All Survivor Stories

Portrait: Evgenia image

Portrait: Evgenia

Hi, my name is Evgenia. In 2008, my life took an unexpected turn when I became a survivor of a near-fatal car crash. The aftermath left me with a multi-fragmentary fracture, extensive soft-tissue damage, clinical death, transient global amnesia and retinal detachment.

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Portrait: Flavia image

Portrait: Flavia

In January 2021, I had been feeling off for a while. I went to see an ophthalmologist. From that point on, it all went very fast. He sent me to get a brain MRI the same day, then I was sent straight to the university hospital. They had identified a 35 mm (about 1.38 in) aneurysm in my brain.

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Portrait: Laura image

Portrait: Laura

Aged 33, I was hit by a racing bike that skipped the lights whilst I was crossing the road. I was almost home when it happened. I remember recognising that an impact was imminent and seeing the white of the rider's eyes. After hitting my head, I only recall being picked out of the road by a stranger; the rider was gone.

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Portrait: Holly image

Portrait: Holly

I experienced an ABI in October 2021. Following a successful donor stem cell transplant to cure Hodgkins Lymphoma, I developed an extraordinarily rare form of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) resulting in multiple brain lesions.

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Portrait: Samantha image

Portrait: Samantha

My name is Samantha. When I have to tell someone about my brain injury, I just say I fell downMy story is long and, quite frankly, traumatising. So I say, I had a fall. I do wish my story was cooler for you. I wish it involved sharks or crazy daredevil stunts.

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Portrait: Juan Jose image

Portrait: Juan Jose

My name is Juan Jose, I am 35 years old and I am a social worker from the Republic of Honduras, Central America. I want to share my experience as a survivor of a ruptured brain aneurysm and the challenges that followed in my recovery process.

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Portrait: Chris image

Portrait: Chris

My name is Chris and I’m here to tell my story after being inspired by other survivors who have already shared theirs. I don’t like to talk about myself, but I think I need to practice doing this, and, for some reason, I thought this would be a safe place to start. 

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Portrait: Eliana image

Portrait: Eliana

My name is Eliana, and I live in Providence, Rhode Island, with my husband and two daughters. Although I was diagnosed with a hemorrhagic stroke on October 7, 2022, at the age of 40, receiving this diagnosis and timely medical care was more of a challenge than you’d think. 

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Portrait: Rhys image

Portrait: Rhys

This is my story about an acquired neurological condition which was estimated to affect around 1 in 3 million people when I received my diagnosis in 2016. Now, current estimates suggest it could be much more prevalent and affect around 1 in 2000 people, which makes it a borderline rare disease in the United Kingdom.

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Portrait: Tom image

Portrait: Tom

I have suffered two traumatic brain injuries (TBI’s) in my life. The first was in 2002, when I sustained a serious TBI after being assaulted. The second was during my penultimate university summer holidays in 2008; after cycling into a wall at the end of a sloping decline and falling 20 feet...

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