Lost & Found: What Brain Injury Survivors Want You to Know

I have been living with brain injury for 10 years can you help me find legal help as it was used to bully and shun me. It was used on me to cover up brain injuries in a school here in Santa Fe affecting 100 children and myself. I was also injured on purpose; by chemicals and nearly died "I was dead man walking" is how I felt. And just this morning I am feeling what I know of myself; halalulia! your list of help was wonderful and on Patience I would add Love without judgment. and to really listen to us and let us tell our stories with out interference (I'm a humanistic playful psychologist and telling jokes and play are very healing and the earth and environmental connections greatly speed up the healing.

Thank you for this article. My cousin was in a car accident almost 2 weeks ago and the extent of his brain injury is still unknown, but severe. We just hope he's still there, any part.

My husband sustained a TBI several years ago. Since then, he has had difficulty at every job which he has held. Issues range from confrontation, difficulty following instructions, difficulty following through with tasks and difficulty maintaining professionalism in the workplace. He has recently had a neuropsychological evaluation which suggested that timed jobs are not a good fit for him. In hindsight, I can understand why he has had so many troubles, since every one of his jobs had a timed aspect. He is able to drive, but always needs to use GPS, since he cannot remember places well. He reads well, but may not always grasp the full meaning of some statements/sentences. He can follow instructions which are not compound or multi-faceted. He really wants to find a job which will make him fell confident and fulfilled. Does anyone have any suggestions for some jobs which may work well for him?

I have lived with a brain injury for 8 years now and the problems with others not understanding is one of my biggest obstacles and unfortunately it’s no ones fault but we need to do more to educate people so when they meet someone who has difficulties in everyday life they no how to respond!!! I was fourtunate enough to have one of the best teams of doctors around me but it took me years to understand that in order to be a survivor I must thrive and accept what has happened and learn to live with what is now a new normal I still forget and get overwhelmed and anxious and yes crowds are still challenging but I wake up and smile everyday because I AM A SURVIVOR doctors said I would never be able to have kids and I have a beautiful 8mt baby boy and live everyday to the fullest even with my crazy brain!!!!

People are just making me my impossible life more challenging!!!

Wonderful post.Thanks for sharing this information.Keep it up....

Thank you. This article realy helps me towards understanding my husband.

10 day coma, chemically induced. Woke up without the use of left arm. Skull was put back after brain swelling was down in 30 days. Learned to walk, use my arm again. Minor short term memory loss and partial numbness in left pinky and ring finger but still came back to be a chef of a successful restaurant. No stress, anger, dis-organization or behavioural problems at all. If you believe you can recover, the brain believes it and will heal itself if you have a strong enough will. It takes time and practice but it’s possible.

Thank you so much for that. I have suffered a secondary TBI and there has been the stigma that hurt me all people first focus on is the emotional part and think it is a mental disorder. It seems that soon as you say brain injury people think omg she or he cannot control emotions and some believe us TBI survivors to be dangerous and that hurts me so bad.

I can't thank you enough for writing this.

In 2014 I was in a car accident where I suffered a blow to the head knocked that knocked me to an unconscious state where I endured multiple seizures. I was out for about an hour and was given the okay to go home from the hospital the next day.

In the fall of 2018, I wrecked a motor bike (going about 60 mph) and hit the road head first with no helmet. Again, I was knocked unconscious where I endured multiple seizures and was out for about an hour. And peed my pants. After several tests at the hospital, I was released. No brain bleeds, skull fractures, or anything to speak of. Except a swollen head and a blurry memory.

I recovered well from this considering the circumstances, but I can't help but feel a little different than before. There's a lot I could say here, but I pretty much just feel like my thought process is very altered. I do small things without thinking like top off my coffee with water or unplug an appliance for no reason. I recognize it shortly after and become frustrated. I also feel that I struggle more with finding words to start sentences and trip over my words often. It's even become almost a joke among my friends. My patience and social butterfly capabilities also seem stunted, but I wonder if this is the injury or just me thinking too much about it. I do feel over stimulated often. Seems like I need more time to process simple sentences more than others. I also get frustrated easily.

I haven't talked to anyone about these issues because they are hard for even me to understand and my injuries have been dismissed. But I also don't want to dwell on them because it is what it is. From what I've read, it seems like we are mostly on our own in understanding ourselves and how our injuries have impacted us. But if we're still living, I think the best we can do is embrace our new selves and thrive on it. I won't pay a lump sum for someone to tell me the things I already know.

I have never written on any forum before. I hope someone finds value in this. I hope we can connect.

One love~

That is beautiful. Thank you. It helped me so much. Please keep writing. Bless you.

my grandad is in a coma currently in hospital after a fall 9 days ago. He has swelling in the brain. we are waiting for it to heal so that he will come out of his coma. Doctors are very negative but i feel he will make it through. anyone else been in a similar situation?

I've been through a lot of this. I couldn't convince anyone, including my doctor, that I was hurt for nearly nine months so was slow to heal and deal with some of these issues. Thank you, I thought I was the only one having issues!

Thank you for finding the words, that I could not. This is very informative for all family members and friends. Please continue to post information. It's so very helpful. Thank you!

Almost 4 years ago, I was in a car accident that caused severe TBI. That is brain injury. It was tough for me at first but now I don’t have any of those issues it causes. My memory now is great. I am really organized with most things in my life. Examples would be of my car. I keep up on all maintenance needed and keep it clean. My house, my bedroom, I always keep both of them clean and organized. I don’t feel confused about things. If I am doing something, I stay focused on it. I’m a type 1 diabetic and my A1C is perfect. From a blood test, cholesterol is good, blood pressure perfect, no problems at all with my kidneys. I don’t feel that depressed feeling. The reason why is I battle through all of this to achieve great health and life.

I was in a near fatal car accident when I was 17. Was ejected from the vehicle, and sustained multiple injuries. Punctured both lungs, broke 6 ribs, had my left ear cut off, torn acl in right knee, and parietal skull fracture with large amounts of brain swelling. When I awoke I didn't remember a thing. Not even who I was. For months following, I suffered several memory lapses, severe headaches, and nausea. I recieved a diagnosis known as dyspraxia. Basically my brain runs like a 96 escort. Itll get the job done, but its gonna chug and putt the whole way there. The accident was when I was 17. Now I'm 30. I still have issues with mood swings, short term memory loss, brain fatigue, being easily overwhelmed and over anxious. Planning is a big struggle of mine as well as originality. It's especially hard for me to think on my feet if you will. I need constant cues of reference. If you asked me what my favorite movie was, I would stare blankly. I would need you to give me a list and I could tell you which I favored more. Often times I research into arrested development, thinking perhaps it fit my circumstance. At times I feel stuck at 17 with all the responsibilities of being 30.