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Summary
It’s a Joe Solo episode! Today’s show is hosted by Joe Borges and an occasional bark from his service dog, Stella. He’s talking all about the challenges of recovering from a brain injury and how the journey, even with a support system and caregivers, can still feel lonely at times. It can be difficult for non-brain injury survivors to relate, but that’s why Joe is working hard to create community of support through his blog JoeSoRocks.com and the YouSoRock Facebook group. He offers tips for coping and overall hope and motivation to keep persevering through your own brain injury recovery journey to not just survive, but thrive!

Topics Discussed in this Episode

• Joe’s mental deficits and PTSD and how his girlfriend helps with this as his caretaker and support system. She is very supportive, but he still feels lonely. He reflects on how his recovery journey has been one of the hardest times of his life, but also the best time of his life because he’s becoming a better version of himself.

• The difficulty for non-brain injury survivors to understand. He and most brain injury survivors don’t want people to feel bad or pity them. They just want empathy. That’s why it’s great to connect with fellow survivors because they really understand how it feels.

• Memory issues like how he used to be able to memorize lyrics really quickly and now it’s a lot more challenging.

• Questioning yourself is hard like when Joe suffers from dissociative episodes as a result of his PTSD and he thinks he’s reacting well, but finds out that he didn’t. It can make you like you do not know yourself and make you question whether you can trust your own brain when recovering from brain injury.

• Joe reflects on having a great time at Coachella, but questions if he really did as well as he thinks. He wore earbuds the whole time to help block out noise to prevent overstimulation. It was nice having fellow stroke survivor, Rian, reach out to ask how he was coping after Coachella.

• Shares a story from comedian, Mimi Hayes who suffered a brain hemorrhage, about how she hides things from herself by accident. Joe also hid his Apple Watch from himself by accident. Discusses the frustration of their post-brain injury brains playing tricks on them.

• Joe doesn’t want to just survive. He wants to thrive and live his best life. The more he gets better, the more he wants and that’s why the mental deficits are exhausting emotionally and mentally.

• The importance of routine for brain injury recovery.

• Meditation helps Joe balance out especially through overwhelming experiences. Helps him focus and be more mindful.

• Discusses how multi-tasking is difficult for Joe now post stroke.

• Sometimes Joe and other survivors, may lash out on those closest to them when frustrated from deficits and how both sides cope.

• Its a long and lonely journey so Joe is very proud of his brain injury survivor community. The brain injury survivor community inspires Joe to keep going. Everyone sharing their stories helps to inspire and motivate each other. That’s what YouSoRock spotlights on Joe’s blog is all about.

Links to Topics Mentioned

• Coachella, https://www.coachella.com/

• Brain injury survivor, Mimi Hayes, https://www.instagram.com/mimihayesbrain/

• X by Kendrick Lamar · ScHoolboy Q · 2 Chainz · Saudi, https://youtu.be/Zv479MCnThA

• Stroke survivor, Rianne, https://www.instagram.com/go.with_the.grow/

• Headspace app, https://www.headspace.com/

• YouSoRock Facebook Group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/yousorock

• Submit your story to be featured on YouSoRock, https://www.joesorocks.com/yousorock

Credits

• Co-hosted by Joe Borges and Lauren Manzano

  • Find Joe at http://joesorocks.com and @joesorocks on Twitter/Instagram and submit your stroke/brain injury recovery story at https://www.joesorocks.com/submit-your-story
  • Find Lauren at @laurenlmanzano on Instagram, @tankbbg on Twitter

• Produced by Joe Borges and Felice LaZae

• Edited by Felice LaZae, http://felicelazae.com, @felicelazae on Twitter/Instagram

• Theme song produced by Sleep Deez, @sleepvision on Instagram, @sleepdeez on Twitter