“I was a 42 year old single parent, special-education teacher when I was in a very minor accident. I was arrested and my 7 year old daughter was taken by police. After 10 negative breathalyzer tests, the small town cop assumed I was refusing the test. The policeman took my daughter home with him and left his address on a card at the ‘desk’ in the station. I am a non-drinker but they wouldn’t believe me. Three months later, grand mal seizures got me to the hospital, with a craniotomy the following day, acute prefrontal subdural hematoma, contra-coup with shearing. The doctors felt that I had a seizure while driving and that was the cause of the accident (two wheels on the side of the road).
[After] two years of rehab, serious amnesia and memory issues, [I was] way too damaged to be coherent enough to bring suit against the county and the lying policemen. I moved back to my home state 2 years later and resumed teaching and having neurology check-ups there.” The interesting part is that, as a special education teacher, I was able to follow my recovery in my head, gauging my success by my level of disability.
Further along the journey, I used techniques and strategies on myself that I was used to applying in the classroom to my students. Eventually I earned a Master of Science in special education and the coursework for a Ed.S on brain injury. Because of my studies and research on TBI, I understand the effects of my injury and the neurophysiology of the brain. Understanding ‘both sides’ of an invisible injury has its advantages, and I am eager to listen to others’ experiences and offer a hand when I can.”
Meet the Author
Carole is a California-native and has taught special education for over 40 years. While she has never written out her entire story about Brain Injury, she has shared pieces that may help someone that is going through a similar ordeal. Carole holds her BA, MS, Ed.S, taught special needs kids for 40 years.
She suffered from a Pre-frontal Subdural injury in 1997. Post-injury she was able to teach for a few more years, but level of employment and income have steadily declined. She continue to work at the high school level and wants to find employment working with people/families with TBI. You can find Carole on Facebook.
Share Your Story Campaign
We will continue to bring you stories and interviews from Brain Injury Survivors and advocates throughout the month, and will also be creating more infographics. Contact us via e-mail if you would like to include your story in this month’s campaign.
Categories
Archive
