So something amazing happened during the last four years, in my recovery process, and through countless hours of rehabilitation. I discovered that with all my new normals, some things remain the same, some things about me are vastly different, and some things have become hugely magnified or what was once dormant is now renewed in a different way. What I am referencing in this particular post is my absolute love and passionate interest in medicine, science, and all that entails.
I find I am at peace the most when learning new material in these topics. This has been my “go to” coping mechanism since I was like 5 years old. Medicine has always been my first love. I have gone away from it, come back to it, gone away from it again. Then when I was wondering just what I should be doing with my life and evaluating whether to have more children, where to take my career, enjoying my job
Some people cope and find their center of “grounding” by running, drinking alcohol, exercising, listening to music, playing video games, communing with nature, watching TV/movies, smoking, having sex, going to church, participating in artistic expression, etc. Me? I find that Medicine, specifically investigative Medicine or investigating medical issues is one of the things that brings me a sense or peace, a sense of purpose, a sense of clarity, a calm.
That being said, in this upside down world of taking back my life from this trauma and all the subsequent experiences since the wreck I was involved in….I find that researching my injuries, how to better my life, how to prove the science behind all the subjective, objective, developmental, and evolving facets of my recovery is how I cope. It has served me well and helped me find the best care, catch the mistakes made by providers, celebrate the things done correctly by providers, find the best providers, realize that even amongst specialists, even the basics can be missed; it has validated many things for me. It continues to enlighten me about the realities of living a new life, and how best to go about it.
Proper diagnosis, proper treatment, and proper documentation cannot be ignored as being imperative and important when somebody endures any medical event or has persistent symptomology. Science is changing and evolving every day. How small, tunnel visioned, limited, and narrow minded we would be as patients, as providers, as attorneys, as caregivers, as case managers, as advocates to ignore the advances in Medicine (both traditional and alternative) and not allow ourselves the freedom to continue to learn, to do no harm, to keep up with current trends, and to evolve into something greater, broader, and grow beyond our proverbial box of comfort?
This website is a part of my legacy. My venture into baring myself openly to all of you who come across this page, who see these words, who read about these struggles, these triumphs. My attempt to help you find resources easier, should you need them. At the very least, maybe understand how multi-faceted and life changing a Polytrauma and/or Traumatic Brain Injury can be.
That being said, if you come across a new article, a new treatment, a new study, a new idea, a new topic you want to see in these pages, a revolutionary sytematic way of addressing recovery and rehabilitation, I would be honored to hear from you and thankful for you sharing what you have found……. with me.
If you have gotten this far down in this post….thanks for sticking it out and reading it. Please share with others. Feel free to leave comments below. I actually read them!
Never give up HOPE!
HOPE TBI 