Adrian

Adrian came off his motorbike in 2001 and sustained a traumatic brain injury. He has no memory of the crash or the initial stages of his recovery and rehabilitation. He has successfully learned to walk and talk again, but has some memory problems.

Adrian and his friend were riding their motorbikes to Brighton when he crashed. His friend who was accompanying him called the paramedics and Adrian was flown to hospital for emergency care.

Adrian was then transferred to a rehabilitation hospital where he had physiotherapy, and speech and language therapy to learn to walk and talk again. He relearned daily living skills, like cooking and cleaning, with the help of an occupational therapist. He has no memory of the early stages of rehabilitation, and says, Only the scars I;ve got on my body show me what I;ve been throug.

Since his injury, Adrian has problems with memory and stamina or fatigue. He uses his iPhone as a memory aid, making notes of the things he has done during the day and scheduling the things he needs to do. He gets tired quite easily after a stimulating day, so he takes naps when he needs them. For him, Resting’s not fixing the problem. Sleeping is the answe. He has also found that he has lost his sense of taste and smell.

Initially, Adrian felt angry and questioned God, saying Why me But then felt he was the best person to be put in this situation as he could take on the challenge. He has since become a Christian, partly because he knew people prayed for him while he was in hospital. One was his cousin’s friend, who he later married. He describes how they just clicked the first time they met, but did not make each other happy in the long-term and later divorced.

Despite having to give up work after his injury, Adrian is financially secure because he had life insurance before his injury. He now volunteers at Headway several days in the week and feels it is important for him to have a reason to get up each day. He has a close relationship with his family and friends who he sees often.

Adrian wants to encourage other survivors of brain injury to think positively’ don’t think about what you can’t do, think about what you can d. After brain injury you learn all the tim new ways to cope with your new life.

Because he has changed so much since his injury, Adrian feels that his old self died. It is…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian didn’t think he would be able to drive after having to learn to walk and talk again after…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian has problems with his short-term memory so he makes notes to help him remember where he…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian regularly volunteers at his local Headway group. After giving up work following his brain…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian wanted to work but as it didn’t make financial sense (because his salary would be deducted…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian was able to help his friend out. He feels he can be more generous because his income is…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian said that before his injury he would have assumed that brain injury meant that people…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian makes notes about everything that happened during the day so that he always has a way of…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

He doesn’t remember his injury and has no photographs to remind him of his time in hospital, so…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

In occupational therapy, Adrian learned how to cook, which was something he didn’t do before his…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

After his injury, Adrian explained to a friend that he wasn’t the same person as before. He told…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Initially Adrian was not aware that he was eligible for a Freedom Pass after his brain injury. He…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Even though it is 11 years since his brain injury, Adrian is still learning new ways of tackling…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male

Adrian carries a card which tells the people that he has a brain injury and he needs help with…

Age at interview 42

Gender Male