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Brain Injury Educational Event on March 10th

March 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Brain Injury: What you need to know

Free educational event – open to the Public
Saturday, March 10th, 8:30 AM – 2:30 PM
Broadway Building Conference Center, St. Patrick Hospital
Missoula, Montana

The Montana Neuroscience Institute Foundation and the Montana Brain Injury Center are hosting a day full of brain injury presentations on a wide range of brain injury topics which include veteran blast injuries, brain injury research and rehabilitation after brain injury plus two sessions about sports concussions. A short break and small snack are provided.

The knowledge, therapies, treatments and medications which are available now provide today’s brain injury survivor a quicker and more complete recovery than when I sustained my brain injury twenty-two years ago. What is most exciting?  A person living with brain injury can continue to experience improved brain function years after the two year post injury marker that used to be the standard predictor for maximum recovery.  Twelve years post injury I regained vocabulary words previously lost, could better tolerate noisy environments and my ability to learn new things got easier. Fifteen years post injury I regained the ability to follow a plot and read novels!

Brain injury is a chronic health condition that requires life-long medical treatment.  Please join me on Saturday March 10th to learn the latest and greatest in brain injury education.

Click on this link to view the session and speakers:  Brain Injury Event Schedule

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Dare to Feel Happy Now!

January 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

On Saturday January 29th, Missoula Businesswomen’s Network will host their annual MBN Busineswomen’s Symposium. I’m especially looking forward to this year’s event for a couple of reasons. I was privileged to meet and hear featured speaker Nan Gardetto last year when she presented her keynote speech at the 2010 Women in Business Conference held at Big Sky Resort last June. Just days before Nan was scheduled to fly to Montana, tornado warnings sounded. Determined to keep her commitment, Nan grabbed her conference clothes, airline ticket and speech notes before taking cover in her tornado shelter. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Happiness

Listen to the Wisdom of Your Little Voice

February 27, 2010 By 5 Comments
When you don’t know what to think, perhaps the best advice would be to postpone thinking and shift into listening mode.

Julie Powell, author of the best selling book Julie and Julia, shared her success story at the Missoula Businesswomens Network’s Fifth Women’s Symposium last Saturday, February 20, 2010. Julie candidly told the 400 women who attended the luncheon she did not develop nor follow a business plan to write her best selling novel which was then made into a movie starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. She pointed out how both chance and perfect timing played a major role in finding her voice as a writer. Julie contributed her success to listening to the wisdom of her little voice.  She said, “The crazier your ‘little voice’ is, the more you want to listen.”

Do you listen to your little voice?  Or do you ignore, over-rule and discount what your little voice tells you, based on whether you agree or not?

One of my blessings acquired from living with a brain injury was tuning in to hear my little voice. Previous to my brain injury, [Read more...]

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Coping Humor

February 6, 2010 By 2 Comments

Community Medical Center hosted their second Voices of Hope  Cancer Education Summit this week.  My personal interest in attending this event was because I wanted to listen to the cancer survivor stories to learn about their coping strategies. Both women shared how they used humor to deal with awkward moments, wore goofy hats to cover their bald heads, and joked about how they were going to pay their outrageous bills. Both women offered this advice, “When someone asks you if they can do something to help you, say yes. Let people help you.”

Joni Rodgers, best selling author of “bald in the land of big hair,” shared how her cancer experience led her to write two novels and how she became a best selling author, even before she wrote her memoir.  [Read more...]

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Never give up or lose hope!

February 2, 2010 By 15 Comments

February 1st shines brilliant with hopeful anticipation, not just for this year, but for this new decade!  It seems impossible that less than one month ago, January 4th to be exact, my outlook for the new year appeared dismal and my spirit disconsolate.

Here’s what I learned:  Sometimes when we are in a tough place, we don’t  really know how tough of a place it is until after we’ve moved past it. 

Unforeseen health complications, ripple effects of my brain injury, were forcing me once again to make major life-style adjustments.  It was all too familiar, like history was “starting” to repeat itself.

I pouted. I cried. Then I laughed, [Read more...]

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