Sunday, August 27, 2017

Please Don't Blame Me

Trying to live my life on a daily basis is a never-ending battle. I go about things in ways that may seem unconventional or annoying, such as:
      I might be too annoying or too frustrating. It may seem like I never do anything or that I’m always too tired. I may get angry very quickly or walk away without warning. I may take too long to process words or always seem to get lost in my thoughts. I may seem selfish or too involved in my problems. I may seem too churchy or not enough. I may want more physical attention and less sexual; I might be stressed too often or get too overwhelmed to do anything – including clean my own apartment. I may wake up too many times in the middle of the night or not be able to fall asleep for hours. It may be because I love being with my family a little too much sometimes. I do have problems with social filters and cues. I do have problems with the volume of my voice. I do (or at least used to) have problems with the tone or fluctuation of my voice. I might be childish or upset that you don’t have enough experience. I may become upset over stupid little things. I may be very weak. I may never leave you alone, even after you've asked me to several times. It may be any number of things.
     But truth be told, I'm just trying to survive. Some of my methods are not fully thought out. Many of the things I do are out of impulse, or from deep emotions, like every blog post I've been wanting to post for the last month. The hardest thing about all of this is that it honestly does stem from the TBI. My accident literally was a desecration of my skull and destroyed parts of my brain. It was such a trauma that my body may never heal in some regards. The TBI does not have an ending; just because you cannot see it, doesn't mean that it is not there. My TBI is just about as real as it gets, but I do not use it as an excuse. In fact, doctors that have worked a lot with TBI patients commend me for continuing to work so hard against all of the struggles it adds to my life. But I still refuse to accept their commendation because I still make way too many mistakes. See, I will not ever allow myself to use the TBI as my "consequence-free ticket to life." I try my hardest to fight the TBI in all moments, but when I can't, I am sorry. It is not a result of me saying "oh, well I can blame it on the TBI. I don't even have the capacity to think forward enough to say "I can use my injury as an excuse!!!" This is a lifelong injury and I am going to have to deal with this every single day - people telling me I use the TBI as an excuse for everything. 

1 comment:

  1. I love you, Shani! I look up to you for your positivity, patience, and perseverance. 😘

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