Don't Take it Personal!

 This one is from my mom once again: 

In the beginning when Shannon’s brain was still raging, we dealt with really difficult challenges with her.  I remember her screaming at me, telling me I was the worst mother and she hated me!  You expect that from a young child throwing a tantrum or a teenager who is struggling against restrictions but not from your daughter who you were just trying to help her see some realities.  I sat through many doctors appointments where she would make me sound like I was a terrible abusive mother and I thought many times that they would be calling protective services because of what she would say about me to them (which was totally untrue).  But one wise counselor kept telling me “Don’t take it personal!”  I have thought a great deal about that phrase and I teach it to anyone who is willing, let alone to those who work with Shannon.  If society would learn to not take things personal, we would live in great peace.  Don’t be offended, try to understand.  That would be the most important piece of advice that I would give to another family dealing with someone with a brain injury.  If you take it personal, you will fight back, or justify yourself, or lose all empathy.  A person with a brain injury does many things and says many things that without the injury, they would never dream of saying or doing!  When the injury takes control, there is no rhyme or reason to what they may say or do and there is only black or white, nothing in between.