Brain Injury Awareness

March is National Brain Injury Awareness Month.

To learn more about why Brain Injury Awareness is important to me, go here:

Traumatic Brain Injury

You can also learn more here:

Brain Injury Association of America

Monday, March 14th is "Wear Blue Day"

Blue is the designated awareness color for Brain Injury

(formerly, it was green and I kinda wish they would make up their minds!)

And...I've been thinking about doing a Q&A so if you have any questions about Brain Injury in general, or  specifically about our experience, you can email me at

allthepiecesofme@live.com

(Not that I'm an expert or anything...)

(On a side note: We have been sick here going on a month now.  Spring cannot come soon enough for me! This has been the worst cold/flu season for us EVER! I might whine post more about that later...Today is really the first day in over 2 weeks that I have felt almost back to normal.)

Brain Injury Rehabilitation

This video is a news piece that was done about Kuna Williams, a friend of ours from Arizona.  He is a brain injury survivor too.  We met him and his family at a support group for young adult TBI survivors and their families.  He and Curtis attended the same rehabilitation program, Center for Transitional Neurorehabilitation (CTN).  Dr. Klonoff  is the director and she and her staff are incredible at what they do.  We feel so fortunate that we were able to attend therapy at CTN.
Kuna and Dr. Klonoff did a great job with this interview!

Holistic Approach to Brain Injury Recovery

Brain Injury Awareness

March is National Brain Injury Awareness Month.
You can click on the banner at the top of the page (no longer active) for more information.

I am involved with Brain Injury because our oldest son, Curtis, suffered a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) in a car accident in 2006.

There are a couple of publications at the AZ Governor's Council website that you can print off and keep with medical/first aid items. They are not just specific to Arizona. I give these out quite a lot.

These are pdf files. Click on the links below. (Links have been fixed)

When Your Child's Head Has Been Hurt
Post-Concussive Symptomatology Checklist

Are You Worried About Your Head or Brain?

Full Circle

Recently, Curtis and I had the opportunity to go back to the hospital where he was taken after his car accident 3 years ago.

It was our first time back. I was excited...and nervous. I wasn't sure how it would be for me, and I didn't want to be crying the whole time!
It was emotional, but in a good way. It was so wonderful for me to see some of the wonderful people that took care of us those first 2 months. I think it was good for them too~ so often, they never get to see former patients, and the outcome of all their hardwork.

I was so nervous & didn't want to impose on everyone, so I only got one picture this time! Next time I'll make sure I get more.
This is Curtis and me with one of our favorite MICU nurses, Barb. Let me tell you, this woman is awesome and I love her to death! She was so good to us. She and I have kept in touch and I send her photos and updates about Curtis on a regular basis.
Curtis does not remember anything from his hospital stay. It was a little weird for him to have all these people that knew him, but he didn't know any of them! But boy, they were all so happy to see him.

This is kind of a silly picture. When we visited the MICU, Barb was with a patient so we had to wait a bit to see her. But, several people recognized Curtis (even though they didn't all know him) because Barb posts the pictures and updates I send on the bulletin board for everyone to read. It was funny to have people say, "I know you, your Curtis & you had a pebble in your lung." While he was in MICU, he had a pebble that he had aspirated into his lungs and it had to be sucked out. This is picture of that pebble. I guess having an object in your lung is not all that common of an occurence. I try not to think too much about how it got there. (I know how it got there, just don't like to think about it!) I also learned, that he was one of the first patients that they had used the procedure of storing the pieces of his skull in an incision in his abdomen on. So, he's a bit of a celebrity, ha ha!

Here's a picture of some of the strange memorablia I kept from his hospital stay: (Ignore the bottle of lotion, it doesn't belong in the picture).

Weird, the things you hang on to! Some stuff just ended up coming home with us, but some of it was specifically for "memorablia". :) The Vena Cava filter was in his artery, to prevent blod clots. It's a weird looking little device, not at all what I pictured. And the notes I took are scribbled on the back of an envelope, because it was the only thing I could think to grab to take notes on. And even though I said to ignore the bottle of lotion...it did remind me of a funny story. When Curtis was in the rehab unit, for some reason he liked his feet rubbed. Anytime someone would walk in the room, he would stick his feet out. Everyone would rub his feet for him~family, nurses...everyone thought it was funny. We went through about 3 big bottles of lotion on his feet!

I also took Curtis on a tour of the hospital, and shared some memories and funny stories with him. It was just a wonderful day for me! There are still several people we would like to see, and that Curtis would like to meet so he can remember them. We'll go back again in a few months and I will for sure take pictures next time.

Hallmark Doesn't Make a Card for This!

Today is the 3 year anniversary of Curtis' car accident.

(This Post contains some pictures detailing that event, which may be unsettling or disturbing to some).

What do you say for something like that?
Happy Anniversary of Your Traumatic Event?
Congratulations on Surviving the Crash?
Good Luck With That TBI?
Nothing seems fitting, know what I mean?

Some people call it a "Re-Birth Day". We just call it the Anniversary. It's one of those dates we'll never forget, no matter what we call it.

Here are some pictures of the car before the crash. Sorry they are so small!






And here are the "after the crash" pics...

He was in a partial head-on collision. He was doing about 80 mph (yes, the accident was his fault). He hit the other car, flipped up over the top, then rolled 5-6 times down the street. He was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from the vehicle. We think the initial damage to his noggin occurred when his car piggybacked on top of the other car before rolling down the street. The sunroof caved in with the force of the impact, clipping him on the right side of his head, breaking his skull in 3 pieces and shattering his right temporal lobe.

He hit his head again, on the left side, when he was ejected from the car...he then slid along the pavement and came to a stop, lying in the road, face down and alone. This is probably the most disturbing image we have (luckily, no photos!).

When the emergency responders arrived, he was not breathing, but had a faint pulse. One of his pupils had "blown" (that basically means it was non-reactive...) a sure sign of head trauma. He had a faint pulse...the EMT crew "bagged" him (artificial respiration, not a body bag :) and rushed him to UVRMC.

(The other driver received only minor injuries, thank goodness, and is fine)

A Neurosurgeon, whom Curtis would soon be in desperate need of, was just leaving the hospital when the call came in that a head trauma was en route. He stayed, and saved our son's life.

Meanwhile, we are in Arizona, totally unaware of the events that were unfolding.


This is a picture of Curtis taken a week or two before his accident.

Curtis was stabilized in the ER/Trauma and given a blessing by his Uncle Gary and the Trauma Surgeon.

By this time, we have been notified, have called the rest of our family and are anxiously awaiting word from the hospital as to what to expect.

So much happened, in such a short time period...and I honestly thought I could write it all, but I am getting a little too emotional, so I'm just hitting the highlights.

Curtis needed emergency surgery to save his life. He had to have a craniotomy, where they remove a piece of the skull to allow room for the brain to swell. Additionally, he had his right temporal lobe removed as it was extremely damaged. He was then taken to MICU where the waiting game began...would he live? Or would he die? No one knew...

We arrived at the hospital the next morning, about 16 hours later. Gary & Amy arranged and paid for our family to fly from Arizona to Utah...It was the longest night of my life!

When we entered the ICU Room,
this is what we saw:

He was on a ventilator, and was hooked up to numerous other tubes and lines and monitors. He had tubes in his lungs, and an ICP line in his head (intracranial pressure monitor). A few days later, he had a PEG tube placed in his stomach (feeding tube). He was battered, bruised and very, very sick. He was covered with lacerations, bruises, road rash etc.

He was in the MICU in a coma for 3 weeks.

When we first saw Curtis, the only thing that we could recognize was his feet! He has really ugly feet, and that's the only way we knew it was really him!

He had to be restrained at all times, so the blue bands on his ankles are leg restraints. I think he broke 3 or 4 of these! I'm sure he'll be thrilled to know I've posted a picture with his sexy catheter tube showing! :)

This is a picture after he was taken off the ventilator. He is wearing a CPAP mask to help him breathe on his own. This is also during a physical therapy session (In the ICU, while still in a coma!) They move the bed into a sitting position and see how he responds. He grabbed the side of the bed and tried to right himself...which was awesome. At this point, he is also opening his eyes, but is not responding to commands.

This is a picture from the first day in Rehab. He was in the inpatient rehab at UVRMC for a little over a month. He is seen here wearing an attractive blue helmet to protect his head, which is still missing that skull piece. He also sports a plaid restraining jacket, and a brace on his just recently fixed broken nose! If you could actually see his eyes...you would recognized the "the lights are on, but no one is home" stare that is common with head trauma!

Sorry for the red eyes in this picture. They are from my camera, not from the accident! You can kind of see how the right side of his head caves in a bit, rather than being rounded. This is after the swelling in his brain has started to reduce, but the skull has not yet been replaced. The 3 puzzle pieces of his head have been stored in his abdomen, just under the skin and fatty layer. They will stay there, alive and well until the Dr. is ready to replace them.

These are some pictures after the surgery to replace the skull flap. He had some minor complications at this point (before the surgery) but everything went fine and he recovered well. In fact, before the surgery he hadn't started talking yet, and after the CSF (Cerebral Spinal Fluid) was drained, he started talking! It was all weird, hallucination sounding stuff, but at least he was talking!

He ripped the bandages off his head at the first opportunity. He has a very scarred head! We tell him he looks like a baseball!

He was discharged from UVRMC in October 2006 and returned home to Arizona with us, to resume therapy there. He spent a little over 9 months in outpatient rehab at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix. And another 16 months in a comprehensive Neuro-rehabilitiation program, also part of St. Joe's Barrow Neurological Institute.

I wish I had the words to explain what it is like learning to live with TBI, for Curtis and for us.

He is doing really, really well...but he will always be disabled. He doesn't have many physical disabilities, but rather has cognitive disabilities (memory, reasoning, judgement, impulsivity, etc.) He isn't able to drive, because of his vision issues, and that is probably his biggest disability. But he is doing amazingly well, and for that we are grateful.

I wanted to write more, include more detail, and overall be more eloquent, engaging, interesting...but once I got started I found it much more difficult than I thought it would be...so I apologize for the harried, somewhat choppy tone...I have left so much out...but wow, it would be pages and pages and pages long!

I do want to express thanks for all the help and love and support along the way.

Firstly, to our family. Both my family and Rick's family were and have been incredibly helpful and supportive.

Our Friends, from work, from former wards, we appreciate the outpouring of love and support.

Our church family, 5th Ward here in Utah~ really took care of us and stepped right in to love and nurture us just as if we were still ward members there! Most of the woman I admire most in the world and count as my dearest friends live or have lived in this ward!

And McQueen Ward in Arizona...they fed us, prayed for us, helped me shuttle kids and did everything they could to help us once we returned to AZ

URVMC in Utah...I thank Heavenly Father every day for the dedicated, talented team of doctors, nurses and therapists that worked with Curtis. They gave us a firm foundation and stable footing on which to build. I think they are the best in the world!

St. Joseph's Hospital...Again, wonderful team of doctors and therapists that have helped Curtis and our family along the road of recovery. They were a perfect match to our beginning at UVRMC. We are so thankful that we lived in Arizona and could take advantage of the wonderful rehab opportunities there.

VR Counselors, who funded much of Curtis' rehab.

TBI Support Community...I have met some truly remarkable people throughout my association with the brain injury community. I have made some dear friends through the 2 support groups I attended.

My Heavenly Father...for all the countless blessings and tender mercies, all came from Him.

And to Curtis...for always keeping positive, for pushing forward, for always fighting and working for more!

Here are some pictures I took today:

He has been going to school, and has 30 college credits and is waiting to start classes again next week. He has volunteered 100+ hours, working in both inpatient and outpatient PT at St. Joe's. He's currently looking for a part time job.

When he was discharged from his last therapy program, his Neuropsychologist said that she has never seen anyone with such a severe injury make such a remarkable recovery. She's been working with brain injury patients for a long time, and is not one that says something unless she really means it. He really is lucky and blessed!

There is so much more to the story...but this will have to do for now!

Quite a handsome, young man!

CAKE DAY!

Cake: (kāk) Noun 1. a sweet baked food made from a dough or thick batter usually containing flour and sugar and often shortening, eggs, and a raising agent (as baking powder).

Day: (dā) Noun 1. the interval of light between two successive nights; the time between sunrise and sunset.





May 13th was Curtis’ “Cake Day”. Cake Day is a celebration of sorts, and signifies the end of his therapy program at the CTN. And yes, there was an actual cake involved! (German Chocolate, to be exact). He was recognized during “milieu”. Maura, his speech therapist, highlighted his accomplishments, then presented him with a cake and he was applauded and congratulated by the other staff and patients.

CTN is a comprehensive Cognitive Neuro-Rehabilitation program used in the treatment of brain injury. It is the best brain injury therapy program in the country and we feel fortunate to have been accepted into the program. Curtis has been attending therapies there for 16 months. During that time, he has completed his GED and started attending college. As of last Thursday, he has 30 credit hours.

He has spent most of the last 2 ½ years in therapy. He has come such a long way, and we are so grateful for the dedicated, talented, professional Doctors and Therapists who have helped him get to this point. It has been an amazing journey, with many, many people involved in the process…

We started out here, in the ICU in a coma. Battered, bruised and broken, without much hope.

And today, we are here:

"You've come a long way, baby!"

But today I just want to say~ Congratulations son, you’ve made a remarkable recovery!
Enjoy the moment (and the cake!)

Brain Injury~ Get Involved!

Brain Star
Support * Treatment * Awareness * Research

This past weekend, Curtis and I participated in a Bowl-A-Thon hosted by the Brain Injury Association of Arizona, in conjunction with a fundraising organization called Brain Star.
Brain Star was started just a few months ago, by several very motivated and passionate TBI family members.
The Bowl-A-Thon was the first fundraising event, and it was a smashing success. We were able to raise $10,000!
I am so grateful to be able to associate with so many wonderful people in the brain injury community. It’s wonderful to see so many people rallying together to support such a wonderful cause.
I am also grateful for those dedicated family members and TBI survivors who have worked tirelessly to take a great idea and make it a reality. Otherwise, we would still just be sitting around talking about how nice it would be to start a fundraising group!

In March 2010, the group plans to host a Golf Tournament.

5.3 Million Americans –a little more than 2% of the population- currently live with disabilities resulting from brain injury.

If you are interested in donating much needed funds, please contact your local BIA, or contact me for further information about Brain Star.

Brain Injury: Get the Facts

March is National Brain Injury Awareness Month

This year, the focus is on awareness and prevention of sport related concussions, specifically relating to youth sports.

Learn more about Sports & Concussion at the Brain Injury Association website

A few facts about Brain Injury:
(These statistics are national averages, and vary by state)

1.4 million people sustain a brain injury every year in the United States
Nationwide, a brain injury occurs every 23 seconds (every 14 seconds in Arizona)

Leading causes of brain injury include:

*Falls (28%)
*Motor Vehicle Accidents (20%)
*Struck by/against events (19%)
*Assaults (11%)
*Blasts are a leading cause of injury for active duty military personnel in war zones

Brain injury is a silent, serious epidemic, affecting some 5.3 million Americans

Each state has a Brain Injury Association office

Find your state affiliate office here: BIA State Offices

And for more facts and statistics, visit the

Utah Brain Injury Association or

read more About Brain Injury here.