Waking up as if you haven't lived
By: Emily Jeacock
How my friend woke up with Amnesia..
I chose to study Amnesia after traumatic events because a very close friend of mine had to experience this. Nobody should have to wake up with Amnesia and be unsure of their lives and forget why they had to wake up with a blank mind, not familiar with anything or anyone in their life.
Can you imagine waking up in a hospital bed unsure of why you are there? My best friend, Ellie can. It was a surprisingly warm day in England and Ellie was out with her mom and siblings picking raspberries at the local filed just off of the motorway. Just as she was walking away from the field, a drunk driver hit her, throwing her 10 feet away from where she was standing, and later hitting her mom, sister, and brother.Within minuets Ellie and her family were being care flighted to the local hospital, unconscious and in critical condition.
The hospital then notified Ellie's dad, who dropped everything and rushed over to the hospital.
After a few days of being unconscious, Ellie finally opened her eyes. In a daze, Ellie felt like she was inn a dream. He didn't recognize her dad, let alone know why she was lying in the hospital. As Ellie listened to the doctor explain to her what had happened, all she did was cry. Ellie knew that it was going to be a long road to recovery but knew that maybe one day, she wouldn't being living in fog anymore.
Following 5 months or rehab and brain treatments, Ellie is finally living somewhat of a normal life and out of the fog.
WHAT is AMNESIA & how it affects the BRAIN
While suffering from amnesia, the frontal or anterior temporal regions are partly damaged resulting in the inability the create new memories. There is also evidence that traumatic stress events can lead to long term reduction of the brains hippocampus, the internal organ that is involved in the process of creating and making memories.
Research & Experiments
Just 10 weeks after their wedding day, Kim and Krickitt Carpenter were driving home when a truck rear ended them. Kim was banged up and bruised where as Krickitt, unconscious, had to be cut out and airlifted to the hospital.
The head injuries that Krickitt had experienced were so severe that when she woke up she remembered nothing. she couldn't even remember how to dress herself, brush her teeth, and not even how to walk.
Kim, Krickitt's husband, said, "Not only did she not remember that we were married, but she didn't recognize me.'
When Krickitt was finally released from hospital, she returned to New Mexico with Kim, to a town she had no memory of, and where she knew no one.
The couple also tried counselling, where they were told that they needed to establish some new memories together in order for Krickitt to form a real emotional attachment to Kim. The Carpenters started their relationship from the beginning again, going on dates, to the movies, bowling, and enjoying long walks.Three years after the accident, Kim and Krickitt got married for a second time, to create for her fresh memories of their wedding day.
BY: Jane Mulkerrins
Kim and Krickitt
Krickitt
The Carpenter Family Today
Following the Accident
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