Kerry,  I  am  surprise  that  in   re-hab  you were  taught  not  to  nap.....I  was  so  tired  I  slept   allot.....and   they  encouraged  it  because  it  is  allot  like   a  babies  brain,,,   it  is    busy   growing,  (in  our  case ,  reconfiguring, )   and   they  said  that  is  why  babies  sleep    allot... my Dr.  suggested  the  sleep  med  (Ambien)  mainly  to   shut  my  brain  down ,    Often   our   brains   run  around  ,  in  my  case  I   am  taking  care  of  the  home  ranch,   so   I  have  had  to   plan,  organize,  and   also    work  physically   hard,   and  at  my  age,   I   just  could  hardly  do  it.... hence  the  need  for  naps....  There  again,   age  is  a  major   difference  will  all  of  us...  Actually,  my  Dr.   encouraged  me  to   work  out  at  the  hosp.  sport  center,   which  is  good  for   our   selves,   and  If  I  had  lots  of  errands  to  run  in  town,   and  I   felt  my   brain  getting  tired,  I  would   put   "projects"   aside  ,  and   drive  home.  There  are  allot  of  things  that   can  just  wait,  my  driving  safety,  and   mood,  and   making  proper  choices   are  more  important,   so    "whoa"   " I  am  going  home  to   nap "    Sometimes  my  family  would  say "  go  take  a  nap "    probably  if  I  was  getting   a  little  on  edge,  and  at  first  I    resented  it,  it  to  me  was  like  they  were  saying   to  a   child,  "go  to your  room,  we  don't  want  you"....and  sometimes  I  would   cry,   so   I   realized  "it"  was  my  problem,  so   thanks  to   God,   I  was  able  to   make  adjustments  within ...  best  let  this  be   all  for  now...

Kerry,   my   Dr.   says  that  I  will  face   a  fatigue   issue  the  rest  of  my  life.... If  I  do  not  nap,    I  am   toast...    easier  to   get  along  with  others (family)   if   I  nap,  but  I   have also  learned  to   relax  and  let  things   slide.....tbi  has    taught  me  that   one  can   squabble  over  things  so  minor,,  life  is  to  short  for  that  so   I  am  glad  for   faith  and  also   support  group  therapy,  that  has   helped  me  to  accept  and  compensate....  I  take  a   Dr.  prescription  for   going  to  sleep,   wish  it  would  keep  me  there  the  full  night....  but  there  again....  nothing  wrong  with  naps.....  Thanks  for  sharing  what  you  did,   sorry  I have  missed  your  profile  till  now....

Kerry,

Interesting. Do you get regular sleep, by that I mean are you able to go to bed at the same time every night, are you able to get 6-8hrs of uninterrupted sleep, and do you use sleep aids (glass of wine, shot of whisky, or sleeping pills) to help you get sleep?

Also, concerning the mechanism of your injury, did you suffer any blunt force trauma to a specific area of your head?

yes, that is the case. Forgive me for not responding, I leave the website up and do not log off when I am not here.

I am currently taking a disabilities class and the Professor has asked us to get involved with a blog/support group. I have some TBI related issues so I have chosen to do more research on how TBI effects the lives of people, the difficulties one faces on a daily basis, and also the frustrations with having a disability that society is pretty clueless of and not very understanding of. My goal is to gain new perspectives on how this unseen disability is very real to those who have it.

Kerry,

I have not been on the site in a while.  Good to hear from you. How are you doing?  I am starting vestibular therapy related to my head injury.  Do you know anything about it?

Kelly Sanford

WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please Call Your Representative TODAY to Make Sure This Law Passes. H.R. 2600: National Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury Plan

In less than three weeks Congress will meet to vote on the PABI Plan. The PABI Plan would create a seamless, standardized, evidence-based system of care for the millions of American families suffering from the number one leading cause of death and disability in America’s youth: Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury.

(If you’re not sure who your Congress person is please email your name, City, State to: ted@thebrainproject.org for contact information)

About the PABI Plan:

http://www.thebrainproject.org/pabihome.php

Message to leave in voicemail (or if the receptionist insists on taking the message, please make sure they repeat it back to you so you know they wrote it down correctly):

"(Legislative Assistant’s name), my name is (your name) and I am (insert position/organization or hometown). I wanted to thank Representative (Insert Name) for considering to serve as a co-sponsor of HR 2600, the National Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury Plan Act. As you know, over 130 bi-partisan Members of Congress have signed on as co-sponsors of HR 2600 and we would greatly appreciate Congress (man/woman) (Insert Name)’s continued support of the millions of American families who have a child with a brain injury. If you need to contact me, please feel free to call me at (your phone number)."

Email to send after VM (please cc ted@thebrainproject.org): “Per my voicemail, my name is (your name) and I live in (your hometown). I would greatly appreciate if Representative (Insert Name) would agree to co-sponsor HR 2600, The National Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury Plan Act, which would create a seamless, standardized, evidence-based system of care for the millions of American families suffering from the number one leading cause of death and disability in America’s youth: Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury.

Thanks very much for your support and that of congress (man/woman) (Insert Name), and please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.

If the receptionist asks what it is regarding, tell them it is about HR 2600, The National PABI Plan Act as they are aware of the bill.

Thank you, Craig Sears

No. I don't think it is possible for someone who has not suffered a TBI to understand what it is like to live with an injured brain. Therefore, they could not make much of a helpful comment to someone who has suffered a TBI. I am not being critical of anyone; that's just the way it is. It's a fact of life.

I agree, you couldn't describe what it's like to give birth unless you have given birth yourself. I, or any male human being, could never describe what it is like to give birth.

I was extremely f!@#$%^ pissed-off for a good 10-12 years after I suffered my TBI. I'm still pretty pissed-off but nothing like I was. Time does not heal all wounds but it does make them less "painful"...I guess. The best thing I did for my anger was to keep myself busy. I did that by writing a book where I "vented" about all the shit I have had to put up with because my brain has been severely injured. Then I wrote another one.The books are: TBI Hell: A Traumatic Brain Injury Really sucks followed by: TBI Purgatory: Comes After Being In TBI Hell

Click here for TBI Hell (in print)

Click here for TBI Hell on iTunes

Click here for TBI Hell from Google eBooks

click here for TBI Purgatory (in print)

Click here for TBI Purgatory in iTunes

Click here for TBI Purgatory in Google eBooks

Click here for TBI Purgatory for the Kindle

Yes. Life does suck...for a while (it could be a long while) after one has suffered a severe TBI. Your life will never be the same, at least mine won't. But...life is a funny thing - it's all how you look at it. I was suicidal, homicidal, omnicidal (I would have killed anything and everything) for a good 10-12 years after my accident. Then, I don't know, I decided that I hate feeling like this and thought "Well, I'm pretty f!@#$%^-up, I can't do what I used to do, but I can do...this, that, and the other thing, so I'll do this, that, and the other thing."

Plus, I figured with my luck if I tried to commit suicide, I'd fail and end-up worse off than I am now, and if I killed someone I'd be caught and thrown in prison for life. Then I'd be in prison with a TBI...not good.

 Hi Kerry,My PTSD is not combat PTSD. It is life and death expereance when i was in the hellicopter crash thats when i also got my first TBI 12-25-1972 my second came in 1975 for following orders. Alot of inhumane things happned to me after the crash until i got discharged then i ran for my life. 

Thankyou Kerry I was taken off medication causing me lots of side efect hopefull its for the best.Thanks for calling me A Hero but Iam not a hero .Iam a Surviver thats all.The photo i found it on FB i search for funny photo helps the time and the ringing in the ears move along.Keep smiling it makes others feel better.                                          STEPHEN