Brain injury is not the end
Milly Parker thought her life was over when she was diagnosed with an acquired or traumatic brain injury after a car crash 13 years ago. Launching Brain Injury Awareness Week in Geelong, Australia, Ms Parker explained how she woke up in the intensive care unit after an accident and discovered her life had changed. She was a 21-year-old accounting student with a hectic social life and a career carefully mapped out. Suddenly, she couldn't study. Her injury affected her memory, her ability to work with numbers and complex plans. Socializing was traumatic and working a nine-to-five job was impossible. For seven years, Ms Parker struggled with depression, unable to come to terms with her injury. She spent a year in rehabilitation and five years in the system. Eventually she learned to work with her strengths and focus on what she could do, rather than what she couldn't. “I stopped being embarr assed of my brain injury,” Ms Parker said. “And I stopped thinking I was broken and useless.” She realized while her gift for numbers was gone, her creativity had grown. “Having a short attention span is great for coming up with new ideas,” she said. She created a home business called Happy Yappers, selling gourmet dog biscuits. The business flourished and she now exports the dog biscuits nationally and around the world, including Harrod's in London.
