On October 26, 2022, I will be speaking on the topic of “12 Ways to enhance our Lives, Well-beings and Relationships after Brain Injury and Stroke” to the Brain Injury Services Adapt Clubhouse in Alexandria, Virginia through Zoom.
To view an outline of the zoom presentation
12 Ways to Enhance Our Lives, Well-Beings and Relationships after a Brain Injury and Stroke Zoom Presentation
To read the article from which this zoom presentation was created.
12 Ways to Enhance Our Lives, Well-Beings and Relationships after a Brain Injury
To watch a video presentation of the article.
12 Ways to Enhance Our Lives, Well-Being and Relationships after Brain Injury Video Presentation
“Adventure is not outside man (woman). It is within.” George Eliot
“Believe in yourself, go after your dreams and don’t let anyone put you in a box.” Daya
In my experience and through my process I discovered a set of ways. A set of ways that have helped me in my ongoing brain injury recovery process, one day at a time.
These set of ways may also help you in your ongoing brain injury recovery process, one day at a time.
Inch by inch, life’s a cinch. Yard by yard, it’s very hard.
These ways have helped me to be able to accept the things that I cannot change, change the things I can and let go of the rest to a loving God. To a loving God to help me to sort, fulfill my purpose, and serve.
Benefits that I have Gained through Working the 12 Ways
Grieving what I Could not Change
Changing the Things, I Can
Creating my New Normal
Defining Success for myself
Finding and Living my Purpose
Owning my Power to be of Service
Developing My Brain / Body Connection
Advocating for Myself in my Mind, Body, Spirit, Soul and Emotion
Cultivating a Healthy Relationship with myself, a loving God, people
Grieving the Guilt and Shame of my brain injury / invisible disability
Understanding Why I feel Misunderstood / Shunned to Find Freedom.
Creating and Continuing to Develop my Own Unique Genius in Life
Discovering How to Make my Life Magical, One Day at a Time
Opening the Door to Hope a Little at a Time
When I reached a point in time when I could no longer defend or deny the impact of my brain injury and invisible disability I began to grieve.
- Admitted that we are powerless over the impact and effects of our brain injury. That our lives have forever changed because of our brain injury. Although we are powerless over the impact of our brain injury and our invisible disability, we are not helpless. As a result, we no longer need to feel like a victim or that we are helpless to change because of our brain injury/invisible disability.
By realizing that all my efforts to try to change what could not be changed, I surrendered. By surrendering I became open and willing.
- Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could help us to accept what we are powerless to change (the impact of our brain injury and our invisible disability). Consequently, we can rely on the power that many of us have found to be God. We can rely on a loving God to help us to stop sabotaging and undermining our lives, well-beings and relationships by trying not to be impacted by a brain injury and an invisible disability. We can rely on a loving God to help us to accept ourselves and to create a good life for ourselves.
Through accepting my inability to change what I simply could not change; I made a decision to ask for help from a power greater.
- With the awareness that we need this power in our lives, we can make a decision to ask Him to lead and guide our process and journey. We no longer have to figure things out on our own. Instead, we can ask Him to help us own our power. Own our power as an individual living with a brain injury and an invisible disability. Own our power through what we can do, not what we can’t do. Own our power (what is in our power to control) in our mind, body, spirit, soul and emotions in ways that work for us, a little at a time/one day at a time.
By asking for help, I began to examine patterns of what got in the way of my ability to create hope in my life, well-being and relationships.
- With the help of a loving God, we can begin to examine areas of our lives that no longer work for us. That undermine and sabotage our lives, our well-beings and our relationships. With the help of a loving God, we can look for patterns. Patterns such as defense mechanisms in which we strive to defend, answer and explain what we can’t do. Patterns that keep you and I believing/feeling that we are victims of our brain injury, our invisible disability and our circumstances.
As I examined what got in the way of my life, my well-being and my relationships I realized that needed to learn how to trust.
- We no longer have to remain isolated/alienated because of what we are no longer able to accomplish with because of our brain injuries and invisible disabilities. By admitting to ourselves, a loving God and another person what we are unable to accomplish, we can come out of the shadows of isolation and break free from feelings of alienation. Alienation from ourselves, a loving God and other people, because of what we can no longer accomplish. By letting go of these expectations we can learn how to trust, again — a loving God, ourselves and other people.
By realizing that I needed to trust, I discovered that I needed to let go of what no longer worked for me to discover what works for me.
- Through being sick and tired of being sick and tired of getting the same results, we become willing to try something different. Become willing to try something different to get different results in our lives and relationships. Through being willing, we can ask a loving God to help us to stop doing things that no longer work for us. Doing things that get in the way and sabotage of our ability to get on with creating a good life for ourselves. In the process, we become entirely ready. Entirely ready to let go of what no longer works for us living our lives.
To discover what would work for me, I needed to let go of my will to ask a loving God to lead, guide and direct my discovery process.
- Through being ready to let go of what no longer works for us, we can be actively involved. Actively involved in the process of discovering how to use our gifts, talents and abilities. Discovering how to use our gifts, talents and abilities through trial and error. In the process, we can find ways that will fit our gifts, talents and abilities. We can humbly ask a loving God to help us in/with this process of self-discovery. In the process of letting go and self-discovery we can find and have/experience peace in our lives and relationships.
By examining the patterns of what no longer works for me, as I live my life, I am able to make peace with what no longer works for me.
- Through letting go of what no longer works we can pursue what works for us. In the process, we can stop being a prisoner to our deficits and imitations. Instead of trying to not be impacted by our deficits and limitations, we accept them. As a result, we are able to stop fighting with and against ourselves. Stop fighting with ourselves and other people by trying to prove that we do not have those deficits and limitations. As we stop fighting with our deficits and limitations, we gain the freedom to run our own race. In the process, we become the individual that we choose and decide to become in our lives.
I am able to make peace with what no longer works for me in my life, well-being and relationships by changing the way I use my energy.
- We can let go of the life that we had planned to create the life that works for us. In the process, we can learn how to own the power in our mind, body, spirit, soul and emotions. Own our power through the use of our time and energy. In the process, we can create our new normal in ways that work for us. In ways that work for us, through being an advocate for our mind, body, soul, spirit and emotions.
As I seek to change the way that I interact in my life and relationships I continue to be aware of what no longer works for me each day.
- And the good news is that we don’t have to figure out how everything will fit together. Fit together as we seek to own the power in our mind, body, spirit, soul and emotions. Instead, we can take the process, one day at a time, one step at a time. In the process, we can ask a loving God to lead, guide and direct our steps, one day at a time. In the process, we can trust the process. Trust that the dots will connect forward as we learn how to use our gifts, talents and abilities.
Because I realize that brain injury recovery is an ongoing process, I ask a loving God to guide, lead and direct my process, each day.
- We can ask a loving God to give us direction each day. We can do the footwork, while letting go of the outcomes by trusting the process, a loving God and ourselves. We can learn to trust through doing the footwork and letting go of the outcomes. We can let go of the outcomes one day at a time. We can trust that more will be revealed with time. We can ask and trust that we are being guided in the direction of fulfilling our purpose, to be of service.
As I continue to ask a loving God to lead, guide and direct my process in ways that work for me, I encourage others to do the same.
- As we grow in the understanding of ourselves (with the help of a loving God) we continue to use our gifts, talents and abilities. Use our gifts, talents and abilities in ways that work for us. In the process, we learn from our circumstances, our experiences, our lessons and opportunities. In the process, we create hope in our lives, well-beings, relationships. In the process, we create our destinies one lesson, one opportunity and one day at a time. In the process, we share hope.
Below are 15 other presentations that I have created to share what helped to improve my life, well-being and relationships
I am available to share these presentations with your members, staff, association or organization.
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