Brain Injury

What would you do if it happened to you? If you awoke one day when you were twelve years old to be informed that your life was suddenly over? Well . . . Here is what I did. If you became the wealthiest person you would ever know just three and a half years later? What would that be like? Well, this is what it was like when it happened to me.

Traumatic brain injury and me? Don’t be silly! Really? You know someone who is coping with a devastating loss of brain control. Often it’s obvious, maybe unsettling, but in some people it doesn’t announce itself like physical challenges do. So? You do know someone. You’re left upset, helpless, unfamiliar, confused, and may even be suffering from survivor’s guilt. It affects accident and war victims who, until recently, would have died of physical trauma.

In her inspiring book, reading specialist and motivational speaker, Keli, shares her personal journey of overcoming trauma and adversity to become a successful educator, healer, and role model. With her loving and compassionate demeanor, Keli has dedicated her life to teaching young children as a Kindergarten Reading Specialist and helping others through energy healing.

At the start of his second year at Harvard, Martin was hit by a car and thrown 150 feet. He landed on his head, suffering severe traumatic brain injury. He resolved to get back. Climbing Back: A Family's Journey Through Brain Injury follows Martin's sister, father, and mother (the author) as they accompany Martin through rehabilitation and recovery. They find that they too must work to get back, to heal their own minds and souls.

Allison shares her revealing story in The Angel Inside: A Young Woman's Healing Journey Through Coma and Brain Injury. Her book is a multi-sensory description of what it was like to be in a coma from the inside looking out, on a mental, emotional, physical and spiritual level, how she was able to heal, her evolving relationship with God, as well as how we can be of better assistance to people in need of care.

Angela Leigh Tucker had not expected death that day. Newlywed, thirty years old and a successful public relations professional, she and her husband were driving home when a semi-truck hurtled over the center-lane divider and crushed their SUV. Her husband died on impact. She was left hanging onto life by a thin, golden thread. With her brain severely injured and her neck, shoulder, and ribs broken, she had instantly lost everything but her will to live.

Isaac always knows the answer. Everything is easy for him. But when his dad falls off the roof, Isaac can't help. He can't fix his dad's brain, he can't fix how helpless his mom feels, and he can't stop making things worse. Isaac needs to learn to wait, and to accept life as it happens. That's not an easy thing for Isaac. This is a tough book, but it's appropriate for anyone of any age trying to deal with TBI or other catastrophic injuries.

Ben Gibson is many things, but he's not sorry, and he's not a liar. He will tell you exactly about what happened on what started as a simple school camping trip in the mountains. About who lived and who died. About who killed and who had the best of intentions. But he's going to tell you in his own time. Because after what happened on that mountain, time is the one thing he has plenty of.

When a 200-pound glass partition fell on Donna Fado Ivery's head resulting in brain injury, disability, and chronic pain, she could no longer count on walking, speaking, or thinking. How would she care for her infant, her preschooler, her husband, and herself? How would she continue to serve as pastor? With humor and humility, this inspirational memoir speaks to Donna’s struggle through medical, social, and church prejudice with the abiding support of family and the Holy Spirit.

After a 2003 car accident, a family struggles as one member recovers from an eight-day coma to a rich and happy life, even with the new limits set on her. Watch her success and, perhaps, even see your family doing the same thing.