Tag: #concussionsintheclassroom

Chronic Pain

Holding on vs letting go…

concussedmom

Happy Brain Injury Awareness Day, 2021. Because of the pandemic, the briefing on Capitol Hill was conducted virtually, which allowed me to participate for the first time. This briefing was held by the Congressional Brain Injury Taskforce and the focus this year was, no shock, the effect of Covid 19 on the TBI population. There was a lot of scientific talk thrown around, but the most remarkable contribution, to me, came from former football player, Eric Washington, whose life was dramatically altered by concussions. Mr. Washington expressed a thought that I have had many, many times throughout this pandemic. He pointed out that now everyone in our country has experienced something similar to what those with brain injuries do- everything in life changing on a dime. Each “normal,” daily activity has had to be altered and reimagined through this pandemic; much as the lives of TBI patients have had to be. We all have been left with a year, (or a lifetime), unlike what we may have imagined. What we do with it is up to us.

teaching, Uncategorized

Those who can, teach

concussedmom

“You should talk to…”  That is a phrase I often hear when someone I know encounters someone else with a concussion.   I feel like I was born to teach. From the first time I stepped in front of a classroom, I unearthed a strength and a voice from deep within that I don’t know if I would have discovered had I not found teaching. I found confidence that I did not know that I had.  Teaching, for me, was as natural as taking a breath. I didn’t ever have to think about it- I just did it.

But then, my classroom was taken away from me after my accident.  The day I realized that I would have to resign my position as a middle school teacher still remains one of the worst of my life–only to be overshadowed by the death of my mother.  I remember lying on the floor, wailing and questioning how unjust it was that I had worked so hard for my career- it was something that I never would have willingly walked away from.  And now, it was all slipping away from me even as I continued to race after it.

So I guess this is an outlet for me to be able to talk with other Brain Injury Survivors. I can use my 7+ years of experiences, both good and bad, to help point others towards therapies and self-care practices that may decrease their recovery time. That way, I can teach, again.