This isn’t a disease or sickness that attacks the elderly or unwell – young people face an equal risk!
Eric Raymond is a former US Army Soldier who has suffered symptoms of traumatic brain injury and is traveling to the UK to run the London Landmarks Half Marathon all the way from Las Vegas.
I’m running the LLHM in support of SameYou because of the amazing work this charity is doing for brain injuries, life after recovering from brain injuries, and their continuing efforts in research and education.
A brain injury could be as simple as a mild TBI or as severe as an aneurysm or stroke and the impacts on our daily lives can vary just as widely. This isn’t a disease or sickness that attacks the elderly or unwell – young people face an equal risk! No one is immune from these complicated and scary injuries.
I have suffered multiple concussions throughout my life, both inside and outside of active military service. My recovery from one specific TBI took several years and my personality completely changed in the process. I was shocked to learn in 2019 that an untreated blood clot in my leg could have made its way to my heart or brain and ended my life in my thirties.
The presence of brain injuries and their recovery are everywhere in our lives – not just with athletes or Soldiers. Car accidents, trips, and falls, or even freak aneurysms can happen to anyone at any time.
Fit people who eat healthily and care about the world around them are just as susceptible to brain injury and everyone needs to know that treatment isn’t instantaneous and healing does not happen overnight.
Concussion treatments are evolving even today and I wish I could have had the opportunity for some of the new therapies when I was suffering.
I run about thirty miles a week and I have participated in over 40 half marathons in 8 American states.
I am thrilled at the chance to join the SameYou team and run through London. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the London Landmarks from a new perspective. More importantly, I get to encourage my friends and family to donate to this incredible charity and learn about what is sometimes a very slow road to recovery after brain injuries.
Thank you to the SameYou team for welcoming me to the group!