HBO Documentary had a great show on TBI. Its called Coma. It follws 4 stories of individuals with TBI. One man fell from a balcony, a car accident, and the other 2 I can't remember but, a very interesting show. The degree of injury in each case was so different. The struggles that I have been talking about have all been covered in this show. There are even follow ups on the internet regarding these 4 individuals. This documentary goes into the doctor interviews and the meetings with the family. 4 different outcomes. You get to see the anguish of being told the loved one will never wake up. The treatments, the constant care. You watch familes torn apart, people walk away and a fiance stick by her man. The man that fell from the balcony has a great follow up on he internet. His fiance stayed, they are married and living on their own. He has severe hearing loss as well as a Brain injury that has changed his physical features as well. I have been searching online to see why the facial features are so dramactically changed in some individuals. If you look at Jeremy in his before and after picures it is almost like looking at a different child. I haven't been able to find anything on that so now im on a mission to find some kind of article about this. S has changed dramatically as well.
According to a CDC report. 1.7 million people suffer a TBI each year.
The most common causes of TBI in the U.S. include violence, transportation accidents, construction, and sports. Motor bikes are major causes, increasing in significance in developing countries as other causes reduce. The estimates that between 1.6 and 3.8 million traumatic brain injuries each year are a result of sports and recreation activities in the US. In children aged two to four, falls are the most common cause of TBI, while in older children traffic accidents compete with falls for this position.^] TBI is the third most common injury to result from child abuse. Abuse causes 19% of cases of pediatric brain trauma, and the death rate is higher among these cases. Domestic violence is another cause of TBI, as are work-related and industrial accidents. Firearms and blast injuries from explosions are other causes of TBI, which is the leading cause of death and disability in war zones According to Representative Bill Pascrell (Democrat, NJ), TBI is "the signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan." There is a promising technology called activation database guided EEG biofeedback which has been documented to return a TBI's auditory memory ability to above the control group's performance.

Little Jeremy..... In reading about Traumatic Brain Injury I came across this very sad story. It amazes me how In an instant your life changes. This is such a tragic story. To sum it up quickly. Little 4 yr old Jeremy was playing in the yard with his siblings. He ties a jump rope to the swingset he is playing on. Somehow in the next few minutes the rope becomes entangled around Jeremy's neck and he is wthout oxygen for a few minutes until parents come out and resusitate him. Jeremy is now in a facilty for children. He has a traumatic brain injury due to the lack of oxygen. It has now been 2 yrs since the accident and he is still in the same state. He does breathe on his own, but there is no communication. The last update states that he follows with his eyes and sticks out his tongue. Sad. My point of this blog? At what point do you say, OMG is this where he is at? Did we do the right thing by this child? My feelings are so up and down, as I watch my friend struggle with the fact that he is trapped in his body. How much does he really know? According to the doctors this is where he is at and will be, but with all these treatments there is a slight improvement, SLIGHT. He will never be whole. They say he will never walk. If you talk to him, he seems to understand. He talks like a robot. He can't feed himself , bathe, or toilet NOTHING. He is here. He laughs, cries, screams, and asks why why why me? What do you say? The brain is so complex. It controls the whole body. All your functions, feelings, so with so much damage, does it really "rewire"? I watch the family go into debt, cry, beg and plead to god to heal him. It's sad. Until your in that position, and I pray none of us will ever be, you cant judge. When that doctor walks in and says Im sorry, but we feel he is too far gone and you should let him die, are they saying it from a medical background or from experience of seeing these families struggle? Is it the what ifs? What if i let him/her go and they could have woken up? For my friend, 36, no DNR, no guardian papers, who thinks of this at such a young age? His sister had to go to court for thousands of dollars to become guardian of her 36yr old brother. She makes all his decisions, fights for all his rights, pays for treatments not acceptable by the govt. She is a wife, a mother, a daughter, and a caretaker. She worrys if he outlives her, will this burden become her childrens. Who will take care of him? She is exhausted. Her Mother is dead. Her Father is ill, and its her. His friends visited in the beginning, but they have lives. They try to come, but life gets in the way. Hours of therapy everyday. He screams no more, but they go on. The HBOT $20,000.00 a complete session. They pay, we fund raise, and we all pray. It's dedication, It's determination, but most of all i'ts LOVE.
Since Jeremy's blog is public I have attached a before and after picture of him.

Been reading alot of research, as it has been 2 yrs since "s" injury. It was first thought that there was a one year window of opportunity for people with a Traumatic Brain Injury, now there seems to be a change. Some researchers feel that the brain can be Rewired. Even after years of no improvement, it has been reported that some patients with extensive Brain training can rewire the brain to take over for the damaged portion and use the unused parts of the brain to apply those functions. Age does not seem to matter as well. This is being researched more since so many soldiers are coming back from war with numerous brain injuries. The Brain Plasticity as it is called is a promising therapy but still needs much research. Attached is the link to the article.... http://usfhonorsforwoundedvets.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/rewiring-the-brain/

(wordpress.com- February 2012)

Just spoke to "S" sister. He is having his 90th HBOT dive today and will be starting a new set. These sets of dives are $20,000.00. Out of pocket. The financial burdeon is unbelieveable. She spoke to someone today who didnt see a difference until tthe 200th dive. Everyone is so different. I guess you never know when someone is going to come around. The fight is never ending. You say ok they said he will never breathe, talk, eat, on his own and he is doing it. So when do you give up and say this is what it is. Do you push on forever? The doctor says the strokes were caused by a combination of very high blood pressure and pain killers that he had to take after the accident.The pain in his back from the accident was horrendous.  Untreated high blood pressure, stress, and BOOM, STROKE. The following is from the American Heart Association.



Stroke is America's no. 4 killer and a leading cause of severe, long-term disability.
Since managing high blood pressure, also called hypertension, is the most important thing you can do to lessen your risk for stroke, treatment for HBP can your save life.

What is a stroke?
Stroke is a disease that affects the blood vessels that supply blood to the brain.
A stroke occurs when a blood vessel to the brain is either blocked by a clot (ischemic stroke) or bursts (hemorrhagic stroke). When that happens, part of the brain is no longer getting the blood and oxygen it needs, so it starts to die. Your brain controls your movement and thoughts, so a stroke doesn't only hurt your brain. It also hurts the brain's ability to think and control body functions. Strokes can affect language, memory and vision as well as cause paralysis and other health issues.
How does high blood pressure cause a stroke?

• HBP damages arteries so they burst or clog more easily.
  HBP can damage arteries throughout the body. Weakened arteries in the brain put you at much higher risk for stroke.
  
• HBP and ischemic stroke
  About 87% of strokes are ischemic strokes. Again, they are caused by narrowed or clogged blood vessels in the brain that cut off the blood flow to brain cells.
  
  Because HBP damages arteries throughout the body, it is critical to keep your blood pressure within acceptable ranges to protect your brain from this often disabling or fatal event.
  
• HBP and hemorrhagic stroke
  About 13% of strokes are hemorrhagic strokes, which occur when a blood vessel ruptures in or near the brain. When a blood vessel ruptures, it can bleed into the deep tissue in the brain or in the space between the brain and the skull.
  
  High blood pressure damages the arteries and can create weak places that rupture easily or thin spots that fill up with blood and balloon out from the artery wall. Chronic HBP or aging blood vessels are the main causes of this type of stroke.

In may we ar holding a fundraiser to help this family with the finacial burdens that come with this injury.

In an instant!!!

The topic I have chosen is Traumatic Brain Injury. A 36 yr old healthy young man suffered a traumatic brain injury 2 yrs ago. He was in a serious car accident years before, and was back and forth to doctors. On the day of his stroke he was in bed sleeping. His Father thought he was sleeping as he was snoring.. After returning home a few hours later he realized that his son was still asleep, and went in to wake him. he was not able to arouse him and he called 911. Turns out he had suffered 2 or 3 strokes and was in a coma. The sound his Father heard was indeed snoring as you can still do so in a coma. At the hospital scans were taken of his brain and the doctor came in to let the family know that he had lost alot of oxygen and they recommended they stop the respirator and let him die. The family refused. The scans revealed and excessive amount of gray matter which means alot of the cells died off. He would never breathe on his own,talk, feed himself, swallow, or walk again. The family believed in him and decided to hold off. In an instant he went from a healthy alittle banged up guy to a paralyzed comatosed person.A  few months into his injury he started to come around. 6 months he was off the ventilator. He is completely paralyzed. He started to talk. Slowly like a robot, but he talks. He is very depressed. He can now talk, eat, and breathe on his own. The bad thing about all of this is he is now aware of what has happened. He is aware of the non movement. He wants to die some days. The family pushes and pushes. it is awful, but he is here. He was released from the hospital for lack of thriving. Once they feel you will not improve anymore they dismiss you. he was sent to a nursing home, where he stayed for a few months while his house was being adjusted to accomodate him. His Dad has become his care giver. He screams at night. Also a common side effect of TBI. He has ungone a new therapy called HBOT. He has improved since having it. It is not covered by insurance. $500 a dive, as they call it. He had 40 of them. His muscles have become less stiff and he can move his head. The following is an amazing video. Although it is not of my friend it is a very inspirational video. I will be updating over the next few weeks the progress he has made and the wonderful new hope that has found people with TBI.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy........ (Dr. Paul Harch, MD of New Orleans, 2004)