Neuro Note 1: I Got Hit By a Boat

    For my neuro note, I read an article by Tyson Ward called, "I Got Hit By a Boat," where he talked about his journey to recovery after being in a major boating accident his junior year of college. It was very interesting to learn about the many miracles that Tyson and his family experienced in the year following his accident. He went from being hooked up to tubes to keep him alive, to comas, ulcers, memory loss, seizures, extensive therapy and eventually getting back to the life he knew before the accident. I really enjoyed the Tyson explained certain terms to make it more retable to those who may not understand what was going on his brain during his recovery process. For example, he explained his weight loss during his coma by saying that his brain chose to go into a coma when it was not in good enough shape to keep him in an aware state and repair all of his injuries. It (the brain) knows that the body is in no sort of shape to do anything positive in an awake state, so it chooses to stay in a coma so the brain has more energy devoted to repairing itself. But with the repair Tyson's brain needed, it was burning 2-3,000 calories a day to get him back to a steady state. 

    After waking up from his coma 99 days after the accident, Tyson experienced Post Traumatic Amnesia. This meant his brain was still recovering and things that are typically simple, like breathing, took more power and control for Tyson. Other things such as staying conscious, being aware of surroundings, and recognizing things took so much "brain power" that Tyson's memories were not as necessary and he forgot an entire year of his life when he woke up from his coma. Although some of these memories came back as the months went on, he continued to struggle. Tyson spent months working with occupational therapists, speech therapists, physical therapists, recreational therapists, and many others to gain back strength both physically and mentally. Although he struggled with right arm extension (he could only extend it 30 degrees), Tyson learned to do some things with his left hand. He said that there was a lot of "try and fail" while learning to use his other hand and things he used to know how to do, he found himself struggling and wondering why he couldn't do it that way now. After months of therapy from 8-3, 5 days a week, Tyson was able to go home and eventually back to school where he graduated with a BS Chemistry: Biochemistry degree. He stated that he still faced many challenges while going back to school, but with the support of his family and friends and his hard work, Tyson has overcome many obstacles that many would think are impossible. 

    I chose this article as part of my assignment because I wanted to read more about a TBI that effected a healthy young adult who was only 3 years younger than me. The fact that Tyson was able to go from being in a coma for almost 100 days to graduating from college it truly a miracle. He overcame so much in that year and would not be where he is today if the doctors and therapists did not work so hard to save his life and allow him to achieve his independence. He even mentioned the amount of therapy that was given to him while in a coma and how vital that was to his survival. I recommend reading this article of you want to learn about the different ways the brain compartmentalizes tasks when working to repair itself as well as the importance of therapy in the recovery process. 

Ward, T. (2012, January 21). [web log]. https://igothitbyaboat.webstarts.com/.