Behind the hustle and bustle of a college campus, lies a service that few know about.

By Lisa Furgison

FALL 2002

You get up every morning and hop in the shower. Maybe you read the paper, have some breakfast, get dressed, brush your teeth, and head to work.

Now, imagine not even knowing how to brush your teeth or even why you should brush your teeth. It's all a blur to you. Are you dreaming?

This is no dream; it's a reality to those who suffer from traumatic brain injury.

What is a traumatic brain injury?

Upon impact, from say, a car accident, the brain gets thrashed against your skull and bruises the soft cranial membrane. You could compare the impact to a rock being thrown into water—once it hits the water it has a ripple effect. On impact, ripples go through the brain, breaking links to information that you had stored.

What do you do after suffering from a brain injury?

The life you once lived is changed in a matter of seconds. You can't remember your morning routine, it's possible you can't even walk, or talk. Two questions keep eating away at you: "Why me?" and "What now?"

To answer those questions, most people turn to specialists, some of which can be found in our own back yard.

The hidden treasure of SUNY

Tucked in a wing of Beaumont hall, at Plattsburgh State University, is a thriving non-profit organization that offers services to those who have suffered from a traumatic brain injury.

Photo by Lisa Fergison Coordinator Melissa Mose and client Mike Micanko in the Traumatic Brain Injury Center.

Although most people aren't even aware of its existence, the Traumatic Brain Injury center has been on the campus since 1994.

Since its creation, the TBI center has been helping people from birth to age 65 deal with their injuries.
They now serve up to one hundred people a year in Clinton, Essex, and Franklin Counties.

Melissa Mose, coordinator of day programs at TBI, says their main focus "is to get their clients to become as independent as that individual can become." But, of course, patients have to first learn to cope with the drastic changes in their lives.

"Accepting is really a difficult issue. Getting them to look in the mirror and accept who they are now is tough," she says.

But, according to Mose, with hard work and encouragement, they begin to see they can't stay locked away for the rest of their lives. They realize they can still be a functioning member of society.

"People with brain injuries are not mentally retarded; they aren't stupid—they just have a brain injury," says Mose.

Relearning

To help reinforce, or sometimes re-teach areas that may have been clouded since their injury, staff members create different activities for their clients to do.

"Forgetting how to brush their teeth hasn't been erased from their brain, it just has to be re-routed," Mose explains.

Activities might include working on communication skills, stress management, or maintaining friendships. Mose then takes them out into the community to practice these skills.

"Its much like a student listening in class, but if he or she doesn't go home and do the homework, its useless," she says.

Mose has seen dramatic improvement in her clients use of the new skills.

Are they ever cured?

Yes and no. According to Mose, "These people will always need some sort of support, it's a lifelong process, but if you think about it, everybody needs support at some time in their lives."

Questions? Email us.