On my book shelf I found The Resiliency Advantage: Master Change, Thrive Under Pressure, and Bounce Back From Setbacks by Al Siebert, PhD.

Dr. Siebert provides a wealth of information for improving physical and emotional resilience, or basically the ability to rebound from setbacks. He explains that we can learn to be resilient and so enjoy a happier, more satisfying life. As I was searching for an idea for this week’s blog post, one section in the book caught my attention: It’s called “Help Your Brain, Have Fun.” See if you are as intrigued by this idea as I am.

Dr. Siebert, founder of The Resiliency Center, explains that research has shown positive emotions broaden our cognitive skills by making us more aware of the many things that are always happening around us.  He writes, “You notice small details and can remember many tasks that have to be done. This means that feelings such as enjoyment, playfulness, contentment, job satisfaction, love, and affection, as well as laughing and warm moments with friends, all increase mental abilities essential to problem solving.” (Note that good problem-solving skills are an important part of resiliency.)

On the other hand, he continues, “Negative emotions, in contrast, decrease resiliency. Feelings such as anxiety, anger, fear, vulnerability, and helplessness narrow cognitive functions and limit action choices.”

This research found that the strengths we gain during positive states stay with us for a long time and help us navigate adversity and ongoing difficulties. But negative emotions weaken our endurance and make us less resilient.

He concludes this section by saying, “…you can increase your problem-solving capacities when you purposefully experience many positive emotions each day. Taking time to laugh, appreciate pleasant moments, and ‘smell the roses’ daily affects your brain and nervous system in ways that increase your problem-solving skills, and this in turn increases your resiliency.”

After a brain injury to yourself or a loved one, resiliency is an important quality to cultivate. Dr. Siebert presents a comprehensive program in his book, but even if you don’t read it, you can increase your resiliency by increasing the positive emotions you experience. That is something we can always choose to do, even if it takes a little practice. I’m working on this suggestion already!

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• I know I’m resilient because…

• Make a list of three to five simple things you can do each day to feel positive emotions. For instance, you can include things like enjoying a walk on a beautiful day, writing in a journal, performing random acts of kindness for people, or spending quality time with people you love. Then expand on each one by writing a few sentences about how you will accomplish it.

• Choose a positive emotion such as playfulness, contentment, job satisfaction, or love, and write a letter to it, explaining why you would like to have more of it in your life.

• If you don’t feel very resilient, explore the reason why, Write about: I don’t think I’ll ever be resilient because… But later, re-read your writing and see if it rings true.

• My brain injury has made me more/less resilient because…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• I know I’m resilient because…

• Make a list of three to five simple things you can do each day to feel positive emotions. For instance, you can include things like enjoying a walk on a beautiful day, writing in a journal, performing random acts of kindness for people, or spending quality time with people you love. Then expand on each one by writing a few sentences about how you will accomplish it.

• Choose a positive emotion such as playfulness, contentment, job satisfaction, or love, and write a letter to it, explaining why you would like to have more of it in your life.

• If you don’t feel very resilient, explore the reason why, Write about: I don’t think I’ll ever be resilient because… but later, re-read your writing and see if it rings true.

• Being a caregiver has made me more/less resilient because…

In my book  After Brain Injury: Telling Your Story, one of the journaling exercises asks people to create their own metaphors to describe their lives after a brain injury. Michael wrote this: “My motorcycle accident was on 29 September 2007. I tell people that each day it’s like as if you went to bed and you woke up in China or New York City not knowing how you got there. It’s like I don’t speak the same language as everyone else anymore. Not knowing how you ended up in this strange place is how I feel all the time.”

As his metaphor, Ken wrote, “Before my brain injury, my memory was like a long shelf that could hold a lot. Now, it’s much shorter, and memories fall off the back when I add a new one to the front.”

Both of these extended metaphors present a descriptive look into life after brain injury in terms that we can all understand and connect with. What are some metaphors you would use to describe your life after brain injury, as a survivor or a family caregiver?

One of my teachers, writer Mark Matousek, recently wrote an article for his blog, Ethical Wisdom, titled “What’s Your Metaphor? Shifting Shapes in the New Year.”  In it, he described “…the great power (metaphors) have over us, how we use them to symbolize, contain, and explain our existence. Our metaphors create us…as much as we make use of them.” Take a look at his insightful article for some metaphors for describing a life and what they might mean.

The other two articles I saw recently were about choosing a special word to guide us through this new year. One is on Jan Spilman’s excellent blog, Caregiver Wellness Workshops. In it, she explains how you can find your special, guiding word. Have a look, and see if the idea appeals to you. What is your word for 2012?

And another one comes from the blog of my dear friend Lynda, Bloom, Bake, and Create. She creates fantastic art journals, and if you scroll down in this post, you’ll see her word, which she used as the focal point of a new art journal for this year. (And if you love crafts and making art, her blog is always lots of fun.)

Ken and I are in the happily crazy-busy home stretch of getting our new house ready for our move near the end of this month, so I haven’t had much quiet time to contemplate what my special word for 2012 is or what metaphors I might use to describe my life. But when I do, I’ll let you know what they are. If anyone would like to share theirs, you can use the Comment link just below this post.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• Fill in the blank with one word: Life is ___________________.

• Why did you choose that word? Write about why you believe your life is described by that  metaphor. You can begin with: I believe that life is __________________  because…”

• Using the process in Jan Spilman’s blog, can you choose a special word that will guide you through 2012? What might it be? And what might you do to stay true to it?

• What is a metaphor you can use to describe your life or a part of your life after brain injury? You can freewrite your metaphor as Michael and Ken did, or you can begin by using one of these prompts: A brain injury is like…. OR Living with a brain injury is… OR A brain injury is…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• Fill in the blank with one word: Life is ___________________.

• Why did you choose that word? Write about why you believe your life is described by that  metaphor. You can begin with: I believe that life is __________________  because…”

• Using the process in Jan Spilman’s blog, can you choose a special word that will guide you through 2012? What might it be? And what might you do to stay true to it?

• What is a metaphor you can use to describe your life or a part of your life after your loved one’s brain injury? You can freewrite your metaphor as Michael and Ken did, or you can begin by using one of these prompts: A brain injury is like…. OR Caring for someone with a brain injury is… OR A brain injury in my family is…

As soon as I saw this beautiful sign in a little gift shop the other day, I knew it was coming home with me. Those three words are the foundation of my journaling practice and the main idea I work to convey to people during my journaling workshops: Your story matters.

And, I would venture, after brain injury it matters even more.

Why? Because the best way to understand brain injury is to know what it does to people—survivors and family caregivers alike—and how it changes their lives. For instance, an injury to the frontal lobes can harm cognitive functions such as planning, working memory, attention, inhibition, problem solving, initiation, and monitoring one’s actions. Knowing that from a medical standpoint is necessary. Yet that might not make much impact until you know that such an injury can prevent a person from working, which means the loss of a home to the survivor and her young children. Where do they go now? How will they survive? This woman’s story matters not only to her and her family, but also to society.

A common refrain I hear from people with brain injury and their caregivers is that people don’t take the time to understand, now that brain injury has changed them and their once-familiar stories. Even the family members and friends we expect will be supportive can turn their backs on the new reality, on our new story—on us.  Even doctors, including neurologists, can be unwilling to listen to the stories we need them to hear so they can provide the right treatments. And in many ways, insurance companies, lawmakers, and other institutions don’t want to deal with the messy business of brain injury, either. It’s too frightening or annoying or expensive for them to become involved.

Before Ken’s TBI, brain injury was not a subject I’d thought much about. But once it happened, I sought out stories of other survivors and family caregivers. I read some academic or instructional books on caring for someone with a TBI, but what mattered the most to me were personal stories, such as memoir. They revealed the hard truth of what happened to the survivor and/or the family. These books helped to prepare me for what Ken’s and my future could be.

My own story mattered to me, too. It was important to keep creating and revealing it to myself during the chaotic months after Ken’s accident so that I could stay as grounded as possible. By writing in my journal, I was able to tell my story to myself, to record the events and, more importantly, work through my frayed emotions to discover my true feelings about what was happening. This practice mattered more than I can say. It was truly the best thing I could have done for myself.

Remember: Your story matters. It matters most to you, and it could matter to others. Give yourself the gift of a few minutes at least every few days to journal. It can help you clarify your thoughts and feelings about what brain injury has brought into your life. It can be the lifeline to the new story you’ve been searching for.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• Once upon a time, (your name) had a brain injury and… (tell this one in the third person, using “he” or “she” instead of “I.” It will provide a little distance from events and can give you another perspective in telling your story.)

• My brain injury changed my life by…

• If I could tell the world about brain injury, I would say…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• Once upon a time, (your loved one’s name) had a brain injury and… (

• Becoming a caregiver changed my life by…

• If I could tell the world about brain injury, I would say…

Be sure to look at the link below to a  moving essay she wrote about her brain injuries and life after such a double trauma. With that, I introduce you to Alex Bond.

You survived two severe TBIs and comas, one when you were a toddler and one in your mid-teens. Surviving one is wonderful enough, but two feels miraculous. Why do you think you not only survived but are still thriving?

I haven’t the foggiest! That “Why?” question is quite a poser.  My answer lies somewhere between “being extremely lucky” and “survival instinct.” Luck got me the immediate medical care I needed after both head injuries, and circumstance surrounded me with loving friends and family who helped me.

As for the survival instinct, I have a “pick yourself up and dust yourself off” attitude towards life. “The show must go on” is a mantra; so are the Navajo song words: “Walk on a rainbow trail, walk on a trail of song. There is a way out of every dark mist over a rainbow trail.”

I have always been creative: dancing, singing, acting, writing. These are the activities that feed my soul. I have always known that. I have always come back to the Arts when I have strayed from them. Wanting to give meaning to a life that has been spared several times keeps me trying to do “something that will matter/help/inspire.”

How did these injuries affect you?

Physically: Occasional double vision when tired or stressed; motion sickness gets worse every year; no peripheral depth perception; an eye that wanders when I am tired or stressed; an occasionally unreliable short term memory; bouts of low self-esteem…

Mentally: I wish that in 1967 doctors knew that a TBI survivor needed psychiatric help following a brain injury! I did not get that help until a year after my trauma. My post TBI life included A LOT of acting-out! I urge anyone with a brain injury to seek a specialist in head trauma psychiatry – it will hasten your recovery – really, no joke, I mean it!

Emotionally: A creative person often has an emotional compass which is very active. Add to that a trauma to the brain (which is indeed the final medical frontier – “We don’t know, we aren’t sure why that happens”) and you have a recipe for mood swings and outrageous behavior, which I am surprised I (and those next to me) lived through. I was in my mid-thirties before I found a calmer emotional place to live.

It’s obvious that you haven’t let these injuries stop you from leading a very full and productive life. What do you do to keep up such a strong, enthusiastic pace?

If one is given the gift of life once, then again, and then again, is there any other choice than to attempt to live a full and productive one? That just makes sense to me. I admit, I make more mistakes than the “average” person; it takes me longer to memorize lines; and there are certain activities (mountain climbing, tightrope walking, being a super hero, going deep sea fishing – not enough Dramamine on the planet) which are simply out of my range of ability. I’m okay with that.

Of all the things you do—act, write plays, produce plays—which is your favorite and why?

Being in front of an audience, being a vehicle for the written word and having that glorious connection with other human beings is my favorite thing to do. (And I kinda like the applause, too!) Whether it is reading from my novel “Late Nights with the Boys” with my dear friend David Carson or performing in a play, sharing ideas and promoting my platform of tolerance for those who are different makes me whole.

You’re a prolific writer. Do you also journal? If so, what’s your practice?

I don’t journal or blog. I write when something inside me says it’s time to do so. That doesn’t mean I am not disciplined. When I decide to write something, I follow it through rigorously to the end. (Evidenced here, I have probably over-written!)

Do you have any intention of writing a play about brain injury? Given the beauty and power of your essay “Where Nowhere Can Lead You,” it doesn’t seem to be a topic you would shy away from.           

Everything I write champions the bravery of those who are different: the outcast, the breast cancer survivors in my play “Lopsided,” the homosexual, the elderly, the TBI survivor.

Additionally, I am absolutely enthralled by the notion that when in a coma, one’s consciousness goes somewhere else. Where is that?  Central Park, another planet, wherever the mango princess lives? (I hope your readers are familiar with “Where is the Mango Princess?” by Cathy Crimmins.) Inspired by my own “unknown” experience, I incorporated the coma destination into a one-act play I wrote entitled “Morning, Noon, and Night in Central Park”. If your readers are interested in reading it they may contact me at alex@alexbond.org.

When things get tough, how do you convince yourself to keep going?

I will call my psychiatrist, listen to music, cry on my husband’s shoulder, wait out the dark moments, yell, scream, go into hiding… and the tough times, those “dark” times, THEY DO COME — usually in the form of depression and/or low self-esteem. My brain starts to tell me “I am not good enough; I am damaged goods; I have been on the planet a sufficient amount of time and I am just taking up space.” I fear abandonment.  If I have suicidal thoughts, I call someone who is aware that I occasionally have them and knows how to talk with me and remind me that the “dark” voice is only temporary.

I recently came off one of those tough times. Several “negative ” (my perception) day-to-day things occurred (including a birthday), and I ran down that spiral staircase that leads me to the depression place.  This one lasted about ten days – quite long.  Five days is the norm. I am very privileged to have a husband who sees me through these times. I have a psychiatrist and friends, too, who are supportive. I guess I could say that their love patiently and gently takes me by the hand and helps me find the other side of the “dark” place.

If there was one crucial point about brain injury that you would like to make to the world, what would it be?

Embrace what makes you different and unique. Try not to associate shame with that which makes you different. The injury has forced an inexorable change. It’s a “new you” – part “old you” plus the you who has come through the “unknown.” We don’t know where we go when we are “knocked out” or comatose. We go to the “unknown” by ourselves, only to fight our way back to a life that is not the one we had before. That is indeed the path of a warrior-survivor!

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• If someone wrote a play about me, my character would be played by (name of actor) because…

• If I wrote a play about brain injury, it would highlight…

• Make a list of three to five qualities that make you different and unique. Then write a paragraph about each one, beginning each paragraph with: (Quality) makes me different and unique because…

• I am a warrior-survivor because…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• If someone wrote a play about me, my character would be played by (name of actor) because…

• If I wrote a play about caregiving for someone with brain injury, it would highlight…

• Make a list of three to five qualities that make you different and unique. Then write a paragraph about each one, beginning each paragraph with: (Quality) makes me different and unique because…

• I am a warrior-caregiver because…

Everyone has treasures they cherish, which could be material objects, loved ones, special places, pieces of music, books, and even such intangible items such as religious faith or certain memories. What are some of the treasures you cherish? If you were asked to put some of them in a time capsule that only you could open in five years, which ones would you choose? What would they say about you and how you were handling your new, post-injury life?

Writing about your treasures can help you feel happier and encourage you to stay positive. If the treasures cannot literally be put in a time capsule—such as the cabin in the mountains where you spent summers with your grandparents or the memory of your late husband—imagine that you can put absolutely anything in there. After all, this is your journal, and you can imagine whatever you want in its pages!

Below you will find prompts to help you write about your time capsule treasures. This week, the same prompts are for people with brain injury and their family caregivers alike. You might find it interesting to write some of these together so that you can share some of your thoughts and good feelings about your treasures.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

You can use all three of these prompts one after the other, or you can write from the first one and then come back to the others after some time has passed. For the first and third ones, you can make a list or write in full sentences.

Part 1: I was asked to put a few of my treasures in a time capsule that only I will be able to open in five years. The treasures I choose are…

Part 2: Now imagine yourself five years in the future and write:

Five years have passed, and I open the time capsule with my treasures in it. As I take them out, I…

Part 3: At some other time in the future, write:

I’m going to add new or different items to my time capsule treasures. This time around, I choose…

Even when we know we’re writing for our eyes only in a private journal, it’s hard to open up and expose our anger, shame, and weaknesses on the page. Because then, there they are, out in the open, a tangible reminder that we’re far from perfect.

But personal revelation is part of the beauty of journaling. On those pages (or on the computer screen) we can be utterly ourselves, in our best and worst moments. Instead of feeling shame for the meltdown or the fall or the fears, we can see that we are only human beings reacting to an unexpected, frightening situation. We can use what we learn from our writing to be self-compassionate. We can love ourselves anyway. If we lose our balance, literal or figurative, for a while, we can be kind to ourselves and know that eventually we will find our way again.

Writing truthfully about an experience, using all the courage we can muster, helps us process it. We can come to terms with it, and grow from it. Somehow, the act of writing helps us do this more than simply talking, and certainly more than chewing on it over and over in our minds. The writing gets our swirling thoughts and feelings out of our heads and onto the page, where they become more manageable and less intimidating. Our journal becomes a sacred container, which will safely hold the messiness of our lives (and the joy too) so that we can move forward.

After a brain injury, the story of our life changes, often drastically. There will likely be many meltdowns, falls, and fears. It will take time to find our way again, but we will. Through the courageous act of writing, we put down words much as we put down steppingstones to build a path that will guide us into the future and help us manage whatever it holds.

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Here’s a beautiful video to follow up on the last post, An Attitude of Gratitude is Good for You. The narration, video, and music are beautifully blended to demonstrate the beauty of gratitude. For the full beauty, watch it full-screen.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• My biggest fear today is…

• I’m embarrassed because…

• I can love myself even though…

• One thing that helps me find my way through difficult times…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• My biggest fear today is…

• I’m proud of myself because…

• I embarrassed myself when…

• Managing difficult times is easier with…

Much evidence exists to show that maintaining an attitude of gratitude improves our satisfaction with life, our happiness, our health, and our marriages and relationships. There is even a science of gratitude, and Robert Emmons, PhD, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, is one of its leading researchers. He has conducted several studies that demonstrate the value of being grateful.

In one of his first studies, some of the people were asked to write in a weekly journal (I love it!) about five things they were grateful for. Other participants were to write about five hassles they had experienced, and the third group was to write about neutral topics.

At the end of 10 weeks, people who wrote about their gratitude:

“• … felt better about their lives as a whole and were more optimistic about the future than participants in either of the other control conditions—a full 25 percent happier.

“• They reported fewer health complaints and even spent more time exercising than control participants.

“• They had fewer symptoms of physical illness than the other two groups.

“• The gratitude group exercised 1.5 hours more than the hassled group.”

In another study by Emmons, people were asked to journal daily about their gratitude. Writing every day appeared to create increased gratitude and benefits more than writing weekly had done in the earlier study.

In a third Emmons study, participants had adult-onset neuromuscular disorders, mostly post-polio disease. Those who wrote their gratitude each night reported more hours of sleep and feeling more refreshed upon waking than those who did not write about gratitude. Furthermore, the gratitude group felt more life satisfaction, more optimism, and more connection with others.

In an unexpected benefit, the spouses of the gratitude group participants appeared to have “higher subjective well-being” (reported that they felt better) than did the spouses of the control group.

Is it tough for you to feel grateful? You’re not alone. But you can learn. See the wonderful tips in “7 Ways to Find Joy Even in Gridlock Traffic.”

Many blessings are small, and we often have to consciously look for them (The gloomy, rainy weather was making me sad, but the sight of a bright-red cardinal that came to sit in front of my window cheered me up.). Other blessings are much larger (Woo hoo! My test results came back today, and my doctor says they’re very good!). Regardless of how we rate them, a blessing is a blessing, and recording them in a journal is a perfect way to remember how blessed we are—and to reap the benefits of an attitude of gratitude.

I hope you keep a gratitude journal,  such as a small notebook at your bedside. Take just a few minutes before you go to sleep to record your blessings. Your body-mind-spirit will thank you for it. And so may your spouse!

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• Today, I am blessed by…

• More than anything else, I am grateful for…

• Having a brain injury has shown me to be grateful for…

• It’s hard to be grateful for anything after a brain injury…

• Simply write a list of 5 things for which you are grateful. Repeat daily.

If you’re a family caregiver:

• Today, I am blessed by…

• More than anything else, I am grateful for…

• Taking care of (loved one with brain injury) has left me grateful…

• It’s hard to be grateful for anything these days…

• Simply write a list of 5 things for which you are grateful. Repeat daily.

Barbara: How did you become involved with brain injury issues and BIAC?

Tim: My son TK had a snowboarding accident in Breckenridge, Colorado, and ended up with a traumatic brain injury. He was 24 at the time, and a student at USI (University of Southern Indiana). He wanted to be an art professor. He was a prolific artist. He could ride a unicycle, play the piano by ear. And an excellent snowboarder. He was sponsored by Oakley one year.

In 2004, he wanted one last fling at snowboarding and went to Colorado for the season. He was out there about two weeks, and we got a call at 4:00 on a Friday. They told us that TK had a closed-head injury. We didn’t even know what that was. I asked my stepdad, who’s a pediatrician, and he said, “That’s serious.” So my wife and I were out there by 10 that night.

The doctors had put him in a level 4 coma. There had been a lot of shearing and microshearing throughout TK’s brain. After two weeks, he showed no response to stimuli. The doctors asked if we wanted to let him go. This was around Thanksgiving, so we decided to wait until after holidays, so his death wouldn’t be connected with them. About two weeks into December, he started responding. I stayed out there for six  months while he was at Thornton Rehabilitation. We sang the theme to “George of the Jungle” to help with his speech therapy and spent a lot of time in the gym there so he could keep exercising. This time was about the lowest point in my life.

We came home to Kentucky in May of 2005. We had decided that he would walk off the plane. And he did. He leaned on me to walk to his wheelchair.

How did you become involved with the Brain Injury Adventure Camps?

They have a great program in Colorado and it followed us back to Kentucky. The one out there is run by the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center, and it has ropes courses, rafting, special trikes. It’s all high adventure and designed to challenge people with disabilities. It builds morale and helps with socialization. I volunteer at the Colorado camp two or three times each summer.

Many of the things we do, like ropes courses, would challenge you and I. We want our campers to be able to challenge themselves. We also have specialized trikes, therapeutic riding with horses, and yoga, and at night we have dancing and karaoke. TK is itching to try our new zip line. These things bring you back to normalcy. Camp is meant to be a morale-builder, a challenge, and fun.

We do some special events, too. For Halloween, we had Terror on the Trail. TK helps with the camps, and he was a zombie.

Tell us more about your camp in Robards, Kentucky.

It takes a core group to create something like this, and we’re working on it. You can fail real easy if you start too big, so we’re starting small so we can keep it positive. We’re preparing to have day camps right now, and our next phase will be overnight weekends, and then week-long camps.

Our overall goal is to keep this camp busy every weekend, and have it be a place where we can meet the needs of the disabled—brain injury, plus cerebral palsy, diabetes, asthma, and others. In ten years, I envision it with a common center, a gambrel barn and we’ll have dances and singing at night. There will be two dorms, and the trike paths will be paved. The whole Tri-State area will be involved and be honored to be part of it. I see interns from local universities working there.

BIAC also holds some events in Evansville, Ind.  If you would like to learn more about their events and the camp, see their website. 

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• Before my brain injury, one adventure I had…

• One adventure I still want to have…

• If I could have any adventure in the world, it would be… (Let yourself dream big!)

If you’re a family caregiver:

• The best thing about an adventure…

• I would love to give (loved one with brain injury) the adventure of…

• My best adventure…

The Concussion Crisis: Anatomy of a Silent Epidemic, by Linda Carroll and David Rosner

This is by far the best account to date on the dangers of concussions in sports such as football, hockey, soccer, boxing, and even cheerleading. It clearly makes the case that concussions are brain injuries, and demonstrates in often heartbreaking detail the terrible consequences that can arise from improper treatment or, as often happens, no treatment. In addition, it provides excellent information on what can be done to reduce the 1.6 million to 3.8 million sports-related concussions that happen in the U.S. every year. If you participate in sports, have a child who plays sports, or work with kids or adults who play sports, you need to read this book. Heck, if you have a brain, you need to read it.

Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School by John Medina

Thanks to my friend Gib Riffle, marketing director at ProRehab, for telling me about this book. While this engaging book doesn’t deal with brain injury, it is valuable for all the latest information on how our brains work and how we can get the most out of them. John Medina, a molecular biologist, writes with humor and deep insight about the ways we really learn, what sleep and stress do to our brains, and why we can’t multitask (really, we can’t , or more accurately, our brains can’t). See more, including videos, here.

A Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Feedback by Jim Robbins

Before we left Tucson, Ken experienced neurofeedback sessions that improved his cognition much more than he had been able to do on his own or with regular brain-injury therapy in the nearly eight years since his TBI. We’re both believers now. This book gives the history of neurofeedback, the controversies surrounding it (including why the medical and drug industries are trying to discredit it), and many success stories from its use in people with TBI, epilepsy, autism, ADD, addictions, and depression—all with no drugs or side effects.

Broken Bodies, Shattered Minds: A Medical Odyssey from Vietnam to Afghanistan, by Ronald Glasser, MD

I’m proud to say that this powerful book by my friend Ron Glasser has been nominated by the American Library Association at the outstanding nonfiction book published in 2011.  The book examines the changing face of warfare from Vietnam (Glasser treated American casualties) to today’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Anyone who wants an inside look into what our warfighters face today should read this—Wait. No. Every American should read this book. It will affect your ideas about contemporary warfare forever. Glasser devotes a section to the current wars’ “signature injury”—traumatic brain injury—produced mainly by IEDs that also blow off limbs and wreak havoc on internal organs. In past wars, these kinds of injuries killed those unlucky enough to sustain them. But in a bittersweet consequence of improved military medical care and technology such as body armor, many warfighters who are “blown up” survive, only to live with horrendous damage to their bodies and minds.

Other Resources

Operation Resurrection –New Documentary about TBI in the current wars.

This is the trailer to the powerful documentary about TBI resulting from the current wars. Please have a look. The film will be released on 11-11-11, Veterans Day.

Caregiver Village

Caregiver Village is an online community designed exclusively for those who provide care to a family member with special needs. It is a product of Caregiver Institute, LLC, a company based out of New York City, founded by private investors with a determination to positively affect healthcare in this country by nurturing the family caregiver.

Among the site’s features are a place to journal (yes!), social media where members can connect with friends, play games, and solve puzzles, all while learning valuable information about caregiving. It also supports caregiving organizations and for every person who joins will donate $1 to that person’s chosen organization.  In addition to the site, you can also learn more on their Facebook page.

Engage the Rhythms of Your Brain

Drumming can produce many positive outcomes in anyone, including people with brain injury. Like what? How about body awareness, cognition, communications skills, and mindfulness, to name only a few. Brain injury and hydrocephalus survivor Stephen Dolle is a percussionist, neuroscientist, medical intuitive, and communications consultant. He leads drumming circles for health and wellness around the country. Check out his website for information on drumming an the brain and much more fascinating material.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• My favorite pet…

• List five possibilities that exist in your life right now—five things you would like to accomplish and that you have the ability to do (or will once again have the ability to do). Then write about as many as you like. Begin each example with: Another possibility that awaits me…

• If I could tell the world about brain injury, I would say…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• When I want to get away for a while…

• The best thing that happened to me this week…

• List five possibilities that exist in your life right now—five things you would like to accomplish Then write about as many as you like. Begin each example with: Another possibility that awaits me…

Goldie taking a break

I have to agree with that. Our cat, Goldie, certainly has a staff: the two of us humans he allows to share his living space solely to feed and care for him. In our supposed two-legged superiority, we like to think we’re running the show. In reality, though, he’s trained us very well.  Take this one behavior, for example.

Like most house cats, Goldie sleeps a good part of the day. He has his usual spots: his bed by the window for the morning, the couch for the afternoon, and on the carpet in front of the TV we’re watching in the evening. (He occasionally gets up and meows piteously for food, as if he were starving to death. Fat chance.)

About six years ago, he began a new nighttime behavior. He would zoom into the bedroom, bound across the bed—and us—rattle the window shade, jump to the top of the dresser, and push small things off the edge. We would yell at him a few times in a useless attempt to get him to stop.

After a couple of nights of this, Ken decided to use behavior modification and banish Goldie to our attached garage for the night. That would show him who’s boss! Ken would jump our of bed, chase and catch Goldie, and then dump him through the door to the garage. Within a few nights, though, a strange reversal occurred. Goldie would bounce around the room, Ken would get up, and the wily cat would head straight for the door to the garage, clearly eager to get out there and chase crickets and other tasty morsels. We soon noticed what was happening and agreed that behavior modification had worked perfectly: The staff had learned their lesson well.

It’s easy to let our behavior be dictated by someone or something else. In fact, it happens all the time. For instance, we might adjust our behavior to please someone else. We might change how we act out of fear of punishment. Or we may do the opposite of what someone else wants us to do, to stand our ground or to get a reaction. We make some adjustments on purpose, and we also make many without any conscious awareness of doing so. When that happens, it’s harder to recognize why we have changed our behavior.

A brain injury can make it harder to realize that we’re letting someone else dictate our behavior. It can also make it harder to make changes so that you can be more in charge of running your own show. If you can, it’s worthwhile to explore this question once in a while: Who, or what, is running your show?

See below for some related journaling questions.

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Today’s journaling prompts

If you’re ready to do some private writing in your journal, choose one or more of these prompts to get started. Do your best to write for at least five minutes, and I encourage you to write for 20 minutes if you’re able. Remember, though, if the topic feels too uncomfortable or scary, don’t force yourself to write.

If you’ve had a brain injury:

• If I could run my own show….

• It’s important to make my own decisions as often as I can…

• One area of my life I’d like to have more control over…

• It’s easy for me to lose control over…

If you’re a family caregiver:

• If I could run my own show…

• When I make decisions about (loved one with a brain injury)…

• One area of my life I’d like to have more control over…

• I’ve learned to better control my…