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TBI – Survivors, Caregivers, Family, and Friends

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SPEAK OUT! Faces of Brain Injury Barrett Sturgill

SPEAK OUT! Faces of Brain Injury – Barrett Sturgill

presented by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Brain Injury is NOT Discriminating!

(submitted by Barrett’s mother and caregiver, Amanda Sturgill)

We were in a motor vehicle accident on April 13, 2012. It caused Barrett to have an aneurysm and a brain hemorrhage from contrecoup (a contusion resulting from the brain contacting the skull on the side opposite from where impact occurs). He was only five years old at the time.

He immediately had a frontotemporoparietal craniotomy (the frontal, temporal, and parietal bones were removed from the skull). He suffered epidural and subdural hematomas. (Both allowed the buildup of blood to impinge on the brain.) Barrett was then flown to a children’s hospital. He was in critical condition and was in the intensive care unit until May 1.

On April 26, he was given a G-tube (gastric feeding tube, which allows nutrients to be introduced directly into the stomach) and trach (a small tube inserted in the trachea to keep the airway open). Barrett remained in a coma until May 1. Then he only opened his eyes. We went to Cardinal Hill Rehab on May 4 and stayed there until June 30. On June 14, the trach was removed. He remained nonverbal until June 22. At that time, he also began to eat small amounts. On August 6, the feeding tube was removed.

In October, he started walking with assistance. Now three years later, Barrett walks, runs, talks, and eats. He has muscle weakness in his right side – he uses his leg better than his arm. Barrett is in a regular first grade with his sister, and he only goes to Special Ed for two hours – for spelling and math. He loves video games.

Disclaimer: Any views and opinions of the Contributor are purely his/her own.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of contributor.)

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Faces of Brain Injury

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

SPEAK OUT! Itty-Bitty GIANT Steps

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 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.

Cheri Richardson Hicks…My Itty-Bitty Giant Step is that I ventured away from outpatient therapy into a new program called Quest. It is a program that gets people back to work and back into the community. I really feel like this is what I need to get me to where I need to be, so it couldn’t have

Melinda’s 100 piece puzzle

Melinda Murphy…Here is one for your Itty-Bitty Giant Steps. I used to be able to do 5000-piece puzzles in 2 or 3 days. I have not done any at all since the accident, until now. Four days, 2 tables, and only 100 pieces – but I did one, and I am thrilled (even if a piece was missing)!

Carmen Gaarder Kumm…Here is my Itty-Bitty Giant Step. I worked 4 1/5 hours today. I took three kids to town (20 minutes away), completed what needed to be done (I only forgot one thing, but my daughter will do that for me in the morning, as she is going anyway), picked up supper (knowing that I wouldn’t have much time once we got home), finished a Facebook page for our church, helped a bit with Vacation Bible School, picked green beans in the garden, and packed for the weekend away. I’m in bed before 10:00, and I don’t feel I overdid it…feeling good actually.

Donna O’Donnell Figurski (caregiver)…This week we have friends from Germany visiting us. They wanted to go to the Grand Canyon, which is about 4 hours from my home – too far for a day trip. Though David would have liked to go, he knew it would be too difficult for him, and he had seen it a few times before. He chose to remain home.

Caboose – haunted by ghost

That’s where my dilemma came in. David is 9+ years out from his TBI and still deals with many issues, including balance deficits, and I have never left him alone at night. Though he is completely

able to stay at home during the day, I always worry about the night. David convinced me he would be just fine, and after much discussion and a ton of angst, I agreed to go with our friends to the canyon. I insisted that David and I be in constant cell-phone contact.

So off we went to Williams, Arizona, where I slept in a little red caboose, which is supposedly haunted. The ghost may or may not have made an appearance. The jury is still out on that one.

But the jury is in on my trip to the Grand Canyon and on David’s staying overnight by himself. He did it! I did it!

WE did it!

Congratulations to all contributors!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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Itty-Bitty GIANT Step

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Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope

Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope

Gabrielle Giffords
&
Mark Kelly

Who hasn’t heard of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her “Congress on Your Corner” meetings with her Arizona constituents? Who hasn’t heard of the bullet she took to the head causing a Traumatic Brain Injury when a deranged young man attempted to assassinate her? Gabby was struck down on that January day in 2011, but that bullet will not keep this strong, persistent, and dedicated woman down. With her health care providers and the love of her husband, Mark Kelly, Gabby is moving on while advocating for gun control. You can read Gabby’s story in her book, “Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope” (2011).

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Brain Injury Resources

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Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing

In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing

Lee Woodruff & Bob Woodruff

reviewed by

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

Lee and Bob Woodruff wrote “In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing.” It’s a book about Bob, a news corespondent for ABC News, the TBI he received while on assignment in Taji, Iraq when a bomb struck the tank in which he was riding, and his journey to regain his life. It’s a love story about Bob and Lee and their children and how they pieced together their lives after his traumatic brain injury.

As I say after each post:

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

Please follow my blog. Click on “Follow Me Via eMail” on the right sidebar of your screen. anim0014-1_e0-1

If you like my blog, click the “Like” button under this post.

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

If you don’t like my blog, “Share” it with your enemies. That works for me too!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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Brain Injury Resources

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! David Figurski

SPEAK OUT! – David Figurski

David about 3 weeks before his TBI – in brand new running outfit. David ran about 20 miles per week.

Donna O’Donnell Figurski

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

David Figurski

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

Arizona dhfdmf@aol.com

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

January 13, 2005 Age 57

4. How did your TBI occur?

It was induced by my doing chin-ups.

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

I realized I had a problem when my vision deteriorated after doing chin- ups. I knew I had a serious problem a couple of minutes later when I was talking to my wife. I felt fluid filling my skull, and there was a lot of pain in my face.

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

Ambulance from a 9-1-1 call.
Three surgeries
1. to evacuate the blood
2. to remove an aneurysm that was discovered in the first surgery
3. to remove an AVM (Arterial Venous Malformation) that was discovered in the second surgery.
Tracheotomy
G-Peg

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

Yes, a little more than two weeks.

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

In-Patient rehab for almost two months (phys., occup., speech)
Out-Patient rehab for almost sixteen months (phys., occup., speech)
Private physical therapy 2 hours/week for seven years

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

Balance (can hobble indoors, but cannot walk outdoors unassisted)
Double vision (one image is tilted relative to the other)
Difficulty swallowing
Partly paralyzed tongue
Ataxic right arm/hand
Left arm/hand is not ataxic, but it’s not as good as it was pre-TBI
Less feeling in my right leg
Paralysis of the right side of my face

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

Better – life is slower
more time to spend with people
Worse – loss of independence
loss of mobility
unable to do things that I once did

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

Walking, running, driving, writing, reading, drawing

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

My computer, movies at home courtesy of Netflix, audiobooks

13. What do you like least about your TBI?

Because of paralysis of my mouth, I bite my lip or tongue many times each meal.

14. Has anything helped you to accept your TBI?

The positive attitude of my wife and all my doctors and therapists

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

My wife and I have always had a close relationship, but now I have more time to spend with her.

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

Yes. Though my wife and I go out less, we socialize a lot more at home. I have more time now, so I have more friends.

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

My wife is my main caregiver. She is also my cheerleader. Yes, I know how much my wife has sacrificed to do what she does for me.

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

I plan to be able to walk outside unassisted. My dream is to walk a 5K race in less than an hour.

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

Have a positive attitude.
Be aware of the love of other people.
Do what you can.
Be patient with yourself.

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

You will probably never be able to do all that you once did, but life can be satisfying

David – 9 years and 3 months after his TBI

Thank you, David, 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 this project, please go to TBI Survivor Interview Questionnaire for a copy of the questions and the release form.

(Photos compliments of ME.)

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Survivors SPEAK OUT!

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TBI Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Questionnaire –

TBI Survivors SPEAK OUT! Questionnaire

I have developed a TBI Survivor Interview page on my blog, Surviving Traumatic Brain Injury. My interview consists of 20 questions that can be answered easily. I hope the page will provide information, inspire other TBI survivors, and connect people.

If you’d like take part in this project, please visit my site at TBI Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Questionnaire. You can copy and paste the questions and your answers into your email program and send your interview to me at donnaodonnellfigurski@gmail.com. I will do my best to publish every interview. (I will only edit obvious typos, punctuation, for clarity, and to fit the format.)

If possible, please send a photo or two (before/after) to include with your interview (optional, but preferred).

You will also need to fill out the release form so I can publish your interview on my “Surviving Traumatic Brain Injury” blog.

RELEASE FORM:

I, ____(FULL NAME)____, on this date (e.g., 04/01/2014), ____________, give Donna O’Donnell Figurski permission to use my interview on her “Surviving Traumatic Brain Injury” blog. (Your first and last name must be included on the Release Form, even if you do not want it posted on the web.)

Please put an “X” before the statement you agree with.
____I give Donna O’Donnell Figurski permission to use my last name.
____I do not give Donna O’Donnell Figurski permission to use my last name.

Please answer as many questions as you feel comfortable with. Your answers can be very brief; but, if long, your answer should be no more than 100 words. You may send your answers to me at donnaodonnellfigurski@gmail.com.

QUESTIONNAIRE for a TBI Survivor SPEAK OUT!

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

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

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

4. How did your brain injury occur?

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

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

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?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Questionnaire

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Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . TBI – More Than a Million

Chances are you know someone who has suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI.) More than 1.7 million Americans each year sustain a TBI. I personally know five people who are living with some form of TBI. In fact, I’m living with one of them.

My husband, David, had his TBI in 2005. A professor friend of ours from Brigham Young University has one. So do my nephew, an actor/director friend from my local community theater, and the husband of my friend, Judy.

A TBI can occur in the blink of an eye. It is not discriminating. It cares not about color, race, or creed. It can happen to a child or an octogenarian and everyone in between. A child may fall off his bike or off her swing. A teenager may meet up with a TBI on the soccer or football field or a gymnastic mat. Car and motorcycle accidents are common causes of TBIs. An assault in a dark alley or domestic abuse in your home can result in a TBI too. One can even have a TBI while exercising (e.g., while doing chin ups in the wee hours of the morning after doing Tai Chi while listening to Deuter or some other new age CD). David did! 1911631_10152299104437354_1744766119_n

Like snowflakes, no two TBIs are the same. Each survivor is different too, and each method of healing is unique to the person who is struggling to regain some of his or her former life. With a lot of hard work, patience, and persistence many survivors can enjoy a “new normal” life. While they have very different problems, each one of the five people I know is trying hard to lead a “normal” and productive life.

As I say after each post:

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

Please follow my blog. Click on “Follow Me Via eMail” on the right sidebar of your screen. anim0014-1_e0-1

If you like my blog, click the “Like” button under this post.

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

If you don’t like my blog, “Share” it with your enemies. That works for me too!

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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Brain Injury Resources

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TBI Tales: Missing Pre-TBI Life

My optimistic, forward-looking husband, who suffered a TBI over 9 years ago, was nevertheless moved by the Beatles’ song YESTERDAY. th-7 He changed a few words to make it more relevant to TBI survivors. What’s obvious is that David, despite living productively with TBI, still misses his pre-TBI life.

“Yesterday” (for TBI Survivors)
Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away th-6
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I REMEMBER yesterday

Suddenly, I’m not half the man I used to be
There’s a shadow hanging over me.
Oh, yesterday came suddenly

Why LIFE had to CHANGE I don’t know I COULDN’T say
I DID NOTHING wrong, now I LOST MY yesterday

Yesterday, LIFE was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to BE AGAIN
Oh, I REMEMBER yesterday

Why LIFE had to CHANGE I don’t know I COULDN’T say
I DID NOTHING wrong, now I LOST MY yesterday

Yesterday, LIFE was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to BE AGAIN
Oh, I REMEMBER yesterday
Mm mm mm mm mm mm mm

And now the original version of the song “Yesterday” by the Beatles.

“Yesterday”

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I believe in yesterday th-5

Suddenly, I’m not half the man I used to be
There’s a shadow hanging over me.
Oh, yesterday came suddenly

Why she had to go I don’t know she wouldn’t say
I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday

Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe in yesterday

Why she had to go I don’t know she wouldn’t say
I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday

Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe in yesterday
Mm mm mm mm mm mm mm

QUESTION: What do you miss most about your TBI life?

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 lower right corner of your screen.

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

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

Feel free to “Like” my blog.

Permission granted to “Reblog” my post.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

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TBI Tales

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Traumatic Brain Injury – TBI – PRISONERS WITHOUT BARS

As a writer for children, I never intended to write a book for adult readers – other than those adults who read picture books to their children as the stars fill the night sky. But, circumstances changed in an instant when my husband, David, suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury in 2005. I didn’t know what a “TBI” was. I had never heard or seen those letters together before. But, they would soon become a permanent thought in my head.

As David stumbled into our bedroom, his hand covering his right eye, I knew something was drastically wrong. As his pain intensified and the paramedics transported him to the emergency room, I didn’t know how seriously our lives were about to change. The man, my lover, and my best friend, disappeared.

After three brain surgeries, a new man emerged. He looked different. He sounded different. He was severely disabled. He couldn’t speak beyond guttural sounds. He couldn’t walk, dress, brush his teeth, feed himself, or take care of personal hygiene without assistance. At first it seemed that he didn’t even know me, which nearly broke my heart.

David trying out his new running outfit just three weeks before his TBI. December 2004

David’s TBI has caused us to travel many long and bumpy roads. We still do nine years post-TBI, but it is a journey we take together. I met David when I was 16 years old. I knew in an instant that he would be my life-partner – for better or for worse. We’ve had the better. We’ve had the worse. We are striving for the better once again.

Though I lost the “boy/man” I fell in love with, I have fallen in love all over again with this new version of David. Though he may look and act differently, he is still the most caring, gentle, intelligent man I know. His physical disabilities did not deter him from returning to his

Donna & David 15 months AT (After Trauma)
April 2006

laboratory at Columbia University a year later to oversee his and his students’ research, to write scientific papers, to become the editor of a book of research articles from scientists from around the world, and to be awarded a grant for his research.

Our journey is not over.

I’ve written David’s story, “Prisoners Without Bars: A Caregiver’s Story,” to share our journey with you, my readers. It is a story of tears and angst, of stress and confusion. The story will make you cry. It will make you laugh. It will make you wonder in disbelief just how this man is able to accomplish so much with so little. The story chronicles David’s strength and persistence, his tenacity to build a new life, and to get better against all odds. David’s story is a story of hope and inspiration.

It is also my story. As David’s wife and best friend and as his primary caregiver, I stand on the front line advocating for him every step of the way and cheerlead his every accomplishment. It’s a story that will take you with us on our journey of TBI.

I wrote the book between my caregiving duties of David, my teaching first and third graders, and when I was not sleeping. It is currently being sent to literary agents, and I hope that it will be published soon, so you can read the inside story of how David fought and is conquering Traumatic Brain Injury one unbalanced step at a time.

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 lower right corner of your screen.

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

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

Feel free to “Like” my post.

Permission granted to “Reblog” my post.

(Clip Art compliments of Bing.)

(Photos compliments of ME.)

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Sneak Peeks for Prisoners

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Surviving Traumatic Brain Injury

TBI – Survivors, Caregivers, Family, and Friends

Posts tagged ‘TBI Survivors’

SPEAK OUT! Faces of Brain Injury Barrett Sturgill

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

Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope

Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing

Survivors SPEAK OUT! David Figurski

TBI Survivors SPEAK OUT! – Questionnaire –

Brain Injury Resources . . . . . . . . . . TBI – More Than a Million

TBI Tales: Missing Pre-TBI Life

Traumatic Brain Injury – TBI – PRISONERS WITHOUT BARS

Top 30 Brain Injury Blog Award

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