TBI sufferers invited to share their stories online to help others

By Matthew M. Burke

Stars and Stripes

Published: March 17, 2012

SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is collecting video testimony from people suffering from traumatic brain injury, or TBI.

About 1.7 million Americans suffer a traumatic brain injury each year, according to the CDC, with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center estimating that since 2000, more than 233,000 of those TBI sufferers have been servicemembers or Department of Defense employees.

Since March is Brain Injury Awareness Month, the CDC partnered with the CDC Foundation to launch the Heads Up TBI Film Festival, an online collection of video and written testimonials about traumatic brain injury. The initiative is designed to empower affected servicemembers and civilians to seek help and to place important information for diagnosis and treatment at the fingertips of survivors, caregivers, health care professionals, parents, coaches, children, and school professionals, according to Gail Hayes, senior press officer at the CDC Injury Center.

The Heads Up initiative is a series of educational programs, that all have a common goal: to help protect people of all ages from TBI and its potentially devastating effects, Hayes said. The goal for the film festival is to ... give a voice to TBI so it is no longer the silent epidemic.

There are no incentives for participating, Hayes said, but at the end of March, the CDC and CDC Foundation will create a compilation video using the stories.

Interested parties are asked to log onto YouTube and upload a video sharing their personal story dealing with TBI, including why they feel this is an important issue, then tag the video with HeadsUpFilmFestival. Those who dont have access or interest in making a video can share their experiences on the festivals Facebook page, Hayes said.

You can talk about anything and everything in a video that gives meaning to your experience. What caused your brain injury? What changes are you coping with? Name some awesome resources that make your recovery possible. Share what hurts, what helps, who listens, who cares, Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury spokeswoman Jayne Davis said in a news release Wednesday.

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TBI sufferers invited to share their stories online to help others