This is my story along an uncharted path, so far away from my original travel plans.
And yet...I got to go anyways!
And yet...I got to go anyways!
My journey unknowingly began in 2020 when I resigned from my corporate job to live a life of travel, diving, and adventure. It would be a sabbatical of sorts for a year, maybe two. Along with some global travel, I planned to hit all 50-states to dive and coordinate cleanup efforts as an Ocean Ambassador for the Inland Ocean Coalition. Only, the world had other plans. Within days of leaving my lucrative job the pandemic not only canceled my adventures, but it locked me down with my daughter, grandson, and estranged spouse. It became a time to slow down and form lasting memories I would not have had otherwise. I was able to watch my little grandson grow while his mom completed her CNA program. Later that summer, while my spouse and I were each out of the house (on independent trips trying to salvage a bit of our damaged travel plans) we lost all of our stored belongings in a garage fire. Thirty-some years of our lives - up in smoke! Through the process that followed, my spouse and I became closer friends and we even ventured in on purchasing a property together later that fall.
Then, November 6, 2020, I experienced blunt-force trauma to the head that knocked me into darkness. All the result of a harmless looking SCUBA diving mask! Nobody was around to see it happen. When I got up, I walked over to tell my dive buddy we should call Divers Alert Network (DAN) for advice…but I just stood there confused. I had no idea why I was standing there nor what was so important for me to tell her. Within less than a minute, trauma induced amnesia set in and I literally forgot it ever happened. I figured I was just checking to see if she was ready yet (why else would I be standing there?). We went SCUBA diving as planned, neither of us aware that I had wacked myself in the head moments earlier.
For 6 agonizing months, I tried to navigate a broken medical system chasing the unknown. I felt horrible – but WHY? In February 2021, before I remembered the initial injury, I hit myself again. While kayaking, I lost my balance and fell into the water. The lifejacket I was wearing deployed, ripping the Velcro on the left side which jolted my head sideways. The jolt smashed my sunglasses into my temple, breaking them in the same spot I was already unknowingly injured. While this second blow hurt like hell, I didn’t think much of it at the time since I already felt so horrible.
Finally, in March 2021, after an MRI, some of my concerns were validated when they discovered a hematoma and cyst-like tissue below the skin on my left temple. After an injection dissolved the hematoma, my memory slowly and traumatically started to return as very real nightmares. Once I fully recalled the injury, my neurologist at the time informed me that I had sustained a concussion, and now that the hematoma was gone, I should feel normal in a couple weeks and could resume SCUBA diving then. While that sounded fantastic, it was so far from the TRUTH!
Then, November 6, 2020, I experienced blunt-force trauma to the head that knocked me into darkness. All the result of a harmless looking SCUBA diving mask! Nobody was around to see it happen. When I got up, I walked over to tell my dive buddy we should call Divers Alert Network (DAN) for advice…but I just stood there confused. I had no idea why I was standing there nor what was so important for me to tell her. Within less than a minute, trauma induced amnesia set in and I literally forgot it ever happened. I figured I was just checking to see if she was ready yet (why else would I be standing there?). We went SCUBA diving as planned, neither of us aware that I had wacked myself in the head moments earlier.
For 6 agonizing months, I tried to navigate a broken medical system chasing the unknown. I felt horrible – but WHY? In February 2021, before I remembered the initial injury, I hit myself again. While kayaking, I lost my balance and fell into the water. The lifejacket I was wearing deployed, ripping the Velcro on the left side which jolted my head sideways. The jolt smashed my sunglasses into my temple, breaking them in the same spot I was already unknowingly injured. While this second blow hurt like hell, I didn’t think much of it at the time since I already felt so horrible.
Finally, in March 2021, after an MRI, some of my concerns were validated when they discovered a hematoma and cyst-like tissue below the skin on my left temple. After an injection dissolved the hematoma, my memory slowly and traumatically started to return as very real nightmares. Once I fully recalled the injury, my neurologist at the time informed me that I had sustained a concussion, and now that the hematoma was gone, I should feel normal in a couple weeks and could resume SCUBA diving then. While that sounded fantastic, it was so far from the TRUTH!
