Military & VeteransCertified Rehabilitation Counselor and Brain Injury Specialist Allison Tebbe discusses how "Community as Intervention" works to help and heal veterans living with brain injuries and post-traumatic stress (PTSD).
For information on Bastion Community of Resilience: https://www.joinbastion.org/
Headway is a multifaceted community integration program for veterans who served on or after 9/11 living with a brain injury, spinal cord injury, or other neurological condition — working with warriors and caregivers to maximize independence, improve skills, and build supportive networks.
For information on Bastion Community of Resilience's Headway Program: https://www.joinbastion.org/headway.html
Allison Tebbe: So at Bastion we talk a lot about the idea of community as intervention and what that has always meant to me, especially growing up in a city like New Orleans, where community is so core to the culture here and so essential. These veterans, by and large are living with PTSD, brain injuries, physical injuries, any variety of disabilities, but that's not always the main thing that they feel is holding them back. A lot of times it's a lack of social support, not feeling like there's a team around you, professionals, peers, neighbors, friends, to lift you up when you're struggling, to show up for you when you need something, and it's scary to feel alone like that. And so while it's great that we have these clinical supports and we have occupational therapy and social work and voc rehab, and we bring in all these different therapies and modalities, so much of what is doing the work here is just the community piece and everyone being together and having those connections that they know they can count on.
Narrator: BrainLine is powered in part by Wounded Warrior Project to honor and empower post-9/11 injured service members, veterans, and their families.
About the author: Allison Tebbe
As a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and Certified Brain Injury Specialist, prior to joining the Bastion team she supported Wounded Warrior Project’s Independence Program and Disability Rights Louisiana’s Housing Assistance Plus Program. In her free time Allison participates in community organizing efforts towards accessible healthcare and housing in the Greater New Orleans area.
