Ten years ago today, when Sophie was only thirteen she unexpectedly collapsed with a ruptured brain aneurysm. As her aneurysm was so large her treatment included the insertion of a 4.5 metre platinum coated coil in to her brain. Upon discharge from the hospital Sophie had to be very careful not to receive any bumps to the head due to the possibility of the aneurysm rupturing again.
After leaving hospital Sophie was given no information or support to help her deal with the effects of an acquired brain injury. Suffering with extreme fatigue, depression, short-term memory loss, lack of appetite, headaches, communication difficulties and physical weaknesses Sophie struggled to readjust to life. She said: “I felt a loss of control over my life and emotions. I couldn’t control the changes that were happening in my life, and I couldn’t explain them.”
As a teenager, the time when you start to gain more independence, Sophie found hers diminishing. Now she had to be accompanied everywhere due to her memory loss. “I wasn’t the Sophie I was before and often others couldn’t deal with the changes.” These changes left her bullied and isolated at school.
About a year after Sophie collapsed her Mum got in touch with the Child Brain Injury Trust. A Child and Family Support Worker visited Sophie and her family at their home and talked to them about the possible impacts of a brain injury “They provided information and insight on questions we had sought out for over a year.”
Sophie began attending speech and language therapists, psychologists and physiotherapists and undertook some memory training. Whilst her school life was not that of an ‘ordinary’ teenager the Child Brain Injury Trust helped by initiating information days for her teachers and peers to help them understand the challenges Sophie was facing. “The Child Brain Injury Trust helped me to readjust to life and manage many of the relevant stresses, with the hope I could live my life ordinarily.”
It is now ten years since Sophie acquired her brain injury. She has turned the focus from what was “wrong” with her and what she “couldn’t” do to achieving every goal she set out for herself. After succeeding in her secondary education and leaving with both GCSE’s and A-Levels, Sophie gained a Higher National Diploma in Sport and Exercise Science and this year completed her BSc Honours degree in Sport, Health and Fitness. Due to her personal experiences she has recognised that her true passion and interest is in “the effects of disabilities”. She has begun her career in supported living with adults, and hopes to start her Health and Social Care degree in February.
Whilst life for Sophie still has its additional challenges this will not stop her. Sophie and her Mum recently walked the
Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage route across Spain, to mark her 10th year of involvement with the Child Brain Injury Trust. It took about a week but by completing the walk, Sophie and her Mum raised over £1,600 for the Child Brain Injury Trust. “I wanted to mark these milestones, by completing the Camino de Santiago and raising funds for the Child Brain Injury Trust, in thanks for all the help, encouragement and motivation they have given me over the years.”
If you would like to donate to Sophie’s fundraising page for the Child Brain Injury Trust you can do so here. Or if you have been inspired by Sophie and would like to take on your own challenge you can check out our new Fundraising Challenge page here.