City: Dorsey 

Brain Injury: 30′ fall from a bridge into a creek

Explanation of Mask:  I fell into a creek. Rocks “broke” my fall and prevented me from drowning, but they perpetrated the most serve damage. Currently, I’m high functioning but I went through many cognitive stages early in my recovery. A brain injury does not affect intelligence but often increases impulsivity and can impair judgement. I’m working on a nursing degree post injury and have a GPA of 3.7, but the emotional roller coaster I’m on is impeding my progress after 3 years of success in over 70 credit hours.I’m a determined person but anesthesia from subsequent surgeries has negatively affected me, emotionally. New medication keeps suicidal ideology at bay but most of society does not understand TBI so I severely lack friends. If I could change society to have patience and be understanding, I would. Lots of people group people who sustained a TBI with developmentally disabled. Our injuries (and often symptoms) are unique as a fingerprint.Another thing many do not (or will not) understand is my deficits are not always the same. Some days I can’t remember simple directions to a gas station but other days I can remember everything on a to-do list and shopping list with no problem.