At first, the morning of April 10, 2012 appeared to be much like any other for Tammy Gould. Her 10-year-old son, Benjamin, had school in less than an hour, and she had to ensure he was ready for the day. After packing his lunch and preparing breakfast, she walked upstairs to wake him up. But, [...]

Read Full Post »

What occurred the night of Christmas 1990 was the last thing Al Bober anticipated. Instead of relaxing at his father’s Chicago home with his family, Al collapsed by a gas pump with a leaking brain aneurysm and immense head pain. “It was like somebody hit me with a sledgehammer,” Al said. He laid in the [...]

Read Full Post »

Jon is not the same person he was before the accident. According to his wife, he’s much milder and nicer. He appreciates his friends and family differently, and makes sure to say “I love you”. Many people who are told they weren’t expected to live tend to have at this new kind of perspective on [...]

Read Full Post »

Jim Johnson shares his daughter’s on-going journey after suffering a traumatic brain injury. This is her story. Erin enjoyed being with her friends and listening to music. In the summer of 2005, before her accident, Erin loved gel bracelets. Erin was a vibrant, yet stubborn, independent teenager. She played the violin and clarinet, and loved [...]

Read Full Post »

It was the click she didn’t hear that turned Tammy Helton’s life upside down. Last July 9, Tammy hopped into her Jeep to head to the home in Twin Lakes that she shared with her husband, Mike, and the youngest of their three children. The music was cranked, and Tammy doesn’t remember hearing the click [...]

Read Full Post »

By Mary Free Bed intern, Molly Cartwright For Eric De Ryke, learning to drive again was a triumph. His family and doctors thought so, too, since just five months ago they expected him to be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Today, Eric is able to walk, drive, and do his own [...]

Read Full Post »

Twenty-year-old Nicole has a history of cerebral palsy. In 2007 she underwent surgery for a brain hemmorage, which caused severe weakness and increased spasticity in her right leg and arm. Nicole has participated in therapy for the past three years at Mary Free Bed and at home. Part of her therapy includes the SaeboFlex to [...]

Read Full Post »

by Linda Truong, Mary Free Bed writer In 1999, a propane truck smashed into Pete Cook’s car leaving him with a traumatic brain injury (TBI). An emergency medical technician witnessed the accident and came to Pete’s rescue, caring for him until a trauma team arrived. Pete was airlifted by helicopter to Spectrum Hospital in Grand [...]

Read Full Post »

In January, Jan Levering took her kids sledding after working two 12-hour shifts as a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse. Exhausted, she decided to take one run down the sledding hill before sleeping in the car. Half-way down the hill, the sled turned 90 degrees and launched Jan 3 feet in the air. She [...]

Read Full Post »

by Jessica Sikkenga It’s been two years since my Dad, then 53 years old, suffered from a ruptured brain aneurysm. The amazing neurosurgeons at Spectrum Health performed a lengthy brain surgery on September 27, 2008, to place a clip on my Dad’s aneurysm. My family and I spent the two weeks following surgery by my [...]

Read Full Post »