Vicky Martin

'Lack of diagnosis left me frightened and confused'

Brain injury can often go undiagnosed, leading to people living with the effects without understanding why their lives have changed and not receiving the support they need. It took three years for Vicky Martin to discover she had sustained a brain injury, by which time her life had fallen apart. Today, 13 years later, 38-year-old Vicky has regained an element of control of her life. This is her story.

It was strange. Despite the pickup truck hitting my car at speed and shunting me yards down the road, it appeared I'd escaped relatively unhurt. I didn't even go to the hospital until much later that day, and even then I was discharged after a check-up.

Although I'd momentarily lost consciousness, I didn't receive a scan. Instead, I went back home to my husband to get on with life. Alas, this was just not possible.

Suddenly everyday tasks were impossible; I couldn't cook or take care of myself and my short-term memory was so bad that I couldn't remember where I lived or what red and green traffic lights meant. It was incredibly frightening and confusing. I no longer knew who I was and had no control of my life. It put tremendous pressure on my marriage and, five months after the accident, I ended the relationship.

Three years later, a solicitor who was helping me with my compensation claim recognised my symptoms and suggested I may have sustained a brain injury in the accident.

Although sceptical, I agreed to see a neuropsychologist - and the meeting was to change my life. Suddenly, here was someone who recognised what I was going through and could help me understand why I was struggling.

At this time, I started to attend meetings at Headway North Derbyshire. It was encouraging to be around people who were going through similar things to me. I knew then that I wasn't alone.

It turns out that I'd suffered frontal lobe damage in the crash. As well as my memory problems, the injury had changed my personality. But although I had a better understanding of why my life had changed, I still had to rebuild it from scratch.

For ten years I lived alone and sat in my tiny bedroom, hiding from the world the majority of the time, only venturing out with my new puppy. Then I got another. The typical obsessive thing happened and I fixated on the dogs. They gave me focus and a reason to get up in the morning.

I finally won my compensation claim a full ten years after the accident and put the money to good use by buying a house in the country. I then obtained a boarding licence so that I could look after other people's dogs and I started my own business, which is
going really well.

Today, I'm a different person. I'm more assertive, which can cause friction in family relationships at times. I still struggle with articulation, spelling, reading and retaining information, while my balance is poor. But I'm more confident and more in control.

Finally, I feel that I am on my way back. I don't feel 'normal', but coping strategies are helping me to live my life again. I'm excited about the future, which is a wonderful feeling.