Publications
Lessons From Little Red Riding Hood
The story is told that Little Red Riding Hood's father had been to his mother's house the week before Red went. On the way he had run across the wolf as well, but being older and wiser had not fallen for the wolf's tricks. When he got home he thought to himself, "I must tell Red about the wolf." It was late and he wasn't sure how to tell her, so he put it off. Later in the week he wanted to tell her again but thought, "I don't want to scare her from going to see her grandmother." The next day is when Red went to her grandmother's house and we all know that story. When her father got home from work and heard her story he was sad and angry that he hadn't talked with her about the wolf beforehand. Fortunately for him things turned out fairly well. Red was shaken but alive and safe.
There are some subjects that are hard for us to talk about as individuals and families. We know we need to talk about them, but the words get caught in our throat or we avoid the subject and hope things will just get better or we hope people will guess what it is we want. Sex, death, abuse, disabilities, and alcohol/other drug use are some of these subjects. There are as many excuses why we avoid these subjects as there are people among us. Some of the big excuses are: we are uncomfortable and don't know what to say to get started, our parents avoided these subjects with us and we never learned how to talk about them, we are afraid of the other person's reaction, we don't like confrontation and conflict, we don't want to make things worse, we feel guilty about our own experiences with these subjects, and we feel we are invading another person's space.
It is not the purpose of this article to try to tackle all of these subjects. We would like to offer some information and thoughts about ways to start the conversation about the use of alcohol and other drugs after a head injury. We have developed a booklet titled User's Manual for Faster... More Reliable Operation of a Brain after Head Injury. This booklet is offered as a starting point for survivors and families to start talking about this important issue.
The reason this is an important issue is that roughly half or more of persons that have had a head injury have a history of or are at risk for developing a problem with alcohol or other drug abuse. This means that many survivors and family members are wrestling with choices, decisions and problems related to using alcohol and other drugs, but very few persons are talking about this issue. This would indicate that most persons are making uninformed decisions about this issue. I hope you won't be one of them. Read the booklet, talk with someone, ask questions and get solid information.
Head injury recovery requires most of a person's energy, resources and motivation. There are many reasons why it is a bad idea to drink or use other drugs after a head injury. The User's Manual addresses eight of these reasons. Hopefully, by reading, talking and planning you can be informed, make healthy decisions and not get into trouble like Little Red Riding Hood.
I believe the reality of starting to talk about it is
much less disturbing than the fear and anxiety anticipating the conversation.
If you would like more information, help finding someone to talk with
about alcohol and other drug use, did not receive a booklet and would
like one, or would like to make comments about the booklet, please call
the Ohio Brain Injury Association, 614/481-7100 or, Gary
L. Lamb-Hart
Ohio Valley Center, 614-293-3802. Arrangements can also be made for a
presentation to your local Brain Injury Support Group.
Ohio Brain Injury Association Fall 1994
Reprinted here by permission of OBIA and the author