Matt

Matt served in the Army National Guard from 1985-2012. His first TBI occurred in 2003 in Afghanistan.  While doing pull ups with 100-150 extra pounds of gear on him, his shoulder gave out, landing him flat on his back and knocking him out for a couple seconds. He got checked and they really didn’t do much about it at the time because it was just like, “Oh you just got a minor headache, slight concussion. Go on about your business.” His last TBI occurred in January 2011, when a rocket struck about 25 feet from where he was sitting in a dining facility. His memory for much of his remaining two months in Afghanistan was erased as he “just kind of dealt with it because we were so close to going home, and I didn’t want to put up with all hassles of all the medical stuff. They were busy doing other, taking care of people more seriously hurt.” 

After many years, Matt continues to have daily headaches, although he now has fewer severe migraines. He wears dark sunglasses to help with his light sensitivity, and still has occasional blurred vision and a constant ringing in his ears. He used to be easily angered, but has learned how to control his anger by taking a mindfulness class at the VA, and has also found a VA support group to be helpful. His service dog has helped with his stability and anxiety, enabling him to go into stores and crowded places again. “She helps keep me focused on the here and now and not things that happened in the past. She does really good about getting me back into the moment instead of letting me wander off in places. Like, I’ll start drifting off and she’ll sense I’m getting irritated or angry and she’ll come over and nudge me. And if I really just ignore her, she will put her paws on my shoulder, put her face right in my face, and go, ‘No, you’re going listen. You’re going to pay attention to me. Focus on me.’” Also, “There will be times I’ll stand up, I’ll be dizzy. Or I’ll be walking, I’ll lose my balance. She’s always right next to me so I can just kind of put my hand on her to get myself stable again. That’s really what she does is she’ll lean up against me to, she notices sometimes I’m wobbly and she’ll lean up against me to help me steady.” 

He advises others with TBI to “make sure you’re up front and honest with your family, and don’t try to minimize how you’re feeling or the effects when you’re talking to your doctor because if you minimize it, it’s not going to help you as much.” He also suggests that others “make up to-do lists, make up a routine, try to get into a set routine as much as you can. Because that will help you stay focused on what you need to do.” Finally Matt advises “don’t get frustrated, because it will happen. You’re going to have memory issues. You’re going to have headaches or whatever, just don’t let that push your anger and frustration higher. Just kind of accept that you have it and every day just work at trying to get better on it.”