Book Quotes, more info

 "This kind of injury...it is complicated. It takes a long time for the brain to heal; it's about patience. Always remember that this is a marathon, not a sprint. Healing from brain injuries can easily take up to eighteen months, even two years."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

I understand that I have to be patient and let me tell you, patience is not one of my strong suits.  I do try, I accept that this is what I have been dealt and I do solemnly swear that I will come out on the right end of this stick.  There just aren't any other options, and this particular junction in this fight might be where my stubbornness actually works in my favor.

 
"The brain is a big hurdle. There is no way to say how much will come back."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.
Its scary to realize that there is no way for the doctors and nurses to determine how much my brain will heal.  They have recommendations and suggestions but it is very different than simply taking a prescription.  Each patient is so different from the next, it would be unfair and incorrect to lump all brain injuries into one category.  So much of the recovery comes from time, let time go by and continue to challenge yourself and slowly things will start to come together.  Impatience is the enemy I battle with on a daily basis...
 
"If you are a person who sharpens pencils for a living and you have a brain injury, you will probably not have as many neurons from your former life to help rehabilitate yourself." In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.
This quote gave me so much hope, because quite frankly my job was complicated and demanding.   I did not have a boring job, I was expected to perform and I intended to exceed people's expectations of me.  It took alot of energy and effort to feel like I had gotten to a place in the culinary world where my talents were challenged and appreciated... I have so much more to learn and one day I will be working again and I will be learning  new tricks of the trade. 

Desserts from the menu I created at the Sheraton Keahou Bay resort

 
"The brain heals in amazing ways, You can't discount that."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.



"His head wound needed to be stable to heal, and his brain was not yet ready to wake itself up. It was still rebooting; the connections inside were not yet complete."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

I wish my mom had been able to reference this book while she waited for me to wake up from my coma, this quote may have given her a little more strength at the time.  There just weren't any answers as to how long I would remain in a coma and if I ever came out of it nobody knew how I would adapt.

with the tube in my head

the tube has been removed ~ I'll take a few stitches over a tube any day!

For awhile I had a tube in my head, it measured the pressure in my brain and helped determine whether or not they would need to cut out a part of my skull to allow space for more swelling.  Thankfully, they never had to cut out any of my skull, I can only imagine how much harder that would have made my recovery.  As it was I took my sweet time waking up from the coma and I spent a long while not speaking at all.

"emblem for life: the need to be kind to yourself every single day because you simply can't know what is next."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

"Danger was impossible to avoid. Bad things could happen to people everywhere, no matter how safe they tried to be."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

"You can take precautions in life, but they are like seatbelts, they won't necessarily keep you safe."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.
Do the things that are good for you, things that make you happy.  Don't put yourself or anyone else in harm's way, don't take unnecessary risks.  I hate to be the one to tell you that life doesn't necessarily work out the way you expect it to.  Be good to the people that you love, be a good friend - even if you have to go out of your way a little because it makes a difference.  So many people went out of their way to let me know that I wasn't alone, that they were thinking about me and praying for the best outcome possible.  Those things mattered, they helped me get through each day and look forward to what was coming next.  
 
"... an explosion caused the brain to slosh around against the skull. This sheared off millions of neurons and caused damage that wouldn't be revealed until Bob woke up. Even then it could take time. Sometimes the differences were subtle - slightly impaired judgement or cognitive ability, perhaps - and sometimes they were more grave, like major personality differences. One of the greatest frustrations with a head injury is that while the person might seem just fine to others, things are profoundly changed inside." In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

Starting to wake up from my coma, one eye slightly open - ugh, so creepy!

"People have a whole new appreciation for the value of life, of what it means to be spared." In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

"Every long-winded well-meaning expression of sympathy was a giant highlighting marker over the fact that I was different."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

"I wanted people I knew to acknowledge my pain and then move on, with the speed of a wedding receiving line. I wanted, more than anything, to be one of them again."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.
Yes, I want people to be aware of my accident and know that I fought my way back.  I do not want the accident to be the only thing they see when they look at me.  If its the only thing they can talk about with me then I will feel like I failed because there is so much more to me than this one incident.  I am fully aware that this was a major incident but I also believe that I am made up of alot of pieces, so many pieces have nothing to do with this accident.  Yes I was involved in a life-changing accident - next...


"The exact extent of my injuries is still difficult to measure, but I see improvement everyday. With the help of intense cognitive rehabilitation, the healing powers of the human body, and the profound support of friends and family, I have come closer to my old self, little by little. But I will never be the same. "   In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.

"traumatic brain injuries: diagnosing the problem is just the beginning. The real work takes place in rehab. ...needs professional cognitive rehabilitation to help connect those neurons, to work with any individual deficits, and to develop coping strategies as they heal. There is so much more to be done on this front."  In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing, written by Lee and Bob Woodruff.