I realized that one thing that has greatly improved my life has been changes in how issues are handled at home.

My serious PCS struggles started in January 2001. My cognitive and memory struggles have not changed in the 11 years since. But, my daily life has improved greatly.

What has changed is my attitude and the growth in work-around skills and the attitude and communication with family members. Something that made a big difference was when my wife finally read and tried to understand my NeuroPsych Assessment report.

With the knowledge she gained, she became a support system rather than a conflict system. She would try to calmly pull me aside when she could tell I was about to lose control or struggling with anxiety/over-stimulation. She also stopped expecting me to do things that she thought were obvious. We began using a white board on the refrigerator to help keep order around the house.

With poor memory, I would forget to finish tasks or not even start them. Instead of her getting upset, she would just write it on the white board. Communication with someone with PCS / memory problems needs to be carefully considered. Family especially needs to adjust to reduce the stress and conflict from poor communication.

I hope others have learned some of the adjustment that can be made with friends and family and sometimes even co-workers to make life better.

If others could post their experiences, I'm sure many could be helped.

mark , my name is doug , i went down with a brain aneurysm two years ago , im 1/2 the person i was before that morning , but the one thing that did not change was the love and support from my wife , she is the true north on my compass of recovery , she has been by my side for all 7 surgeries and each nite in the hospital , she watched me being flow away in a medical helicopter to take me to the other side of the state to the university of michigan , then drove her truck the three hrs to be by my side , not once has she complained about a thing , i can no longer drive so she does that for me , i struggle with memory so she leaves notes for me on what to do and when to do it , she is my rock and i believe id never have gotten threw all this with out her / family does matter and when you have a wife a kids that are willing to give up there daily rutine to help you get threw yours , its god sent, i pray every day and thank the lord for my wonderfull wife and my four daughters