What is your Name? Leanne 

 

Please tell us what happened that caused your Traumatic Brain Injury.: My son was a senior in college, went for a run and was struck by a car at 50 mph.

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When was your TBI?: 10 20, 20

 

Did you have any others since then?: No

 

What progress have you made since then?: He can walk with assistance, talks and makes cognitive improvements everyday but is 24/7 care.

 

How has your life changed since the TBI?: Well his life has totally changed. He lives with his dad and I. We are his full time caregivers. We were almost empty nesters at the time of the accident. We are so thankful to have our son alive and are humbled by his willingness to continue to work hard for improvements.

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What have you had to adapt to live your life with a TBI?: Well he truly is at our mercy as we do everything for him. Unfortunately he is blind from the accident making everything even harder for him.

 

Can you share some of the treatments or therapies you've undergone for your traumatic brain injury?​: We have done everything from full oxygen hyperbaric treatments, acupuncture, cranio sacral therapy, reflexology, kinesiology, neurofeedback with stim, physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy with an emphasis on eyes. We have done stem cells then done stem cells using his own stem cells delivered into the intrathecal space, and various supplements including NAD intravenously. We are now micro dosing and seeing positive results. We also own a Bemer and have also used the Tesla Med Beds.

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From your perspective, what has been the most effective treatment or approach in your traumatic brain injury recovery?: Honestly all of them but probably the combination of acupuncture and hyperbaric oxygen. We saw huge improvements when we did this 4 months post injury.

 

Do you feel you have recovered from your TBI? And if so, to what degree?:  Definitely not, but we have surpassed what we were told by the expert doctor at the top brain rehab in Florida who said he would have a less than 5 percent chance of walking talking or any normal function and that we should consider putting him in a hospice home and decide if we want to continue to feed him.

 

What has been the most challenging aspect of dealing with a traumatic brain injury?: The life change for him, lost dreams, blindness, never being able to leave him alone. My husband and I feel like we have lost a lot and yet gained a lot. There are blessings along the way if you are open to look for them in the journey. We have great faith in our God even though we have definitely felt challenged like we have never been challenged in our lives. A ton of sadness and depression in these 3.5 years but finding more and more joy and thankfulness.

 

How do you navigate through those challenges?​: Lots of prayer. We lean on each other but have other adult children that are here for us emotionally.

 

Who has been your support system? Tell us about them.: Truly my husband and I are his support system with his siblings as reinforcements.

 

Are there any misconceptions about traumatic brain injuries that you've encountered, and how do you address or educate others about them?: Well I actually had a doctor in front of him ask me if he would always be demented. It was all I could do from not punching him in the face. Most encounters are people that are very kind and compassionate.

 

Can you share a particularly high (or low) point in your recovery?: The low was bringing him home in a coma and turning every 2 hours and fighting with the insurance company that wouldn't even pay for tube feed that was 200 a week wondering if we would even make it financially, mentally or physically and not wanting to go on because I felt so alone. My husband still has to work so I was on my own during the day plus getting up with him all night, cleaning the trach, tube feeding, transfers. They say God doesn't give you more than you can handle but I definitely was at the breaking point. A high point was getting him in the pool with his brothers assisting and seeing him take natural steps., that gave us so much hope. His first words verbalized after a full year of not hearing his voice was such an emotional high point. So many high points as he has had a slow get continuous progression upward. We are so thankful.

 

Now, in your own words, tell us anything else you like about your journey with TBI.: As many times I read to never give up it didn't hit me as much as it does now. You will get caregiver burnout and he will have recovery burnout and it's ok to take the time you need to regroup. That will look different for everyone depending on their abilities. I have felt like I was on this mad dash especially those first 2 years. Iz had heard most of the recovery happens the first 2 years and there may be some truth to that but each person is different and we are seeing daily progress and I wish I had shared more but at the time I just wasn't there and still grieving the losses. We are still persisting but not quite at the same pace but there isn't a day that goes by that we aren't trying to pursue something to push a little harder or at least keep skills we have like a walk in the park or stationary bike ride or getting in ourild hyperbaric chamber like we are right now. We took a break but we are trying to get back in as often as we can as we see differences after about a week of use. We just left ourselves open to new things always reading what works for some. Of course we want the world and have a big break through but this has been a slow but upward process. He is so appreciative and that keeps us going and love seeing his personality start to come back. God is good!