4 and unaware that I’d had yet another TBI.) The doctor called my neurologist and made an appointment for me.

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

Thankfully I never went into a coma from my TBIs. After TBI #3, I was in a medically induced coma for a few days. That was due to a spinal cord surgery. Because of the risk of paralysis, I had to stay completely immobilized. (The paralysis thankfully didn’t happen.)

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 physical, occupational, and speech therapies after TBI #3. I had rehab as an inpatient for a month and as an outpatient for the next 3–6 months. (It’s hard to remember exactly how long I was an outpatient.)

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

I have vertigo, depth-perception issues, impulse control issues, moodiness, word-searching issues, insomnia, severe short-term-memory issues, overstimulation, etc. TBI #4 made all the symptoms worse, and it wiped out my short-term memory as well. It’s even hard to remember all the symptoms and issues I have from the TBIs.

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

Being a 4-time survivor is my greatest blessing and also my biggest curse – all at the same time! I almost died twice. That and knowing that TBI is about “forever” really changes your perspective. Forever is a very long time!

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

That’s hard to answer. I can only vaguely recall a time when I didn’t have a TBI. I guess I miss my career. I loved my job and my colleagues. It was devastating for me when I was told that I would have to retire and that I wasn’t ever going to be medically cleared to return.

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

I appreciate being given a second chance at life and love. By rights, I’m not supposed to be alive to begin with.

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

I dislike being exhausted all the time, the insomnia, not being able to return to work, and the stigma that comes with having a TBI. I often tell people, “I have a TBI; I’m not simple. There’s a HUGE difference!!”

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

I have been helped by talking to other TBI survivors and by knowing that what we go through is normal – that I’m not alone in this.

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

Yes!! I can’t begin to explain how it’s changed everything!! Family members treat me very differently. They don’t understand, since they haven’t lived it.

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

Yes!! You name it. For a long time, I was very isolated. Old friends didn’t understand how much my world had changed. It was (still is) hard to get out sometimes because I’m always so tired. I’ve had romantic relationships break up. My current boyfriend is always harping on how it was before I had TBI #4.

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

As an adult, I’m my own caretaker. When I was a child, my main caregiver was my mother. But, she didn’t realize the lifelong impact that the first TBI had (and still has) on me.

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

Good question. I just want to live a peaceful life and help other TBI survivors when I can, especially new people. I’m in the process of realizing a lifelong dream of moving to Miami Beach, and I’m working (slowly, but that’s okay) on a new career path of fitness- and nutrition-coaching. I’d love to work with other TBI survivors, since we have a statistically higher risk of getting diseases like Alzheimer’s, etc. as a result of having a TBI. Studies seem to show that being healthy can lower this risk. I’d love to re-marry again too, but any future husband would have to understand (as best he can) that I have a TBI and that he is aware of what that entails.

I’ve had both front and back TBIs, as well as open-head and closed-head injuries. One thing I’ve learned is that, when it comes to remembering things, develop strategies to make it easier (like reminder apps on your phone or putting things like keys in the same place each time, so they’re readily visible and you’ll have a starting point to look for them when you need them).

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

YOU ARE NOT ALONE!! The biggest key – and the best therapy – is talking to other TBI survivors. Just knowing that someone else understands what it’s like without a lengthy explanation is priceless. Reach out to others, and remember that, by sharing your story, you’re also helping someone else who’s struggling.

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

(Disclaimer: The views or opinions in this post are solely that of the interviewee.)

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

(Photos compliments of Ali.)

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