ith the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain

As baby boomers we expect much from ourselves, the world around us, and especially technology. What I found was technology has not caught up with affects of a longer life has on the brain, life style, and medical awareness. With all of the new medications and attention to medical care, many individuals live longer with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, MS, heart problems, etc. The brain can and often does still suffer from the affects of these diseases with damage to the frontal lobe of the brain that controls executive function and cognitive abilities. Executive function controls your ability to make and apply lists of things to do, organize your daily activities, make decisions, initiation of tasks, and emotional connections.

Your brain needs 3 important things -- blood, oxygen, and glucose to operate. The lack of any of these things and the brain starts to die. The lack of any of these takes a real toll on the frontal lobe. I never knew my glucose was low, I never had any warning signs -- I did not know anything was wrong until the lack of glucose was doing the damage to my brain at the molecular level.

What was my life like before my brain injury? I was a go-getter. I was involved in my job, church, hobbies, self-employed, writing a book, children, grandchildren, and hobbies.

What's my life like now? I had to retire from work on disability at the age of 49. My relationships changed because I can't always feel emotions or connections to others. I have problems with executive function (the front part of your brain that plans, organizes, and executes daily activities), gait problems ( I have fallen 5 times in 3 year once breaking my leg) vision problems (sensitive to light and blurred vision) immediate memory (memory that allows you to hold on to enough information to problem solve a problem or remember a phone number long enough to dial it) visual memory (I can't look at a pattern or other information and then apply that information) and other problems.

What can technology do for us? I have heard many physical therapists agree that cognitive therapy does not work. I don't believe that because I have seen improvement in my life by participating in a work day program for brain injured individuals (The Denbigh House of Newport News Virginia). What all my therapists, doctors, rehab personnel and what I have experienced is compensatory strategies do work. Since my brain injury is mild I couldn't find a rehab group that could help me. They all said since I could make a list I was fine. They don't realize that making a list and using a list are two different things. I finally after two years of working by my self worked out a set of lists that kept me on track for my daily activities and household chores. However when I decided I wanted to become a public speaker and have a web business my lists didn't work anymore and I can't take two years to figure out lists again. The lists would also be too cumbersome to work in a real world setting anyway. So technology it is.

I was a computer specialist before my brain injury and still know what I used to know even if I can't always execute it. So what I am trying to do now is work with a rehab facility that is doing a study on brain injuries and the ability to live more productive lives with the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain

ack of any of these things and the brain starts to die. The lack of any of these takes a real toll on the frontal lobe. I never knew my glucose was low, I never had any warning signs -- I did not know anything was wrong until the lack of glucose was doing the damage to my brain at the molecular level.

What was my life like before my brain injury? I was a go-getter. I was involved in my job, church, hobbies, self-employed, writing a book, children, grandchildren, and hobbies.

What's my life like now? I had to retire from work on disability at the age of 49. My relationships changed because I can't always feel emotions or connections to others. I have problems with executive function (the front part of your brain that plans, organizes, and executes daily activities), gait problems ( I have fallen 5 times in 3 year once breaking my leg) vision problems (sensitive to light and blurred vision) immediate memory (memory that allows you to hold on to enough information to problem solve a problem or remember a phone number long enough to dial it) visual memory (I can't look at a pattern or other information and then apply that information) and other problems.

What can technology do for us? I have heard many physical therapists agree that cognitive therapy does not work. I don't believe that because I have seen improvement in my life by participating in a work day program for brain injured individuals (The Denbigh House of Newport News Virginia). What all my therapists, doctors, rehab personnel and what I have experienced is compensatory strategies do work. Since my brain injury is mild I couldn't find a rehab group that could help me. They all said since I could make a list I was fine. They don't realize that making a list and using a list are two different things. I finally after two years of working by my self worked out a set of lists that kept me on track for my daily activities and household chores. However when I decided I wanted to become a public speaker and have a web business my lists didn't work anymore and I can't take two years to figure out lists again. The lists would also be too cumbersome to work in a real world setting anyway. So technology it is.

I was a computer specialist before my brain injury and still know what I used to know even if I can't always execute it. So what I am trying to do now is work with a rehab facility that is doing a study on brain injuries and the ability to live more productive lives with the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain

3 year once breaking my leg) vision problems (sensitive to light and blurred vision) immediate memory (memory that allows you to hold on to enough information to problem solve a problem or remember a phone number long enough to dial it) visual memory (I can't look at a pattern or other information and then apply that information) and other problems.

What can technology do for us? I have heard many physical therapists agree that cognitive therapy does not work. I don't believe that because I have seen improvement in my life by participating in a work day program for brain injured individuals (The Denbigh House of Newport News Virginia). What all my therapists, doctors, rehab personnel and what I have experienced is compensatory strategies do work. Since my brain injury is mild I couldn't find a rehab group that could help me. They all said since I could make a list I was fine. They don't realize that making a list and using a list are two different things. I finally after two years of working by my self worked out a set of lists that kept me on track for my daily activities and household chores. However when I decided I wanted to become a public speaker and have a web business my lists didn't work anymore and I can't take two years to figure out lists again. The lists would also be too cumbersome to work in a real world setting anyway. So technology it is.

I was a computer specialist before my brain injury and still know what I used to know even if I can't always execute it. So what I am trying to do now is work with a rehab facility that is doing a study on brain injuries and the ability to live more productive lives with the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain

ould help me. They all said since I could make a list I was fine. They don't realize that making a list and using a list are two different things. I finally after two years of working by my self worked out a set of lists that kept me on track for my daily activities and household chores. However when I decided I wanted to become a public speaker and have a web business my lists didn't work anymore and I can't take two years to figure out lists again. The lists would also be too cumbersome to work in a real world setting anyway. So technology it is.

I was a computer specialist before my brain injury and still know what I used to know even if I can't always execute it. So what I am trying to do now is work with a rehab facility that is doing a study on brain injuries and the ability to live more productive lives with the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain

ith the use of handheld devices like palms, blackberry's or pocket pc's. I am anxious to see what this will do for me and will keep the blog informed of how it works. I am hoping that I can get a device that I can add all my contacts too and what they mean to me, how to do certain things ( like I can never remember how to add a picture to my web site and have to look it up every time), alarms to take medication, to rest, and so many other ways I need an alarm to keep my life balanced, and to be able to keep my information I need right at my hand so I can access the information in a timely fashion. I am still waiting to see if I am part of the study so for now I am working on a disorganized set of lists.

I am a brain injury survivor. I was not in a car crash, hit my head, have a stroke or heart attack -- my brain injury was brought on by my blood glucose dipping so low that it caused a permanent brain injury at the molecular level. I am not diabetic but I had gastric by-pass in 1999 and in the year 2000 I started having problems keeping my blood glucose under control. Not every one who had a gastric by-pass will have this problem but my neurologists said they are starting to see more of this kind of problem with the higher numbers of this surgery being done.