On February 6, 2007 I created Second Chance to Live to offer peer support to the Global Brain Injury Peer Support Network. In October 2009 I created a way to translate Second Chance to Live into host of global languages: Albanian Arabic Bulgarian Catalan Chinese Simplified Chinese Traditional Croatian Czech Danish Dutch Estonian Filipino Finnish French Galician German Greek Hebrew Hindi Hungarian Indonesian Italian Japanese Korean Lativian Lithuanian Maltese Norwegian Polish Portuguese Romanian Russian Serbian Slovak Slovenian Spanish Swedish Thai Turkish Ukrainian Vietnamese
Second Chance to Live and my Global Brain Injury Peer Support Network serves to empower the whole individual, not focus on the brain injury. Our network serves to emphasize that although our lives have been impacted by a brain injury, we are not our brain injury. Our network serves to offer solutions for living and thriving in life as an individual living with the impact of a brain injury. Our network serves to focus on possibilities. Our network serves to empower the individual to discover what works for them, in ways that work for them. Our network serves through offering hope.
For 9 1/2 years our global network has served Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Europe and Australia. We have done so without a fee, cost or expense to the individual, family or professional.
About the Global Brain Injury Peer Support Network
In 1967 at the age of 10 I sustained an open skull fracture and a fractured left femur (thigh bone) in a motor vehicle accident. With my open skull fracture I experienced right frontal lobe damage, a severe brain bruise with brain stem involvement. I remained in a coma for 3 weeks. Through my brain injury recovery process I discovered that many people led, wanted or needed me to believe that I was my brain injury. I do not know exactly why these people led, wanted or needed me to believe that I was my brain injury. But what I found was that the belief kept me stuck. Kept me stuck focusing on what I was powerless to change. But, thankfully my circumstances motivated me to start looking at things in a different way. I began this ongoing process nearly 30 years ago.
Brain Injury Recovery, Balance and What I Discovered through my Recovery Process
For many years I bought into the notion that if I just found the “right” information then I would be healed. Healed from the impact of “whatever” was making living my life difficult for me. So I set out on a pilgrimage to find that “right” knowledge. You see, I was led to believe that there was a “silver bullet”. A “silver bullet” or a “special knowledge” that, if found; would “fix me”. Would fix me so that I would no longer be affected by what was getting in the way of living my life. But on my pilgrimage I discovered that there was no “silver bullet” or “special knowledge” that would “fix me”.
But I am glad that did not stop searching. Searching for a way to improve my life and well-being. What I discovered changed my life and the way in which I saw myself. What I discovered helped me to realize that I needed to become aware. Aware of how my mind, body, spirit and emotions had been impacted by the injury to my brain. And as I became aware, I grew in the ability to accept myself. As I grew in awareness and ability to accept myself I found a new power. The power to accept the things that I could not change so that I could begin to change the things I could change.
As I grew in self-acceptance I gained the ability to change the things that I could change. In the process, my life took on new meaning. Instead of continuing to buy into the notion that I was my brain injury, I discovered my creative capacity. The creative capacity to now follow my dreams in ways that would work for me. The ability to define my own identity, as an individual living with a brain injury; but not by my brain injury.
What I discovered helped me to realize that I no longer had to be limited by my limitations. What I discovered helped me to realize that change could come in my mind, body, spirit and emotions. What I discovered served to give me hope. What I discovered helped me to realize that although my life was impacted by a brain injury I could experience freedom. A freedom to be myself. A freedom to follow the dreams. Dreams that I once thought were out of my reach. Dreams that I could achieve by learning to use my gifts, talents and abilities in ways that would work for me. Dreams that I could achieve by not giving up. Dreams that I could achieve by trusting the process, a loving God and myself. Dreams that would become real with time.
In my desire to serve the global brain injury peer support network I wrote and published 2 articles. The 2 articles include what I discovered that gave me freedom and hope. The articles can be opened by clicking on these 2 links: 12 Brain Injury Peer Support Categories to Empower Hope and 419 Video Presentations for Brain Injury Peer Support to Empower Hope.
I also created a way to access the articles and video presentations within each of the 12 Brain Injury Peer Support Categories. To access a list of the articles and video presentations within each of the categories, click on each of the below links. Clicking on each link will open a list of article titles. Scroll down the list of titles. Click on the desired article title and the article will open for you.
Category Building Self-Esteem after Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Brain Injury Recovery An Ongoing Process — List of Articles
Category Self-Acceptance after a Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Celebrating Success Following a Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Creating Hope after Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Finding and Knowing Peace after Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Finding Purpose after a Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Fulfilling Dreams after Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category My Journey Living with a Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Overcoming Bullying after Brain Injury — List of Articles
Category Peer Support after Brain Injury — We are Not Alone — List of Articles
Category Relationships Following a Brain Injury — List of Article
Epilogue
Through my 53 years of living with the impact of a brain injury and an invisible disability I have come to realize that brain injury recovery has to include the whole person, not just recovery from the brain injury. That is why I believe that brain injury recovery and peer support needs to include healing in the mind, body, spirit and emotions following a brain injury. That is why I address the whole individual, not only the brain injury; through my articles, presentations and my e Books on Second Chance to Live. What I write about helps the individual living with a brain injury realize that they are much more than their brain injury. What I write about on Second Chance to Live is to empower the individual living with a brain injury to address and heal the whole individual.
For a list of my 11 e Books, which are free for download; please click on following link: 11 e Books The 11 e Books are only available in English at the present time.
You have my permission to share my articles and or video presentations with anyone you believe could benefit, however please attribute me as being the author of the article (s) video presentation (s), and provide a link back to the article (s) on Second Chance to Live. In the event that you have questions, please send those questions to me. All questions are good questions. Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you. Copyright 2007-2021.
