Name: Samantha H., 45 years old

City: Tucson, AZ

Brain Injury: TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURIES (TBI), CONCUSSIONS, STROKES, & BRAIN STEM TUMOR. I’ve had multiple brain injuries in my life. The first was in ’79 when I got kicked in the face by a horse and fell backward onto my head. In ’84 I hit my head on a tree while riding and they discovered an existing brain stem tumor. Throughout my life I’ve had silent strokes. I’ve also had multiple car accidents with concussions and I’ve been violently attacked.

Explanation of mask:  The Ying and Yang, good and bad.

The GRAY AREA on the top of the mask shows only half the brain as people only use half of their brain and the brain has been damaged. People forget that things are not just black and white, there is also a gray area unexplained.

The X’S ABOVE THE EYE represent my concussions that occurred.

The CRACKS in the skull represent head trauma and brain surgery.

The YELLOW LINE represents my shunt and the contrast going through the shunt when the medical assistant made a mistake putting contrast in my shunt.

The TEAR DROPS that fall from the eyes represent all the pain and suffering.

The PURPLE around the eye represents all the abuse that has occurred throughout my life both physical and psychological. The STITCHES on the mouth represent been stigmatized to stay silent. My family has taken advantage of me and they haven’t tried to understand my injuries. The X represents “keep your mouth shut,” as society and some of my family members have tried to keep my mouth shut about the truth. I must be silenced.

The FLAMES coming out of the mouth represent the fiery anger that burns within the dark side. There are impulse control problems with a haywire of emotions and non-filtered words. Brain injury and complex PTSD have meant being REJECTED, ASHAMED, MISUNDERSTOOD, TEASED, BULLIED AND PICKED ON, DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, STIGMATIZED, TARGETED, AND BOXED AND LABELED. The mask has NO EYES BECAUSE BRAIN INJURY IS INVISIBLE, and because of my brain injury I sometimes feel invisible, too.

The RED SPOTS on the chin represent blood from when I was five and was kicked by a horse. The hat represents when half my head was shaved after brain surgery in 1984. I used to wear a beanie to cover up but was bullied and picked on and someone even pulled off my beanie to make fun of me.

Some elements of the mask just represent who I am. Turquoise and black are my colors. The COWBOY HAT shows I am a down-to-earth, rough-tough cowgirl.