In someone else’s shoes: How do we perceive the world with a brain injury?

Steven Pisano puts on a t-shirt while breathing through a straw and wearing skii gloves and weighted vest.

For most people, it’s difficult to imagine the experience of living with a brain injury. In celebration of Brain Injury Awareness Month in March, ServiceNet’s Strive Clinic let staff experience something similar during an event held on March 31.

The event’s goal was to give ServiceNet staff insight on how someone with a brain injury may perceive the world. The clinic held brain injury simulations, quiet education bingo, and showed videos created by clients.

Occupational therapist Kim Morales ran the simulations with Teagan Gobiel and Steven Pisano, two occupational therapy students from Springfield College.

Morales showed staff a variety of simulations, each representing different brain injury symptoms. Much like actual brain injuries, each person responds differently to the simulations. Some people can perform the tasks somewhat easily, others not so much.

The simulation exercises can get easier after some repetition, as the body adapts to unfamiliar circumstances. The Strive Clinic helps clients redevelop skills, find modifications and teaches them how to adapt.  Repetitions help build neural pathways within the brain, and like muscles, those repetitions help build those skills.

Throughout the day, guests tried different everyday tasks with modifactions to simulate a brain injury.

“A lot of these folks want to do certain things to increase their independence. If they feel more independent than before— it increases their quality of life,” said Morales.

Staff also watched short videos created by clients at the Strive Clinic. Clients introduced themselves and spoke about their experiences, what they do in their day-to-day and what they learn from staff. Some videos also showed how clients have developed throughout their time at the clinic.

One client, Nicki, thanked the clinic for helping her develop tools to adapt and redevelop skills. She’s currently working on her goals: participating in a 5K race and creating art like she did before her injury.

Another client, Charlie, spoke about his grandchildren, friends, and love for chocolate, all of which give him encouragement to find improvements in his life. To him, staff members are like sports coaches, giving him encouragement and advice.

The root of the event was communication. Empathizing with a client and understanding how they may view the world can help bridge gaps in communication. Ellen Werner, Strive Clinic’s director of operations, said understanding brain injury and finding the best communication methods are important when it comes to caring for someone with a brain injury.

“Each brain injury is different. The context of the person before their brain injury– their perspective on the world, makes a big difference in communication,” said Werner.