As part of the BBC3 Defying the Label series it has been very positive to see documentaries creating awareness of disabilities that are often ‘hidden’ from the general public. Me and My New Brain and Epilepsy & Me follows the lives of several young people with acquired brain injury and epilepsy.
Me and My New Brain focuses on Charlie Elmore’s story. Charlie had a snowboarding accident four years ago and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Since then she has overcome a lot. During the hour long documentary she retraces the day of her accident, meets other survivors and works hard towards her dream of becoming a qualified snowboarding instructor for people with disabilities. She takes times to discover more about her acquired brain injury and what the long term effects will be.
Epilepsy & Me follows several young people on their journey to try and gain independence. Amy is moving on from her residential college and is searching for a new place to live. Jack is determined to take his girlfriend Olivia out on a date, and Olivia is desperately trying to get a driving licence. All three have very different types of seizures but all three want similar things out of life.
Both epilepsy and acquired brain injuries can leave the person with the disability lonely and isolated. These documentaries, provide a glimpse in to the life of young people taking their disability in their stride, acknowledging the struggles but celebrating the achievements. Whilst the documentaries show it is important to acknowledge and understand disabilities it is also essential that we realise that people are not defined by them. They remind us that most young people face similar problems whether they have a disability or not and these people are #DefyingTheLabel with their determination to live a normal life.
If you missed either of these shows you can still catch Me and My New Brain and Epilepsy & Me on BBC iPlayer until the middle of September 2015.