April 2017 Newsletter

I’ve gathered pieces of information on this month’s support groups and therapy services offered in the Salt Lake Valley. In case you missed last month’s meeting, I’ve attached notes along with upcoming events you’ll want to put on your calendar. Also included are links to useful websites. If you have activity announcements or other information you’d like to share in this newsletter, please email Barbara@UnitingCaregivers.com. By assisting others with their puzzle, we get a clearer view of our own.

FREE SUPPORT GROUPS AVAILABLE IN THE SALT LAKE VALLEY

April 11, 2017 – Brain Injury Alliance Support Group for Adults, 6-8 p.m. Meets every 2^nd Tuesday monthly at Sanderson Community Deaf Center, 5709 South 1500 West, SLC, UT  84123

This is a social group where dinner is enjoyed together and then games played or crafts made. All caregivers and survivors are welcome. For more information call: Jennifer (801) 468-0027 or Beth (801) 585-5511

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April 20, 2017: Caring For the Caregivers Group, 7-8 p.m. Meets every 3^rd Thursday monthly at Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) 5171 S, Cottonwood St., Bldg. 1 Floor 7 Murray, UT  84107

The presenter for this night is Lauri Schoenfeld. Her topic is Embracing Fear to Move Forward. Lauri is a wife, mother of three, writer, child abuse survivor, scoliosis survivor and has dealt with massive depression. She will address what holds us back and how to overcome it so we can be our best selves. She is positive, fun and energetic. You’ll be glad you came.

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April 20, 2017 – Brain Injury and Stroke Survivor Group 7-8 p.m. Meets every 3^rd Thursday monthly at Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) 5171 S, Cottonwood St., Bldg. 1 Floor 9 Murray, UT  84107

The presenter for this night is Cara Camiolo Reddy, MD, MMM. Her topic is Managing Mood and Fatigue. She is a new Neuro Rehabilitation Specialist and her favorite thing to remedy is neuro fatigue.

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April 25, 2017 – University of Utah Brain Injury Support Group 7 p.m. Meets every 4th Tuesday monthly at Sugarhouse Health Center (801) 581-2221 1138 E. Wilmington Avenue

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FREE WEEKLY GROUPS offered through INTERMOUNTAIN HEALTH CARE NEURO THERAPY SERVICES

Aphasia Talking Practice Group – Meets every Tuesday  Noon-1 p.m. 5770 South 250 East #G50

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Cognitive Skills Group – Meets every Thursday Noon-1 p.m. 5770 South 250 East #G50

 Meditation Group –  Meets every Wednesday 3 p.m. 5770 South 250 East Cafeteria Conference Room

Contact: Dr. Russo at antonietta.russo@imail.org

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Epilepsy Groups for those affected by seizures.

Together we share coping strategies, provide encouragement, comfort and advice from people with common experiences. For more information contact Margo @ (801) 455-6089 or Utah@efa.org

April 6, 2017 – Epilepsy Group for Parents 7:00 p.m.-8:15 p.m. Meets every 1^st Thursday of the month Riverton Library Auditorium  12877 S. 1830 W., Riverton, Ut.

April 13, 2017 – Epilepsy Group for All Effected by Seizures 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Meets every 2^nd Thursday of the month Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) 5171 S. Cottonwood St., Bldg. 1, Ninth Floor, Murray, UT  84107

April 19, 2017 – Epilepsy Group for All Effected by Seizures 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Meets every 3^rd Wednesday of the month SLC Main Library 200 E. 400 S., SLC, UT (2^nd floor conference room)

Sorry, cancelled this month – Epilepsy Group for Women Only 7:00 – 8:15 p.m. Meets every 4^th Thursday of the month SLC Main Library 200 E. 400 S. (3rd floor conference room)

  May 24, 2017 – Epilepsy Group for Teens 7 p.m.   Will meet the 4th Wednesday monthly West Jordan Library 

 

 

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NOTES FROM MARCH MEETING’S

Brain Injury Alliance Support Group for Adults  met Tuesday, March 14, 2017 at the Sanderson Community Deaf Center located 5709 South 1500 West

This social group enjoyed delicious meatball sandwiches together. Afterwards they played board games. All caregivers and survivors are welcome. Thank you Jennifer Gee and Beth Cardell for doing a great job directing this group. For more information call: Jennifer (801) 468-0027 or Beth (801) 585-5511.

  

Caring For the Caregivers Group plus the Brain Injury & Stroke Survivor Group Thursday, March 16, 2017  Speakers: Greg and Laura Nordfelt their topic was    Nurturing Relationships After Brain Injury

The Nordfelt’s spoke candidly about their personal experiences in regard to family and friend’s relationships.  The turned down meals, visits and other offers of help because they were overwhelmed with their new situations and were fiercely independent, resulting in friends and family giving them the space they thought they wanted or needed for healing. This left them feeling neglected, ignored, lonely, abandoned, isolated, disrespected, unsupported and misunderstood. They overcame those feelings by reaching out to others, making new friends and mending broken relationships.

For more detail on their presentation see articles:

 What Doesn’t Kill Us Makes Us Stronger, part 1

What Doesn’t Kill Us Makes Us Stronger, part 2

Nurturing Relationships 

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BIAU 5K Run, Walk & Roll

Date: May 20, 2017

Time: 8 am

Place: Liberty Park – 650 E. 1300 S., Salt Lake City

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USEFUL WEBSITES:

www.caregiver.org (online webinars for caregivers)

www.tbicommunity.org (online educational programs)

www.braininjury.com (medical, legal, information resource)

www.abta.org (brain tumor education and information)

www.cdc.gov/ncipc/tbi (brain injury facts, programs, education)

www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/all-disorders (education for brain injury, stroke and other neurological disorders)

www.nationalmssociety.org/Resources-Support (resource for those with MS)

 www.epilepsy.com/utah and/or www.epilepsy.com (seizure education and support by state or national)

https://biau.org (resource for those with brain injury)

http://www.brainline.org (preventing, treating and living with TBI)

 http://www.brainline.org/abbymaslin (blog about loving and learning after TBI)

 www.unitingcaregivers.wordpress.com (caregivers sharing stories, tips and thoughts)

www.facebook.com/UTteensupportgroup (social interaction and the exchange useful resources)

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Thank you for reading. I hope you will follow this website via email to receive notifications of every new post. The “Follow” button is located at the beginning of the newsletter. However, if you want to subscribe only to a monthly newsletter, please email Barbara@UnitingCaregivers.com. I will add you to the newsletter email list and send you the link monthly. If you wish to discontinue send a statement, “Unsubscribe to Newsletter” and I will remove your email address.

March 2017 Newsletter

NOTES FROM FEBRUARY MEETINGS

Brain Injury Alliance Support Group for Adults  met Tuesday, March 14, 2017 at Sanderson Community Deaf Center in Murray.

This is a social group where dinner is enjoyed together and then games played or crafts made. All caregivers and survivors are welcome. In February, the second Tuesday fell on Valentine’s Day. We enjoyed a Panda Express dinner together and made valentine cards. Jennifer Gee and Beth Cardell do a great job directing this group. For more information call: Jennifer (801) 468-0027 or Beth (801) 585-5511

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 Caring For the Caregivers met Thursday, February 16, 2017 at Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) in Murray. The speaker, Kim Kirkham, M.S. CCC-SLP shared Tips for Improving Communication.

Notes from caregiver, Barbara Wilson

Kim directed a helpful discussion and gave valuable communication tips. She was the perfect choice for this topic based on her profession as a speech therapist and personal experience with her dad being a TBI survivor. We appreciated her sharing information with us. Some helpful tips Kim shared: Body language is 55% of our communication. Tone of voice is 38% and the words used are merely 7%.

People will remember how they felt in your presence rather than the words you said.  Don’t have problem solving conversation when either one is tired. Have good lighting on your face and use eye contact, especially if hearing is an issue. To get their attention, use their name and move closer instead of getting louder.  Decrease background noise, if possible. If they’re in a chair, sit to the side of them. Standing in front conveys authority, not equality.

If memory is a problem, chalk or white boards are helpful for important events or schedules. Write in caps, it’s easier to read.

Repeating causes distress and frustration. Set boundaries to help you stay compassionate. Be mad at the disease and not at the loved one.

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Brain Injury & Stroke Survivor Group met Thursday, February 16, 2017 at Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) in Murray. The Speaker, Dr. Jason L Smith, DC spoke on, Natural Ways to Decrease Fatigue and Improve Endurance.

Notes from survivor, Greg Nordfelt  gregnordfelt.com

Dr. Smith gave an educational presentation and slides. What we eat instantly impacts “neurodegeneration” (loss of connection between brain cells, fatigue and symptoms of aging, Alzheimer’s, etc). The same is true if we stop learning: it immediately impacts our stomach, our physical body starts to age, taking cues from our brain that we have passed our learning stage and are now physically supposed to start aging, become more lazy, tired, less active, less muscular, etc.

3 Keys to Decrease Fatigue:

• Decrease sugar & increase protein! Stay completely away from fake sugar (it’s poison flat out!) Increase blood flow. Exercise 5 minutes as soon as you wake up!

• Decrease inflammation. Don’t eat grains, dairy or soy. Exercise or walk (or move available body extremities) vigorously at least 2 miles 3 times a week (refer to Dr. Doidge’s 2nd book “The Brain’s Way of Healing”. This is the number one way to fight against neurodegeneration and fatigue. Exercising 2 miles generates dopamine. It also generates new brain cells.

• Learn something new. Challenge your brain to learn new things as you age. This, along with exercise and feeding our stomach healthy protein, will release good brain chemicals and grow good brain cells.

Last, but definitely not least, five minute brain breaks per hour decreases fatigue. If you’re in a stressful time crunch, take 6 calm breaths because if you don’t, he said, “you’re going to crash”.

Dr. Smith says, “The brain and the stomach are connected. Feed both and exercise to win the daily fatigue battle.”

Thank you, Greg, for sharing your notes!

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USEFUL WEBSITES:

www.caregiver.org (online webinars for caregivers)

www.tbicommunity.org (online educational programs)

www.braininjury.com (medical, legal, information resource)

www.abta.org (brain tumor education and information)

www.cdc.gov/ncipc/tbi (brain injury facts, programs, education)

www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/all-disorders (education for brain injury, stroke and other neurological disorders)

www.nationalmssociety.org/Resources-Support (resource for those with MS)

 www.epilepsy.com/utah and/or www.epilepsy.com (seizure education and support by state or national)

https://biau.org (resource for those with brain injury)

http://www.brainline.org (preventing, treating and living with TBI)

 http://www.brainline.org/abbymaslin (blog about loving and learning after TBI)

 www.unitingcaregivers.wordpress.com (caregivers sharing stories, tips and thoughts)

www.facebook.com/UTteensupportgroup (social interaction and the exchange useful resources)

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Thank you for reading. I hope you will follow this website via email to receive notifications of every new post. The “Follow” button is located at the beginning of the newsletter. However, if you want to subscribe only to a monthly newsletter, please email Barbara@UnitingCaregivers.com. I will add you to the newsletter email list and send you the link monthly.

What Doesn’t Kill Us Makes Us Stronger, Part 2

I met Greg and Laura Nordfelt at the 2013 Brain Injury Conference, just two years after Greg’s motorcycle crash. I’ve enjoyed our friendship and watching this couple get stronger through their traumatic experience. They spoke last week at a combined Survivor and Caregivers Support Group sharing what they’ve learned.

Written by Laura Nordfelt

The medical helicopter which came to life-flight Greg was very old and small. In fact, half of his body was in the nose of the aircraft. The ventilator was broken and one of the paramedics was trying to bag Greg (it seemed sporadically) while trying to preform many other tasks. I mentioned to her I was an EMT and asked her if I could do the bagging for her. She agreed and I continued on every 4 seconds like I was trained to do in school. The flight seemed to take forever (I worried we were going to Canada!) and only looked out the window once or twice. When we started to land, all I saw was a “tough shed” structure on top of a roof.  Medical people ran out to get Greg and down an elevator we all went and into the Emergency Department. By the time I felt comfortable enough to leave his side, I asked, “Where are we?” When they told me Coeur d’Alene, ID, I told them I needed to take Greg to Salt Lake City, but the doctor told me he would not survive the flight. I slumped down against the wall and lost it.

I made mistakes. I am fiercely independent and a stubborn woman. In the beginning I turned family and friends away. I said “don’t fly up here, I’m fine”. Then, “we don’t need meals, I’ve got this covered.” Not only did I watch him crash, but I kept him alive for 45 minutes until the paramedics arrived. I was a mess! I had post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and I was in a cocoon as much as Greg was in a coma.

An Executive Vice President from Greg’s work came to the hospital to visit and I cut her off down the hall and visited with her. There’s no way I was going to let her see the condition Greg was in. I was so worried that he was going to lose his job. I posted a sign “Family Only” on Greg’s door at the hospital. Visitors had to check with me or the nurse before entering his room. I took the phone off the wall and put it in a drawer and took his cell phone away from him. He wanted to call his office to “check on things” all the time. I was worried he’d say something inappropriate.

When Greg left the hospital, I sent out a message on Facebook telling our friends that Greg needed time to rehab and recover so if they could wait to visit, that would be much appreciated. I really only meant it for acquaintances, thinking our close friends wouldn’t take it to heart. A few months down the road some dear friends of ours called and asked if they could bring dinner and come for a visit. I was thrilled! Frankly I had wondered why they hadn’t called sooner.

While we were setting up dinner, she told me they would have come sooner, but wanted to respect my wishes of giving us our space. I said, “Oh, I didn’t mean you guys!” I realized then that I had alienated the very people Greg and I needed the most. Greg’s co-workers later expressed the same emotions. If only they’d known what to do. They wanted to help in any way, but we pushed them away.

I own a business and I needed someone to sit with Greg or run him to therapy appointments, but I said “NO, I’m fine”. I really wasn’t fine, but I wanted to be and I didn’t know how to let them help. Most of it was my fault, but some of it was not.  Caregivers leave the hospital with their tool bags pretty much empty. I had to earn my hammer, saw and screwdriver the hard way. I felt neglected, isolated, abandoned, ignored, lonely, unsupported, disrespected and misunderstood. When I needed family and friends the most, they were all gone.

In order to heal, I had to get outside of myself. I started the first ever Caregiver Group in Utah as a survival mechanism. As much as I wanted to give back to the community, I needed other caregivers. As I spent time listening to their stories, I felt not so overcome by my own problems. I felt empathy and compassion. When “in the moment” of caring for caregivers and survivors, their hurdles felt more important than my own. When we get caught up in these “feel good” experiences, we don’t need anything in return. I also joined the Board of the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah. This is my passion now!

Another way I healed is a couple of years ago a friend asked me to join her book club. I love to read, but I was scared at first because I only knew her and no one else. I went one time and almost did not go back, but forced myself to hang in there. These women are now very near and dear to my heart. I’ve read many wonderful books which I never would have picked up on my own. The social setting has its benefits as well. We trade off hosting dinner so I’m learning new recipes. I work on my listening skills and forget my problems for a few hours. By the very nature of getting together with women, it forces me to get out of my pajamas. Therefore, I get semi-dressed up, put on my makeup and lipstick and wear my fun jewelry. All of this is very good for my soul!

Thank you, Laura, for sharing your experiences and what you’ve learned. Friedrich Nietzsche was right, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”  I see that in Greg and Laura’s life and hope you see that truth in your own life.

What Doesn’t Kill Us Makes Us Stronger, part 1

A German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, actually said it more eloquently: “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” I thought this title was fitting for the couple I’m highlighting this week. I met Greg and Laura Nordfelt at the 2013 Brain Injury Conference, just two years after Greg’s motorcycle crash. I’ve enjoyed our friendship and watching this couple get stronger through their traumatic experience

Written by Greg Nordfelt

I am a three time Traumatic Brain Injury Survivor (TBI). By looking at my picture, you’ve already noticed I have a huge forehead. Many have told me I could rent space out on it as a billboard. Well it’s also a magnet to immovable objects. That’s why I’ve had three TBI’s. The first was in high school when I was skiing at Alta. I fell on a mogul run and hit the post of a sign that ironically said, “SLOW SKIING”. I hit it head on with the left side on my forehead. The second time I was racing heavy bicycles in England downhill on the wrong side of the road. I didn’t make the turn at the bottom and my front tire hit the guard rail. I hit a lamp post head first, again with the left side of my forehead. The third time I crashed my motorcycle into a bed of Lava Rocks and, again, I hit them, you guessed it, with the left side of my forehead. I am an adrenaline junky, but unfortunately my forehead had a crazy attraction to all of those immovable objects which eventually caught up to me.

Last August was our 5 year anniversary of my accident. We drove to Coeur d’Alene, this time in a car, to meet with Kootenai Health’s executives, two surgeons, and the critical care team that save my life. This was my first time to meet them consciously. I wanted to thank them individually, face to face, and hug them so they would know how grateful I am for what they did for me and my family!

2016 Greg & Laura, Festival of Trees

The press showed up and articles were written. We were on the cover of magazines. They asked us to be their “Spokespeople” for their Festival of Trees. It’s a black tie fund raising Gala.  They asked us and we agreed to help them set a donation record. They were expanding their Emergency Department and Operating Room, the two areas that saved my life. They called us the “talent”. Put us in wardrobe and makeup. They ran out of spray for my face and said I’m “Ruddy” and “Scaly”! I’ve crashed into too many immovable objects and my “talent” and “cover” days are over! We helped them set the record they asked for and raised over half a million dollars!

My primary focus after I got home from the hospital was keeping my marriage with Laura because the TBI divorce rate is huge at 70%. My second focus was keeping my family together. Everything else I had was intently driven into relearning how to speak, read, write and walk again in Neuro Rehab. I worked harder than they asked me to so I could get my job back!

Unfortunately, I lost most of my friends and communities. They became the casualties of brain injury. As a survivor, I ruminate, isolate, avoid loud noise, bright colors, confusion, strangers and crowds. I fatigue easily.

As a result, I was no longer the late night party animal I used to be. I wasn’t as apt to go on long road trips on a whim. I avoided situations where I would get over stimulated and fatigued – the exact opposite of my old self.

I woke up one day after fighting to recover and realized I was a newer version of my old self and I had lost the human connections I once had. The good news is our neuro rehab physicians and therapists not only helped me remap my brain, but gave me tools which helped me nurture my most valuable relationships. Now it was up to me to reach out to friends and family and hold fast to the human connections that were dear to me.
On my second outpatient speech therapy session I learned my biggest lesson after my accident and it had nothing to do with learning how to talk again.  It had everything to do with being taught how to nurture the most important relationship I had – my marriage! I showed up complaining about having my first disagreement with Laura since the accident.  Remember I didn’t have my wits about me yet and could barely speak, so disagreement was a huge stretch!  I sat down across the table from Kim with a huff.

2016, Greg & Laura Coeur d’Alene Hospital Landing Pad

“What’s wrong?” Kim asked. I tried to explain what happened the night before with Laura. After a few minutes she said, “Greg I’ve heard enough. Where’s Laura?”

“In the car,” I said.

“You need to stand back up in your walker, walk to your car and ask her nicely to come and stand next to you.” Then say these words to Laura.  I’m sorry.  I love you.  Thank you for all you are doing every day to take care of me and then HUG her.

This was the most important thing I learned in all of my therapy, by far!  It was an awakening moment for me. I learned that day I was a traumatic brain injury survivor and others were working their butts off to take care of me.  And, I need to thank them – often.

Thank you Greg for sharing and to your therapist, Kim, who told you what caregivers need to hear often. You are an inspiration and definitely stronger by your experience!

Greg had a 35 year career with Zions Bank and was Senior Vice President before the accident. Now he is a motivational speaker and a professional member of the National Speakers Association. The year 2016 was a big year for Greg as he was the Utah Speech and Hearing Association’s (USHA) Ambassador was awarded Survivor of the Year by the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah (BAIU) in October. He is a mentor and volunteer with Neuro Rehab patients and caregivers at IMC and is writing a Memoir expected to be published in 2018.

 To see Greg’s website visit: www.gregnordfelt.com

On Wednesday, Laura’s will share her perspective.

The Effect of Brain Injury on Caregivers

On the third Thursday of every month, Laura Nordfelt inspires and uplifts caregivers in the Salt Lake Valley at the Intermountain Medical Center in Building 1. I met Laura and her husband, Greg at the 2013 Annual Brain Injury Conference. The circumstances which caused Greg’s traumatic brain injury (TBI) were different from Mark’s, but the feelings and experiences with therapy and the desire to return to a familiar way of life are very similar.Our hearts knitted together as they shared their story with me and their goals for helping those affected by brain injury.

At the last caregivers’ meeting on March 17, 2016, Laura shared some of her feelings on how brain injury effect’s the caregivers. I was unable to attend, but Laura emailed me the handout she’d put together. I was impressed with how accurately she’d expressed my own feelings. When I called to tell her how well she pinpointed my thoughts, she said many others at the meeting told her the same. With her permission, I share them with you.

Written by Laura Nordfelt

 Feelings of Isolation – You may be worried or sad because your loved one doesn’t “know” you or “understand” you the way he or she used to. Sometimes your new life may feel like a life sentence of solitary confinement because you are alone with the thoughts you used to share with your significant other. Remember its ok to feel frustrated. You may feel guilty for having thoughts of “not living up to the task.” Forgive yourself.

Brain Injury is Contagious – With shock and stress your brain might stop working the way it used to. You may experience memory loss, forgetfulness, following through with plans, lack of organizational skills, etc. TBI caregivers deal with a new plate of responsibilities in epic proportions. Some caregivers find it necessary to write every detail down (i.e. wash my hair). There are even stats to back up our forgetfulness and occasional depression and anxiety.

I Don’t Know How to Ask For Help – This was by far the hardest for me. I had too much pride and began to develop guilt and inadequate feelings like, I’m not doing a good enough job. Should I be leaving him to go to work? Is it ok for me to have free time?

Taking Care of Myself is a Group Effort – It sometimes means that you have to say “no” to phone calls, emails and events that you used to say “yes” too! Those very people who told you to take care of yourself may even get offended. Saying “no” will give you permission to get the much needed quiet time away from the world.

To truly support a caregiver in successful self-care, expectations need to be substantially lowered. This will lift the caregivers load enormously! Telling a caregiver to “take care of themselves” initially after an incident, may be too overwhelming. This advice needs to be delicately communicated in a loving manner at the right time and phase.  The closer a loved one is, the better they will be able to discern when it is essential to help a caregiver understand the “self-help” concept.                                                                                                         

I’m Not Perfect and There’s No Manual – Some days you will shine at caregiving and some days you won’t and you may doubt yourself. This is an intense situation. It’s a brain injury and it’s not just packaged into a small amount of time. It’s a lifetime role change. Just do the best you can and forgive yourself.

We received a large packet of TBI and Neuro Rehab information when we were discharged from the hospital, but I have no idea what happened to it.  I was in survival mode during the first 6 months after Greg came home.  Details and instructions were difficult to remember and organize. There was significant pressure coming at me from all angles. Keeping things straight became a foreign strategy.                               

Brain Injury Doesn’t Go Away – I received a lot of help at first and then support started to get quiet. In some ways it’s comparable to a death. Family and friends sort of go away over time. I realized its natural, but I was still trying to handle significant TBI rehab issues. Brain injury doesn’t go away. It goes with you on vacation and it’s with you everywhere. People will have to adjust to a new way of interacting with you and your survivor. Your friends and family may miss the old you, who you were individually and as a couple. That’s okay too.

I found that the first year is about surviving.  Then it’s about processing all the things you’ve lost while still being grateful for what you still have. This is much harder work!      

Making Lemonade from Lemons is an Art Form – Most of the comments I heard from Greg’s accident were positive and supportive. However, a few caught me off guard making me feel as if our lives were ruined. I refused to accept his brain injury as a life in ruins. If anything, it has provided us the challenge of living better and more productive lives than we were before.          

Volunteering in the TBI Community – Greg’s brain injury provided us both with volunteer opportunities that we never would have imagined. It’s brought us closer together in so many ways. It’s about looking for the silver lining in life.  It’s about lowering our expectations and getting real about what really matters in life like relationships, joy, time with loved ones, great meals together, sunsets, etc. What we would have considered small accomplishments are now huge victories.

Some of Laura’s thoughts and ideas originated from Abby Maslin, Reinventing our family. Ref: http://www.abbymaslin.com/ I’ve been reading Abby’s blog and I highly recommend it. She expresses herself very well and also writes articles for  http://www.brainline.org/abbymaslin/

For more about Greg and Laura Nordfelt’s story, see the articles I shared on March 30, 2014 and their news interview on September 20, 2015.

Thanks Greg and Laura for all you do for the Brain Injury community.

Greg Nordfelt’s Story

Image credit: Greg & Laura 2011

One of the benefits of my caregiving journey is the people I meet and have the privilege to rub shoulders with. I met Greg and Laura Nordfelt at the 2013 Annual Brain Injury Conference. Immediately, our hearts connected when they shared their story with me. The circumstances which caused Greg’s traumatic brain injury (TBI) were different from Mark’s, but the feelings and experiences with therapy and the fight to return to a familiar way of life are very similar. They agreed to let me share their story on Uniting Caregivers in March of 2014, Greg and Laura Nordfelt’s Story. We have kept in touch over the past two years and I’ve enjoyed my friendship with them. Watching this couple grow and seeing the amazing outreach they both give to others inspires me. Thursday, September 17, 2015, Greg shared more of his story with Channel 4 News. With their permission, I share what Laura writes and the Channel 4 News interview.

“I am so proud of Greg Nordfelt and this interview on Thursday with Channel 4 news. Most of the recording ended up on the cutting room floor, but what showed was a glimpse of what he has been through in the last 4 years with his recovery process. More than all of this is the amazing job he has done volunteering with the TBI patients since then at TOSH, who meet twice a week working through their aphasia issues. On top of all this, three weeks ago he started volunteering at Intermountain Medical Center (IMC) on the very floor where he learned to get his life back with Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapy, giving hope to TBI patients and their caregivers. This is my sweet, giving and incredibly loving husband. xoxoxo .”

http://www.good4utah.com/news/local-news/new-study-provides-better-treatment-for-traumatic-brain-injury-patients

Image Credit: Greg & Laura 2011

I appreciate the inspiration Greg and Laura give to everyone who knows them. I am grateful for the awareness of TBI they spread by sharing their story. Together they are a powerhouse and are making a positive difference in our community. I can’t wait to see what they accomplish next. They are wonderful and I’m blessed by their friendship. Ride on Greg and Laura!