I used to be that student who started an assignment at 12AM the night before it was due, finished it at some wee hour of dawn, and submitted it to more or less make an A. Once my brain was snipped at and poked around a bit, that part of me was no more. I…
All posts by Hiroko Nishimura
Why I Run
I have never been a “natural athlete.” I have never had talents for the athletics, and I trip over air periodically. Knowing this (I guess I was always a slow slothy child), my parents put me through vigorous athletic childhood. I swam for 10 years (2 to 12 years old), and played tennis for almost…
Our March for Brain Injury Awareness
This year’s hashtag/motto for Brain Injury Association of America‘s Brain Injury Awareness Month is #NotAloneInBrainInjury. The campaign for 2016~2017 is “Not Alone“: The Not Alone campaign provides a platform for educating the general public about the incidence of brain injury and the needs of people with brain injuries and their families. The campaign also lends itself…
A Lesson in Slowing Down
I am a huge proponent of the importance of “Listening to Your Body.” If it’s tired, I’ve told countless frustrated survivors, it’s not being “lazy” to stop and rest. It’s a necessity. This goes for neuro-, physical- or mental- fatigue. Since I began my recovery process from my craniotomy four years ago, I have become keenly aware…
What is Executive Function Disorder?
After my last post, I was contacted by a few people who were interested in learning about Executive Function Disorder. This post is about this elusive disorder, which could make doing work, getting organized, and being motivated very difficult, and my experience over the past few years in learning to accommodate to it. So what exactly IS…
My Lost “Motivation.”
My diagnosis of “Executive Function Disorder” after brain surgery and brain injury.
2016: Year of ME
2015 was focused on getting my feet rooted to the ground, reestablishing the “new normal” as a working woman after 20 some years spent as a student (quite a few of them spent ill). 2016 will be a year focused on ME: my physical/spiritual well-being, as well as in fostering relationships with those around me. 2015 was filled…
My Mindset Challenge for Positivity
My life, all things considered, is going pretty well. Almost half a decade into brain surgery recovery, and I have moved to NYC and began a career, and my mind is at its most peaceful in years. One of the biggest improvements to my life is the new found outlook to life, which, until then, had been bound…
Brain Surgery Recovery
On December 7th, I celebrate entering 5th year of recovery after my craniotomy to remove 3 Arteriovenous Malformations from my brain. My surgery was on December 7th, 2011. I was 22 years old, a college senior, and had closed my fall semester early after my 3rd and final Grand Mal Seizure. The fact that it has…
Living Small
Living in New York City makes one contemplate many things. The people, the consumerism, the money, the culture, the diversity. But closest to the self, it makes one contemplate SPACE and way of daily living. The space you are allowed to take up in this city is merely a fraction of that allowed elsewhere. While I have…