Let me start off by saying Happy 4th of July to all the friends of Second Chance to Live. I trust you are doing well today. I am happy to be alive myself. Independence Day is a holiday that is celebrated because of the sacrifice that many individuals made prior to 1776. America has been blessed and our freedom has continues to ring for over 231 years. Our freedom came and continues to come with a price. Many Service men and women have made the ultimate sacrifice. We as a nation owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to the men and women of the armed forces.
Since our Declaration of Independence in 1776 our country has engaged in conflicts around the world to protect our freedom and our interests. Regardless of your or my opinion concerning how and why our military has engaged in those conflicts, we as a country need to honor our Service men and women.
Conflicts create consequences and those consequences create long term responsibilities. I am saddened as I continue to hear that our brain-injured soldiers are being miss-diagnosed. Consequently, these soldiers are not receiving the necessary neurological treatment and rehabilitation. My traumatic brain injury occurred in 1967 (per your information, read My Journey thus Far)and because neurological rehabilitation was not available, I had to forge ahead in my own recovery process with out any professional help.
In the last 40 years there have been tremendous advances in the field of Neurological Rehabilitation. Nevertheless, many of our brain-injured soldiers are being denied the necessary treatment and rehabilitation for their brain injuries. In the past month Bob Woodward has been the guest on various TV talk shows. The focus of those shows has been on Bob’s recovery, his family and his new book. I am very happy and proud of Bob Woodward and the recovery he has made. I am happy that he received excellent rehabilitation and care in follow-up to his traumatic brain injury. I am happy that he is continuing to receive ongoing treatment, care, and rehabilitation for his brain injury.
My point is that all our brain injured soldiers –not just individuals who are in the limelight like Bob Woodward – need to receive optimal ongoing treatment, care and rehabilitation for their brain injury. Our society seems to be enamored with celebrity status, while ignoring the newly brain injured soldier, who has been standing on post to protect the freedom that made them celebrities. Wake up America!
So eat up, enjoy your barbecues and your families get to gathers, but remember that there is a soldier who recently sustained a traumatic brain injury while standing on post to protect your freedom. Give our brain-injured-soldiers the same status, attention and recognition that you give to the Bob Woodward’s of the world. Please be diligent to provide every brain-injured soldier with the same honor, dignity, treatment and rehabilitation as you give to those with celebrity status. Brain injury does not heal like a bone that has been broken. Brain Injury, in many instances results in an invisible disability that necessitates on going treatment and rehabilitation for many years.
Honor our traumatic brain injured soldiers as they honored our country!
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