Brain Injury Rehabilitation – Health

In my last post I covered the potential issues and gave what (I hope) was advice that could be used or could be considered useful for those suffering from an ABI or any disability really (https://lifeafterabraininjurydotorg.wordpress.com/2016/02/11/brain-injury-recovery-independent-living/). Prior to that post I had covered what my goals were in terms of what I am working towards now (https://lifeafterabraininjurydotorg.wordpress.com/2016/02/04/brain-injury-recovery-where-do-i-want-to-be/). The first target (I have stated in previous posts that these targets are in no particular order) was regarding the idea of living independently; moving out on our own.

If you’ll remember, the last statement in my previous blog (based off of my own experiences or inexperience’s depending on your point of view) was to ensure not rush the process of trying to gain independence. The most important thing with regards to that goal is to make sure you give yourself the best chance of succeeding. In my opinion, the best chance you, your family, friends and any other support you may have can make for yourselves is to ensure that your health situation is as under control as it possibly can be.

Like Building A House

The problem with this, with a lot of the things I am saying, is that we need to take our time. I have found this incredibly frustrating, personally. When you want to get out there and see the world, get a job and a career, settle down with a partner; what most would call the conventional route in life. Unfortunately we do have to accept that for us, following a “conventional method” is going to be extremely difficult and a long, hard slog.

I suffered my injury around six and a half years ago. I spent three years at university, which was a relative success. The other three and a half years were spent, in one way or another, finding out that independence would not be possible until my health was in an appropriate state to allow me that independence (the examples of the problems I encountered that were related to my health in my last post, regarding my desire to live on my own, independently in my own place).

All of the time taken up by this struggle, the things I have lost and the terrible time I have put my family through; I’ve hated it. But I think it all comes down to finding a way to look at things in a different light. Perhaps use a metaphor, or some kind way to visualize the your goals and the successes you want to have in the future. For me, the one that seems most appropriate is building a house (sounds weird I know but go with me on this one).

Laying A Foundation

Just like the rehabilitation process of an Acquired Brain Injury, the building of a house takes time and has many different facets to it; the first and perhaps most important step, to lay the foundation. In our case the foundation of the house we are building is good health. We need to make sure that as many of the health related obstacles we have to face on a day-to-day basis are under control. Whether that is ensuring we have the appropriate equipment to manage any particular physical disabilities; that we have the correct diagnosis and medicines to treat any illnesses whether physical, mental, or neurological and that we are in control of all of these things. It may mean needing help from a carer or family member but I do believe that many of us will be able to do it independently, given time and so long as we believe in ourselves.

When we do have control of our health situation and this foundation is firmly in place, it then becomes something we can build on. With discipline and with determination, this is a very real possibility for many of us. If we can get our health situation under control it becomes the platform we can build future successes upon and continue to progress and move forward over time.

A House Without A Foundation

The main reason I say that building a foundation of good health before going after some of the more ambitious goals you may have on your list is because I am speaking from experience. I believe that the majority of my own misfortunes when it comes to the pursuit of my own happiness are due to the fact that I wasn’t ready from a health standpoint.

Most of the time, the bad experiences I had when it came to pursuing my goals was due to the fact that my epilepsy was poorly controlled. At this moment in time it is poorer, I think, than it has ever been it terms of the frequency of my seizures. These fits are full-on Tonic Clonic seizures as well. No warning, no aura, straight out of the blue and I’m on the ground, waking up and normally hurt in some way and worn out to my very core.

My point is that while the chances of things such as (we’ll continue to use my experience of epilepsy as the example) seizures, are likely there is no way I will be able to be truly independent. It will always be there to pull me back just as I think I’m pulling free of it.

Finally…

With a firm foundation and being able to rely on your health, to be able to rely on your body and your brain as much as is physically possible, it will allow you to progress without the fear of the rug being ripped out from under you. That is just the beginning of a huge a project with many more exciting things to come. Some people will tell you that many of the things other people (who don’t face the kind of challenges we do) achieve are not possible. THEY ARE IDIOTS! DO NOT LISTEN TO THEM!

We, ABI patients or any other disabled person, can achieve whatever we want with the right effort and strategy. We can have a fulfilling job and career, a partner, get married, and own our own property. These are all things that are possible.

We do however have to find the right way to approach our goals while considering our injuries and set realistic goals. We have to rationalize the way we think about the injury so that it is not a constant flow of negative thoughts about loss and unfairness. Instead we need to think about what we want to accomplish and look at how we can achieve our targets in steady steps. In my opinion, building any future plans on a foundation of good health is the first positive step toward accomplishing the dreams you have for the future.