On a snowy December night in 2003 at my college dorm room, it was a typical college Friday night where my dormmates and I had some people over to hang out. Alcohol was consumed and one of my friends and I were goofing around and roughhousing that led to me falling and hitting my head on the concrete hallway wall. I was knocked unconscious and bleeding from mouth, nose and ear on the floor.
I was taken to the hospital by ambulance where I remained unconscious and diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) after an initial evaluation with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of 7. My condition worsened due to increasing intracranial pressure and Grand Mal Seizures. My family had to make a critical decision to keep me alive. One option was to cut out the damaged part of my brain, which would solve the problem immediately, but would leave me permanently impaired. The other option was to remove a piece of the skull which may relieve the pressure in the brain and hopefully allow me to improve, come out of the coma and recover. My family chose option two and the doctors performed a craniotomy. It worked, and after 6 days, I awoke from the coma! From there I started a long road of recovery that included hospital stays, therapies, surgeries, doubt, depression, discovery, setbacks, acceptance and success all thanks to the great care and assistance from my family, friends and healthcare professionals.
This is the 20 year anniversary of my TBI injury and I have worked hard to get to where I am today and to be happy and accept with what I have and my abilities. Most of the time, I feel lucky that I have been fortunate to "recover" from the injury, but still have many shortcomings and struggles and areas to improve. Other times, I wonder what I could have been or who I would have become if this didn’t happen. It can be a struggle because no one understands or really thinks I have anything wrong with me. I am happy that there is discussion to help change the narrative from an injury that you recover from the incident, to a chronic condition that is constantly evolving and is a lifelong part of you moving forward.
I have come to understand that the road to recovery for me is a journey and not a destination and many people may look fine on the outside, but on the inside they are not the same person they used to be and are dealing with many difficulties. Every day is a new day, and I try to be thankful for what abilities I have, what I have achieved, and the life I have built over the last 20 years. I am forever grateful for the support I have received from my family, friends, and medical professionals throughout the last two decades. Without their support and the services, I would not be who I am today. If you are a survivor, never give up, you can do it and it will get better! If you are a caregiver, family member, or friend, support the person, respect them and their process, and help them thrive!
Thank you for allowing me to share my story and to bring greater awareness to this topic.
Josh Kirchmeier
