The opportunity to relay my own story has been so therapeutic and empowering.
However, I’d be dishonest if I said that there hasn’t been occasions in my recovery where disclosing my journey has only left me feeling so disconnected, isolated and alone.
I recently read an incredible article written by Caleb Rixon, Founder and Chief Vision Officer of genyus network. In this insightful article, Caleb demonstrates through his own lens of a fellow stroke survivor, the true power of connection.
“…Sharing (and listening to) stories is important, but the challenge for health professionals is to use these stories to improve their practice and the experiences for survivors…”
He spotlights the disconnection that can take place in one’s Rehalibilitation – disclosing the way in which some of his providers made him feel so isolated and at times, reduced him to his impairments. He says:
“When health professionals and systems reduce people who survive brain injury to their symptoms and “survivor narratives” they create The Isolation Industry – an industry that perpetuates a feeling of difference and deficit that caps the potential of those who they seek to help”
He encourages us all “.. to create a stronger connection; one built through stories, not statistics”.
Check out the Genyus Network where you can join a global network of trauma survivors and begin to see how stories powerfully connect and disrupt the isolation industry!
Read this article for more incredible insights by Caleb Riixon here