On May 13, 1997 at 4am in the morning I woke up and I was paralyzed on the right side of my body. When I arrived at the hospital the doctors told me that I have suffered a stroke. I was 40 years old at the time. I soon learned that having a brain injury and living with a brain injury were very different.
During the past 13 years the road to recovery has been filled with many hills and valleys and now it is time to share my experiences and give some answers to people who have brain injuries and the people who care for them.
The types of brain injuries are as varied as the people who have them. Some brain injuries are in the form of strokes, sports injuries, car accidents or other traumas that cause our brains to become damaged. The source of the brain injury is not as important as the similarities that exist in the recovery process.
There is a book available called The Brain That Changes Itself by Dr. Norman Doidge which I read about a year ago. This book has become a very important part of my recovery because there are case studies backed up with scientific research that convinces me that “science has finally caught up with my brain injury” I suggest to anyone who has a brain injury or the people who are caring for someone who has a brain injury to read this book. Here is the link to Dr. Doidge’s book www.normandoidge.com . In future columns there will be excerpts from Dr. Doidge’s book to provide recovery information that brain injured people can use in their recovery.
It is a scientific fact that listening to Mozart stimulates the brain. Try It! and see if it makes a difference.
Jean Oostrom lives in Springwater Township
