ABSTRACT
Months after a football, or soccer, injury led to several X-rays and the successive diagnoses of concussion and post-concussion syndrome, the author undergoes her first MRI scan. The wait for the results proves difficult and ultimately futile as the verdict of ‘normal’ contradicts with the continuing symptoms of her Mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).
The author is further discouraged when the appointment with an Adult Brain Injury clinic is abruptly cancelled. An attempt to seek help through private services without insurance proves difficult and weeks are spent trying to confirm new appointments within the NHS.
It proves easier to source help for her mental state through a volunteer counselling service where the author’s feelings of blame and guilt are uncovered. This therapy helps with the symptoms of depression and anxiety, while a pro-longed absence from work begins to alleviate the dizziness, imbalance, headaches and cognitive fatigue.
As 2014 ends, the author reflects back on a year which did not turn out as planned. She tries to rationalise the effect that the acquired brain injury (ABI) is still having upon her life, as well as understand the lack of awareness about the effects of brain injury in the general public.
